| As the importance and the complexity of international business has increased, tasks and responsibilities required of expatriate managers in their international assignments also have been imperative to international companies. Therefore, the effectiveness of expatriates has been one of the major concerns of business and scholars. However, few studies have been investigated the effectiveness of expatriates' performance in their international assignments.;The purpose of the study was to examine a linear relationship of selected independent variables: (a) job characteristic, (b) role conflict, (c) role ambiguity, (d) work adjustment, (e) appropriateness of interpersonal influence strategies, (f) length of stay in a host country, and (g) nationality of expatriates supervisors, and the dependent variable, the effectiveness of expatriates in their international assignments. Effectiveness was assessed by the expatriates' supervisors. Specifically, this study examined a proposed model of expatriate effectiveness among Japanese expatriates in their United States assignments.;Of 400 Japanese companies randomly selected, 87 companies agreed to participate in the study. A total of 103 pairs of Japanese expatriates and their supervisors were identified. Separated questionnaires for Japanese expatriates and their supervisors were sent. Japanese expatriates were asked to respond to job-related items while their supervisors were asked to rate the effectiveness of their expatriates. Of these, a total of 68 pair of usable data analyzed.;Hypotheses examined relationships between each independent variable and effectiveness, as well as the linear relationship of the seven independent variables and effectiveness. Multiple regression, correlations, and descriptive statistics were employed. Results indicated that the hypotheses were supported at the significance level (p < .05) for job characteristic and length of stay in the U.S, relative to effectiveness, while the hypothesized linear relationship between the seven selected independent variables and the effectiveness was not supported (p = .07). Length of stay in the U.S. was the most important variable explaining effectiveness relative to other six variables,;The theory of job characteristic was applicable to the Japanese expatriates in this study. However, the proposed model of expatriate effectiveness in an international assignment was not supported. Detailed discussions and implications are provided. Limitations and recommendations for future research are also discussed. |
