The transformational triggersof international experiences

Rachel Clapp-SmithSchool of Management, Purdue University Calumet, Hammond,

Indiana, USA, and

Tara WernsingIE Business School, Instituto de Empresa, Madrid, Spain

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the antecedents of the transformationallearning process associated with early international experiences. Secondarily, this research aimed toexplain how the antecedent “transformational triggers” may contribute to developing interculturalcompetencies.Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative study was conducted using open-ended surveyresponse data regarding the transformational triggers that occurred during a study abroad program.The data were collected from a sample of 82 participants from a Midwestern university in the USA.Findings – Four categories of transformational triggers were identified: immersing with localcustoms and people, experiencing the novelty of “normality,” communicating in a new language, andfinding time for self-reflection.Research limitations/implications – For a qualitative study, the sample size was sufficient forexploring the types of transformational triggers associated with early international experiences.One limitation of this study is that the sample studied were undergraduate students, or youngsojourners, experiencing early, and for some even their first, international experience. Future researchcan replicate the findings to confirm the same typology of transformational triggers exists for oldermanagers during their early or first international assignment.Practical implications – The transformational triggers identified from this study provide managerswith an understanding of the type of experiences that are important to developing interculturalcompetencies. With these triggers, they can design global leader development programs or expatriateassignments to include time and tools to reflect and provide support specific to each type oftransformational trigger.Originality/value – This study offers the first field study of the transformational triggers associatedwith developing intercultural competencies from early international experiences.

Keywords Cross-cultural management, Transformational learning, Management development,Intercultural competencies, Global leadership development, Trigger events, International experience

Paper type Research paper

International experiences have become a source of competitive advantage in the globaltalent marketplace of the twenty-first century. Recruiters seek employees withinternational business experience (Molony et al., 2011) and research confirms a positiverelationship between executives’ level of international experience and firm performance(Carpenter et al., 2001). International experience is an asset at any level of management sinceit enhances interpersonal skills and increases flexibility in handling problems (Spreitzeret al., 1997). However, it is unclear how international experience translates into specificmanagerial skills necessary in today’s global environment. Although the competenciesand skills critical for global leadership have been described well (Bird et al., 2010;

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available atwww.emeraldinsight.com/0262-1711.htm

Received 20 May 2012Revised 12 October 201228 March 2013Accepted 25 July 2013

Journal of Management DevelopmentVol. 33 No. 7, 2014pp. 662-679r Emerald Group Publishing Limited0262-1711DOI 10.1108/JMD-05-2012-0063

Tara Wernsing would like to acknowledge personal funding support from the Spanish Ministryof Science and Innovation grant ECO2009-10904.

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Bird and Osland, 2004), less is understood about the process by which people gain theserelevant skills from international experiences. Scholars suggest a “transformational”process occurs in which experiences differing in complexity, importance, and intensitytrigger comparisons to past experiences which generate a questioning of one’s beliefs andassumptions (Osland and Bird, 2008). However, which experiences generate this processof transformation?

To explain the developmental process that occurs during international experiences(Osland and Bird, 2008), we draw from transformational learning theory (Mezirow,1991, 2000), which provides one view of how deep learning results from experiencesbased on events that trigger disorienting dilemmas, critical reflection, and meaning-making (Henderson, 2002). In this study, we delineate the specific types of experiencesthat trigger transformation related to the development of intercultural competencies(Bird et al., 2010). Based on qualitative survey data collected during study abroadprograms, we build a typology of experiences that trigger transformations describedby Osland and Bird (2008) in global leaders and more generally in adults (Mezirow,2000). This study responds to Osland et al.’s (2007) call to study transformationaltriggers in their natural setting to gain greater insight into the specific types oftriggers that transform individuals by prompting a change in frame of reference(Mezirow, 2000).

Our typology presents four transformational triggers that we believe contributeto specific intercultural competencies (Bird et al., 2010). With the knowledge of thesetransformational triggers, those who design global manager development programs,as well as expatriate managers, can better understand the types of experiences thatare important to deriving intercultural competencies. Managers can intentionally focuson gaining these types of experiences, through the situations and activities theychoose, which at times may be contrary to personal desires for staying with familiarand predictable contexts and habitual behaviors that provided success in the past.

International experienceInternational experiences are considered any living and/or working arrangement outsideone’s home country. These experiences broaden a person’s openness and flexibilityin interacting with people from different cultures (Shaftel et al., 2007). Research suggeststhe extent of one’s prior international experience will have a positive relationshipwith adjustment to a new culture later in one’s work life (Black, 1988; Parker and McEvoy,1993; Shaffer and Harrison, 1998). Takeuchi et al. (2005) found the level (quantityand duration) of prior international experience enhances cultural adjustment to newsituations. Managers cite early experiences such as studying abroad during college as akey factor influencing their ability to understand different cultural perspectives later inlife (Clapp-Smith and Hughes, 2007).

There is evidence that international experience affects additional managerial andorganizational outcomes besides cultural adjustment. Reuber and Fischer (1997) showthe level of international experience of the top management predicts a company’s levelof success in internationalization practices. Perhaps more significant, executives’level of international experience is directly and positively related with firm performance(Carpenter et al., 2001).

Despite the evidence of positive effects of international experience on managerialcompetence and organizational performance, not all international assignments producedesired results. It is estimated that between 10 and 70 percent of expatriate assignmentsend in premature departure or underperformance, and the cost of an expatriate

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assignment can be approximately 100,000-250,000 USD or more (Shaffer et al., 2006;Shaffer and Miller, 2008). These conflicting results indicate that, despite evidence thatinternational experience develops and prepares managers for working in cross-culturalcontexts, we know little about what occurs during international experiences. To shedlight on the international experience itself, we explore the question of what happensto sojourners during early international living experiences that can be transforming andrelated to intercultural competency development.

Transformational triggersIn any international assignment, even very adaptable individuals may encounter aperiod of intense stress and “culture shock” (Adler, 1997). The stages to these shocksare predictable and stress occurs because a person’s taken-for-granted beliefs andassumptions about how to live and work are challenged. When people live in a cultureoutside their own, their frames of reference may no longer apply. Frames of reference“represent cultural paradigms – learning that is unintentionally assimilated from theculture” (Mezirow, 2000, p. 16). These frames of reference are assumptions, perspectives,mental maps, and mindsets that are shaped by the social groups and culture in whichindividuals have been raised and are used to construct meaning of their experiences. Asindividuals become embedded in a new culture, people experience cognitive dissonancethat results in various adjustments to make sense of and operate within a new culture(Maertz et al., 2009). To reconcile the incongruence of their frames of reference, sojournersoften transform their mindsets and behaviors. Such transformations can be incrementalor they can be epochal: “a sudden, dramatic, reorienting insight” (Mezirow, 2000) thatrepresents a shift in frame of reference. Hence, sojourners undergo “a transformation,and they return to their home country with new ways of seeing and thinking about theworld around them” (Mendenhall, 2001, p. 8).

Transformational learning processes contribute to general adult developmentthat underlie the individual expression of personality and characteristic adaptationsthat are influenced by culture and can change over an individual’s lifespan (McAdamsand Pals, 2006). Global leadership scholars suggest a similar learning process isnecessary to acquire the requisite intercultural competencies that predict global leadereffectiveness (Osland, 2001). To understand what competencies develop as a result oftransformational triggers, we present a brief overview of intercultural competencies.

Intercultural competenciesIntercultural competence has been discussed in the international business literature forover 20 years ( Johnson et al., 2004), and is defined as “the ability to function effectivelyin another culture” (Gertsen, 1990, p. 341; Bird et al., 2010, p. 811; Johnson et al., 2004,p. 527). One challenge in the intercultural competence literature is the breadth ofcompetencies. In a review, Mendenhall and Osland (2002) identified over 50competencies that have been proposed in the literature and deemed this quantity toomany to be useful (Osland et al., 2006, p. 209). Therefore, a recent review of interculturalcompetencies proposed a more parsimonious model of 17 competencies that can becategorized into three broad concepts: perception management, relationshipmanagement, and self-management (Bird et al., 2010) (Table I).

Perception management includes five competencies dealing with cognitiveapproaches to cultural differences. These competencies explain how effective globalleaders make judgments in the face of cultural differences, how they manage theirperceptions in unfamiliar circumstances, and how much interest they have in learning

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from cultural differences (Bird et al., 2010). Relationship management describesan orientation towards relationships, including awareness of self and others relatedto interaction styles. The five competencies in this category address an interest informing relationships with culturally different people, an understanding of others’emotions, and clarity of how one presents him- or herself in social settings. Finally,self-management considers the regulatory mechanisms global leaders use to managetheir emotions and stress, and an understanding of their own values that guide theirbehaviors. Within this category of seven competencies, some relate to relatively stabletraits, such as optimism and self-confidence, while others describe cognitive regulatoryprocesses global leaders use to manage themselves in unfamiliar situations.

Drawing on this framework, we believe the transformational triggers uncoveredin our qualitative analysis are linked to the development of specific interculturalcompetencies. We suggest two perception management competencies (i.e. cosmopolitanismand nonjudgmentalness), two relationship management competencies (i.e. self-awarenessand social flexibility), and two self-management competencies (i.e. self-identity and self-confidence) that relate to our transformational triggers. After presenting our results,we describe how the transformational triggers uncovered in this study develop specificintercultural competencies.

MethodsSample and proceduresWe recruited undergraduate students from a Midwestern university enrolled instudy abroad programs. We perceived an opportunity to study early internationalexperiences with this sample because we could identify transformational triggerevents more clearly from the early experiences of young sojourners with relatively lessinternational exposure than other potential samples, with whom past experiencesmight have created “noise” and made the isolation of transformational triggers moredifficult. This sample represents a population gaining international experience, formany, for the first time. Early experiences are recognized as highly formative, hencescholars have called for more research studying young sojourners (Black et al., 1999;Osland, 2008).

Of the 245 students e-mailed, 82 completed the online questionnaire, representing aresponse rate of 34 percent. Of the 71 percent of participants who spoke or studieda second language, 5 percent claimed to have advanced proficiency and 46 percent hadlanguage as a requirement of their program. Women were 71 percent of the sample,36.5 percent had never traveled abroad prior to studying abroad, and 43 percent wereaway for a semester, 3 percent for seven to nine weeks, 39 percent for four to six weeks,

Perception management Relationship management Self-management

Nonjudgmentalness Relationship interest OptimismInquisitiveness Interpersonal engagement Self-confidenceTolerance of ambiguity Emotional sensitivity Self-identityCosmopolitanism Self-awareness Emotional resilienceCategory inclusiveness Social flexibility Non-stress tendency

Stress managementInterest flexibility

Source: Adapted from Bird et al. (2010)

Table I.Overview of intercultural

competencies

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and 15 percent for one to three weeks. While the length of stay is not comparable tothe experience of an expatriate, research has nonetheless identified the first one tosix months of an international experience has a significant relationship with thedevelopment of a global mindset (Clapp-Smith and Javidan, 2010). Interestingly,the same study found international experiences of six months to two years explainedno additional variance in global mindset and it was not until participants hadinternational experiences of two years or more that additional variance in the globalmindset development was explained (Clapp-Smith and Javidan, 2010). We infer fromthis research that the initial months of international experiences are formative andimportant to study. Therefore, we believe the length of stay of our sojourners providesa useful sample for understanding what happens during early experiences that makethem developmental.

Upon returning, the young sojourners were asked to respond to open-endedquestions regarding their international experience. The data collection occurred online,which posed one limitation relative to a structured interview: the researcher does nothave the opportunity to probe for clarification or explore key statements (Straussand Corbin, 1998). Therefore, we took a multi-phased approach over the course of foursemesters. Table II provides an overview of the questions students were asked in thetwo years the data were collected. During the first two semesters, students were askedto describe what they had learned about themselves in the course of their experience.After analyzing initial data, it became evident that the questions were capturingtransformation, but not how the transformation occurred. We revised questions to usewith the sample of students that traveled abroad during the third and fourth phases ofdata collection. The revised set of questions was designed based on the preliminaryfindings of phases one and two. We did not return to our initial phase one and twosamples to ask them to respond to the new questions, as this would have createdinconsistencies in the time that had passed between the study abroad experience andcompleting the survey. Therefore, our results are based on two sub-samples answering

Phase 1 – spring 2007 Phase 2 – summer 2007Phases 3 and 4 – spring and summer2008

Your expectations aboutwhat it would be likeinitially?

Your expectations aboutwhat it would be likeinitially?

How has your study abroad experienceinfluenced the way you see yourself?

Your preparation tofunction in a differentculture?

Your preparation tofunction in a differentculture?

How has it influenced the way youunderstand others?

Your positivity toward theexperience?

Your positivity toward theexperience?

Trigger moments are events thatspark a realization for you or help yousee things in new and different ways.They can be conversations you havewith people, activities you observe, orbehaviors you experience, to name afew. Describe a moment while youwere abroad that influenced yourunderstanding of the world

The most important thingsyou learned about yourself?

The most important thingsyou learned about yourself?

The most important thingsyou learned about your owncountry?

The most important thingsyou learned about your owncountry?

The most important thingsyou learned about the newculture?

Can you describe a point during yourtime abroad when you saw yourselfdifferently than you have before?

Table II.Phased protocol

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different questions. The first data set informed the second by virtue of being thefoundation for modifying the questions in phases three and four. Such adjustments inqualitative research are common: as themes emerge from initial data, scholars suggestusing theoretical sampling (Strauss and Corbin, 1998), or to evolve the samplingprocess as is relevant to the emerging theory. This process is cumulative to “previousdata collection and analysis” (Strauss and Corbin, 1998, p. 203). Although the onlinequestionnaire limited the researchers’ opportunities to ask respondents questionsin real-time, the researchers had opportunities to follow up with participants throughe-mail if further clarification was necessary. For example, one participant referred tothe experience of learning a second language and realizing words can be “thin.” We didnot know how to interpret this and e-mailed the respondent who elaborated on theliberating effect of learning multiple perspectives through language and no longerfeeling constrained by words.

Analysis proceduresBecause the purpose of this study was to uncover the experiences that triggertransformation in frames of reference while living in another culture, the analysisrequired a two-pronged approach. First, we conducted a within question, line-by-lineanalysis, or microanalysis (Strauss and Corbin, 1998), to explore trends and themes inthe data. This entailed reviewing all responses to each question. The second approachwas a within person, line-by-line analysis, in which all the responses of each individualwere analysed. This second step identified when a participant had experiencedtransformation (Mezirow, 2000). This was assessed by finding statements regardingchanges to the self, such as learning new insights about the self, gaining new perspectivesabout the self in relation to the world, and experiencing changes in development (e.g.becoming stronger, more confident, more independent, more mature, more assertive).From this analysis 146 instances of transformation were found. When more than onetransformation was identified per participant, each one was reviewed to ensure that thereference to transformation was not the same incident or type of transformation. In mostcases, participants experienced more than one transformation.

In the within person line-by-line analysis, when a transformation was identified, theindividual’s responses to each question was analysed to determine the eventscontributing to the transformation. As stated above, scholars suggest internationalexperiences are transforming (Mendenhall, 2001; Osland et al., 2006), but it is not clearwhat specific events of the experience contribute to this transformation. While triggershelp to explain the nature of the transforming experience, it is likely that not onetrigger alone creates the transformation, rather, a transformation may occur as a resultof a collection of events. Therefore, we sought to uncover how many triggers maycontribute to, for instance, participants finding they returned home more confidentthan they had left.

In the second step, we identified 115 trigger events in the raw data. Thesetriggers were linked to the transformations identified in the first step. Not alltransformations had a trigger event that explained the occurrence of transformation,but each trigger was linked to a transformation in frame of reference. In other words,not every transformation was accounted for by an event, but each event was connectedwith a transformation.

In the third step, the list of transformational triggers was analysed for abstractthemes or patterns. These steps were not completely linear, rather the analysis requiredan iterative process common in qualitative data analysis (Strauss and Corbin, 1998).

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As transformational triggers were coded into themes, we returned to line-by-line analysisto ensure the context of the trigger verified the appropriate theme and explained atransformation in frame of reference.

ResultsResponses confirmed prior research and the participants indicated these earlyinternational experiences abroad were transforming, life changing, empowering, andpositive (Black et al., 1999; Clapp-Smith and Hughes, 2007; Gupta and Govindarajan,2002). Highlighting the transformative nature of the experience, one participant noted,“my study abroad experience has helped define my future,” confirming the insightsoffered by business executives that early international experiences are formative(Black et al., 1999). Furthermore, the early international experience contributedto building participants’ overall confidence. Self-efficacy is important in effectivemanagers and consistently predicts work performance (Stajkovic and Luthans, 1998).The experience made many participants feel more confident and independent.Students described feeling confident about their abilities to function as independentadults facing new challenges. One participant noted, “If I can find my way throughforeign cities, I can do anything.”

A typology of transformational triggers for early international experienceThe primary research question was what occurs during international experiences thatmake them transformative. Rather than uncovering the outcomes of studying abroad,the purpose of this qualitative investigation focusses on the antecedents associatedwith transformation in a sojourner’s frame of reference. The analysis sought to identifyand categorize transformational triggers that participants experienced during theirearly exposure to new cultures. Transformational triggers fell into four broad categories:immersing with local customs and people, experiencing the novelty of “normality,”finding time for self-reflection, and communicating in a new language.

Immersing with local customs and people

There is some kind of a connection point that has been created now that I stepped outside ofmy “bubble” and dove head first into another culture.

The international experience as took many participants out of their “comfort zone.”Overwhelmingly, participants described important triggers as interactions with peoplefrom different cultural backgrounds. These ranged from brief encounters on the streetto after class conversations with international professors to late night dancing withstudents other cultures. Within this category, a surprising number of participantsdescribed triggers when interacting with host families, including children, likelybecause the depth of the relationship formed with the host families allowed for moremeaningful conversations.

Often these transformational triggers highlighted a new perspective on worldevents that the sojourner had not yet considered. The numerous conversations withhost families made new perspectives about the differences between the participants’home cultures and host cultures salient. Participants also learned from theseconversations how others view their home cultures and how they see political events.Specifically, participants described the experience of learning the roles of women inthe host culture, the attitudes toward children, and the attitudes toward work anddaily life.

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New contexts expose individuals to new information. However, this is only half ofthe equation. The absence of the familiar is equally important to truly appreciate theimpact of the unfamiliar and novel experience. This study uncovered that immersionwith local customs and people occurred not only from exposure to new contexts,but also by the absence of familiar contexts. Many participants noted their dependenceon close friendships at home and a realization that without them, the participants couldfind new ways to relate to new people:

It has helped me relate to others who have had different experiences in life than me. It helpedme understand that my way of thinking isn’t necessarily the “right” or the “only” way tothink about something.

Experiencing the novelty of “normality”The participants were exposed to a “normal” way of life that was novel to them andunfamiliar. Observing and experiencing normality in another culture made salientparticipants’ own assumptions about what is normal. Many participants describedthe first few days in their new surroundings and the unfamiliarity of it as “scary”at first. Some triggers occurred on the airplane flying to the host country and otherevents at the airport upon arrival. One participant was in awe of the worldlinessof the nine-year old sitting next to her who spoke five languages and had alreadytraveled to 13 countries. Another participant pointed out how the mundane can serveas a trigger:

After the professor handed out a packet, one of them [a classmate from Libya] offered tostaple it together for me. Rather than stapling it on the left, as I would have, he stapled it onthe top right corner. I almost laughed out loud: I hadn’t considered that our languagedifferences expanded beyond our capacity to speak French. They were native Arabicspeakers, so they were used to reading right to left, and as a result, having the staple on theother side!

Participants also highlighted observing the daily routines of people in the new culture.They were as mundane as what people eat for breakfast and how they travel to work,or as profound as realizing the cost of housing, food, owning a car and the impact thesecosts have on how people live.

The novelty of “normality” contradicted implicit stereotypes. When people learnmore about a social group, they realize that stereotypes are false (Allport, 1954; Combsand Griffith, 2007), yet it is important to note from this research what triggersmade this shift in cognitive perspective possible. Participants described visitingFrench families and realizing that they can be very gracious, hospitable, warm andinviting, thus countering the stereotype of the rude French. Many had the experienceof learning about American stereotypes. The false stereotypes of American culturetriggered the realization that Americans, too, build inaccurate and incomplete imagesof other cultures. Thus, it is a combination of experiences that contribute to therealization that generalizations are distorted in both directions, and makes salientthe specific assumptions that a sojourner carries about other cultures.

Communicating in a new languageLearning to communicate in a new language played a large role in transformingparticipants. Language was so pervasive that it is difficult to isolate: it related toimmersing with local people and customs as well as with experiencing the novelty ofnormality. The transformational triggers involved with the different language encounters

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initiated an inquiry and greater awareness of the importance language carries in thought,culture, and identity.

At a surface level, language helped participants integrate into the host culture andserved as a symbol of their success:

Speaking in Italian, I asked a woman where the nearest bank machine could be found.When she responded in English that she didn’t understand Italian, I said “Nonproblema. Gracia mille!” About 30 seconds later I realized that I could have just askedher then in English. I had become so used to speaking Italian that it had become secondnature.

At a deeper level, language barriers exposed different ways of thinking as well assimilarities. A participant reported: “The language barrier was something that mademe realize that my way of thinking was different. Language significantly shapesthe way we think!” Another participant recognized that language influences how oneunderstands other cultures: “When you only speak one language, you only see thingsone way [y] With the ability to understand another language, you understand muchmore about the culture at the core of the language.”

In addition to the internal discoveries that language triggered, communicating in anew language interacted with the depth of local immersion and novelty of “normality”experiences. One participant described finding her way in France without speakingthe language. The language barrier was “fun” as it challenged her to find newways to communicate. Although she did not speak French, and her French counterpartdid not speak English, they both spoke Spanish. This trigger exemplifies thatbarriers exist when travelers do not speak the local language, but competence inat least one other language provides opportunities to forge relationships. It alsocontributes to building confidence and willingness to communicate in new ways andnew languages.

Learning to communicate in the local language triggered knowledge about previouslyunseen assets, reemphasizing that language as a trigger corresponds to more than onetransformation. Participants described managing to communicate despite strugglingwith vocabulary. One participant succinctly described how this experience integratesmultiple transformations in identity, creativity, and confidence:

I have always felt that I have been a good verbal communicator and that I rely heavily on that,so I was worried that if I wasn’t able to communicate in English, I would lose my identity.However, I began to see myself differently when I noticed how I would improvise if I wasfeeling like I couldn’t communicate in French. I paid more attention to my tone, my facialexpressions, and improvised to find other ways to express myself.

Communicating in a new language made evident the importance of language in notjust communication, but in understanding themselves. “From my experience, I alsolearned that English and my American culture are a big part of who I am and withoutthem, I wouldn’t be the same person.” Participants noted language is linked to learningabout the host culture and it is a carrier of individual and collective identity (Larocheet al., 2009; Phinney, 1990). Navigating without that identity “crutch” afforded participantsto reflect more.

Finding time for self-reflectionThe international experience created a deep level of reflection. Critical reflection onexperience and cultural assumptions is an important part of a transformationallearning process (Mezirow, 1998) and emerged as a major source of trigger events and

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transformation in frames of reference. In the absence of the familiar, many were forcedto look inward, where the only pieces of familiarity resided:

Studying abroad forced me to rely on myself more than I ever have before. By taking myselfout of my comfort zone and into a completely new environment, using another language,I was presented with the opportunity for unbiased self-analysis. I learned more about my ownculture, how much I really am influenced by it and how that is perceived by others. I alsogained a significant amount of self-confidence in my abilities as I had “little victories”throughout my stay.

Through time in self-reflection, many participants found a greater appreciation ofthemselves. They understood that with nothing familiar around them, they enjoyed thecompany of their thoughts. Participants described taking time to write in their journaland relishing these moments of self-reflection. Several noted they are rarely alone attheir home institution, yet during this experience, they had spent days by themselves,accomplishing new feats alone. These moments made them realize they are self-sufficient and capable. Self-reflection built participants’ self-awareness and self-efficacythrough the realization that participants could overcome language barriers, find theirway on unfamiliar transportation systems, and relate to people who are culturally differentfrom them.

Transformational triggers and intercultural competenciesThe four categories of triggers conceptually contribute to intercultural competenciesdescribed by Bird et al. (2010). Intercultural competencies help individuals “communicatemore effectively with one another about their differences, to evaluate more accuratelyhow their own behavior is affecting group processes, and to react in a more realisticand less judgmental way to the different attitudes and behaviours expressed” (Shaw andBarrett-Power, 1998, p. 1318). Table III shows the types of transformational triggersidentified in this research and the intercultural competencies to which they contribute.We have described the type of experiences that are antecedents to a transformation inframes of reference. We also believe that theoretically these experiences explain howcertain global leader competencies develop. Therefore, our typology provides insight intoantecedents to the development of particular intercultural competencies.

The first transformational trigger, immersing with local customs, demonstrates ashift in frame of reference can occur through interactions with local people in their localcustoms. Broadly speaking, immersion in local customs contributes to developingcosmopolitanism, a “curiosity about different countries and cultures” (Bird et al., 2010,p. 816). Immersing oneself in local customs fuels a curiosity for continued learning.This creates a spiraling phenomenon of development, in which exposure to newcultures enhances curiosity, resulting in more immersion into local customs (Gupta andGovindarajan, 2004).

