Working Abroad: A Qualitative Study On Cultural Adjustments And Difficulties While Working With Other Cultures

The purpose of this study is to increase our understanding about how United States employees interact with cultural rules and norms while working in another culture as well as how the abroad experience affects employees when they return to the United States. More specifically, this research was done to gain a deeper understanding of experiences and tactics used by abroad business travelers while working with individuals from other cultures. Ten individuals were chosen to participate in this study; all were from international businesses in the Midwest. All participants were chosen because they had significant experience with traveling abroad for business. A qualitative approach was used in which individuals were interviewed to uncover their personal experiences. The researcher used the Constant Comparative Analysis to determine themes that evolved from the interviews. A total of seven themes were discovered: Interactions were successful on both ends; There was a lot of misunderstanding, a lot of learning on both sides; The big thing is creating relationships; It’s trying to figure out the reason why; There is no such thing as too much preparation; I walked away from that experience with my eyes a little wider open; and you realize different views regarding the United States