Self-Initiated Expatriates: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Professional Female Expatriates

Women’s Self-Initiated Expatriation as a Career Option and Its Ethical Issues

“…The studies used small samples and did not compare women across different marital and family situations. In interviews, single female Japanese professionals in late early career and early mid-career said that they chose to expatriate to work in Singapore (Thang et al, 2002), and mid-career childless and chiefly single women said that they expatriated in order to take up management positions in the Cayman Islands (Fitzgerald and Howe-Walsh, 2008). European and US female scientists and engineers who self-expatriated were younger but, irrespective of their age, were more often single and childless than men, whereas men often had a partner and children (Hansen, 2003).…”

“…Thang et al (2002) found that single, female Japanese professionals in late early career and early mid-career initiated their expatriation to Singapore, pulled by its lifestyle, a desire to travel, and a need to experience life outside Japan, while being pushed by what they saw as an oppressive national culture and to free themselves from a patriarchal system and the need to conform to cultural norms. Fitzgerald and Howe-Walsh (2008) found that childless female professionals in late early career and mid-career self-initiated their expatriation to the Cayman Islands primarily for their career -to gain a managerial or executive job -since they had no such opportunity at home. They were also pulled by the location's lifestyle and the effect the location would have on their career.…”

“…Mature-aged women interviewed during self-expatriation felt positively about their international experience and believed it would benefit their future career prospects (Fitzgerald and Howe-Walsh, 2008). When single Japanese women working in Singapore encountered career blocks, they overcame them by job-hopping from company to company, or from Singapore to other countries, and, as a result, gained promotion and better-paying, higher-level, often executive jobs (Thang et al, 2002).…”

“…The results of previous studies (Table I) suggest that women's proactivity -to overcome a lack of career advancement -explains why they self-expatriate. In studies of small samples with data analyzed by frequency analysis or content-coded for themes, female professionals said they initiated their expatriation: to gain better job opportunities in the host country than were available to them at home (Napier and Taylor, 2002); to gain senior jobs and opportunities for managerial work not available to them at home (Fitzgerald and Howe-Walsh, 2008;Thang et al, 2002); due to being dissatisfied with their career progress and poor work conditions at home (Suutari and Brewster, 2000;Thang et al, 2002); and to set themselves up for advancement on repatriation (Fitzgerald and Howe-Walsh, 2008). The results support Hirschman's (1970) theory.…”

Using narratives to understand the motivational factors and experience of being a self-initiated academic expatriate in South Africa

“…In addition, through good resources and facilities, participants were able to advance and develop their careers (Andresen et al, 2012). Participants of this research can be viewed as refugees who are architects and mercenaries (Fitzgerald & Howe-Walsh, 2008;Richardson & McKenna, 2002). This research revealed that SiEs are not solely driven by the desirability of the job, but rather the poor economic and political conditions in their home countries.…”