Transformational trigger Primary intercultural competencea

Immersing with local customs and people CosmopolitanismExperiencing the novelty of “normality” NonjudgmentalnessFinding time for self-reflection Self-awarenessCommunicating in a new language Social flexibility and self-identityOverall Self-confidence

Source: aTaken from Bird et al. (2010)

Table III.Types of transformational

triggers

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The second transformational trigger, experiencing the novelty of “normality,” refers toa shift in frame of reference when the sojourner realizes there are many assumptionsabout what is “normal” or “right.” In this study, the young sojourners realized theirexpectations for how people and local circumstances should be are not necessarily“right,” rather they are one set of values and expectations for normal behaviour. A shiftin this type of frame of reference is related to developing nonjudgmentalness, definedas an inclination to suspend judgment about unfamiliar people or behaviours (Birdet al., 2010). As a result of international experiences, personal attitudes can movefrom subtle forms of righteousness and judgmentalness to tolerance, openness, andappreciation for diversity in cultural differences.

The third category of transformational triggers refers to communicating in a newlanguage. To realize that meaning shared through words inside one culture doesnot translate in another culture’s native language is a startling discovery for earlysojourners. This affects their ability to communicate in other cultures, both literallyand figuratively. Speaking the native language of another country helps with expatriateadjustment (Puck et al., 2008) but more importantly represents a realization of theimplications of shared meanings, assumptions, and identities based on language.Many participants linked language to their identities, as their native languagebecame a carrier of shared meaning, often not easily communicated in a new language.This transformational trigger contributes to the intercultural competencies of socialflexibility and self-identity as participants began to make meaning in reference totheir own “internal repertoire of thoughts, feeling, and actions” (Markus and Kitayama,1991, p. 226). With limited vocabulary, they learned to creatively find new ways tocommunicate and manage how they come across in distinct cultural contexts (i.e.demonstrating social flexibility). Temporarily losing their ability to communicateeffectively contributes to developing new ways to relate and at the same timestrengthens their connection with inner resources to “integrate new cultural knowledgewith existing mental models” (Bird et al., 2010, p. 819) contributing to self-identity andself-confidence.

The fourth transformational trigger indicates that finding time for self-reflectioncreates the space for sojourners to compare their cultural expectations to theirnew experiences. Reflection has been defined as “active, persistent, and carefulconsideration of any belief ” (Dewey, 1933) and critical reflection includes carefulconsideration of the social context and cause of one’s cultural assumptions (Reynolds,1998). Over time, self-reflection on one’s experiences contributes to greater awarenessof one’s strengths and weaknesses in social contexts, a critical capacity for managerialeffectiveness (Atwater et al., 1998; Schon, 1983) and intercultural competence (Birdet al., 2010). When self-reflection is absent, there is an increased risk of making poordecisions (Brookfield, 1995). Participants reported finding more time to journal andreflect on their assumptions concerning stereotypes, social roles, and attitudes towardwork. Investing time to review their experiences and broaden perspectives aboutcultural differences, including how they relate to their own culture, sojourners becomemore self-aware of their culturally conditioned values and beliefs. Hence, self-reflectivehabits contributed to sojourners’ self-awareness and hold implications for decision-making and future managerial capabilities.

DiscussionThe purpose of this study was to investigate how international experience triggers atransformational learning process that contributes to the development of intercultural

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competencies (Bird et al., 2010). Transformation in this context was defined as acognitive shift in frame of reference resulting in a new perspective (Mezirow, 1991).Through a qualitative, inductive data analysis, the antecedents of transformationallearning were investigated. Four categories of transformational triggers were identified:immersing with local customs and people, experiencing the novelty of normality,communicating in a new language, and finding time for self-reflection.

This research contributes to the literature on developing global managers in threeways. First, this study answers a call for field studies that examine transformationthrough international experiences (Osland et al., 2007). Field studies are presumedto carry more external validity and generalizability due to studying phenomenon innatural settings. Given that early events strongly influence later competency development,Osland (2008) argued that early international experiences should be studied. Hence, aqualitative approach was used to study young sojourners’ early international experiencesto explore transformational learning processes.

Second, this study identified four types of transformational triggers that occurredduring early international experiences. Transformational triggers in this study refer tothe antecedents of a transformative learning process that contribute to the developmentof intercultural competencies. Transformational learning theory (Mezirow, 1991) focusseson an aspect of adult development characterized by shifting cognitive frames of referenceand gaining new perspectives on life and one’s self. These shifting perspectives affectthe individuals’ goals and values, and shape the self-narratives related to personalidentities that evolve over time (McAdams and Pals, 2006).

The third contribution of this research was providing evidence that explain howinternational experience relates to the development of intercultural competencies.The sojourners’ quotes and the findings summarized for each type of trigger offerinsight into how certain types of experience result in learning new perspectives thatlink to specific intercultural competencies important for global leadership effectiveness.By explaining how triggers relate to intercultural competence, both practitioners andscholars can benefit.

The human experience is complex and many cognitive processes are difficult toisolate through research. Our study highlights this challenge in the social sciences, butalso provides opportunities for future research. As mentioned above, we found someof the transformational triggers overlapped or that more than one trigger related to atransformation in frame of reference. For instance, communicating in another languagewas a pervasive trigger that also enabled experiencing the novelty of the normality.Furthermore, as individuals immerse in the local customs, they are bound to experiencethe novelty of the normality. It is feasible that a combination of triggers could be moreeffective than one in isolation. For example, finding time for self-reflection may provideopportunities for gaining self-awareness, but in the absence of the novelty of normalityor immersion, it may not hold any bearing on the development of interculturalcompetencies. Thus, we believe an opportunity for future research is the explorationof the impact of each trigger alone as well as the additive effects of the combination oftriggers.

Practical implications and limitationsThis research poses practical implications that can be relevant to different audiences.Below we address what our findings mean for business sojourners, human resourcemanagers, global leaders, and international management educators. A common themefor each of these audiences is they can intentionally make time for the transformational

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triggers described in this study, either for themselves (global leaders and businesssojourners) or for others (HR managers and international management educators).

Specifically, here are a few recommendations for how our four audiences mayencourage the emergence of each transformational trigger. The first transformationaltrigger requires finding ways to fully immerse oneself in the culture. Businesssojourners and global leaders may do this by consciously forming friendships withlocals and making an effort to attend local festivities that celebrate the culture’sheritage. Such opportunities are often available in major cities around the world, whichaffords future sojourners opportunities to experience aspects of a host culture prior todeparture. For example, befriending someone from China and attending a Chinese NewYears celebration with the friend’s family may present a transformational trigger priorto departure.

Human resource managers and international management educators may set upmentoring programs with local hosts, to help employees and students gain greaterexposure to the local culture. Immersion may also include visiting museums tounderstand the history and cultural symbols that are important enough to be on display.When given the choice to informally spend time with familiar people with similarcultural backgrounds or with unknown culturally different people, sojourners may wantto choose the latter. By interacting with nationals from the local culture and usingthat time to discuss elements of the culture, such as politics, history and social norms,sojourners will likely experience the immersion transformational trigger more readily.

To experience the novelty of the normality requires sojourners take time to observedaily experiences that occur around them. It can be as simple as eating as the locals do,or as profound as venturing into neighborhoods that feel unfamiliar to the sojourner,for example, due to extreme poverty. By visiting local hosts and being guests in theirhomes, sojourners also get exposure to how people live their daily lives, what strugglesthey experience, and what attitudes are commonly held concerning human rights,women’s roles, relationships with children, and attitudes toward work. For businesssojourners and global leaders, allowing exposure to the “normality” of the hostculture requires venturing beyond the home culture hotel chain that serves homeculture cuisine in its restaurant. Human resource managers can help facilitate such anexperience, again, by arranging local mentors or through policies that encouragesojourners to experience the local culture as natives do, by approving only local hotels,etc. Finally, for international management educators, classroom activities maysimulate certain “normal” behaviors such as proper business greetings, normal socialinteractions (i.e. that in some cultures male friends hold hands in public) as well asproviding opportunities to experience certain cuisine and dining mores.

The third transformational trigger dealt with communicating in a non-nativelanguage. This research suggests that on multiple levels learning to communicate inthe local language impacts intercultural competencies related to social flexibility andpersonal identity. Making the effort to speak a new local language not only providesmore opportunities for immersion into the culture, but also exposes contrasts in theenvironment that may only be perceived and understood through acquiring the locallanguage. Based on this research, the process of learning to speak in another languageto discuss cultural differences can challenge one’s identity and increase creativity incommunicating. Human resources professionals may consider obligatory languagetraining prior to international trips. