Person-environment fit and expatriate job satisfaction

Despite the prominence of cross-cultural adjustment in expatriate research, recent literature has criticized the theoretical foundation and dimensionality of this construct. Building on person–environment fit theory, we empirically investigate a multidimensional conceptualization of cross-cultural adjustment in the work domain, considering expatriate abilities and needs as well as environmental demands and supplies. We conduct polynomial regression analysis on a sample of 175 expatriates in South Korea. Results show that job satisfaction increases as perceived organizational support exceeds expatriates’ need for organizational information. In a similar vein, job satisfaction increases as expatriates’ cultural skills exceed workplace social exclusion. We visualize the identified relationships using response surface analysis. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.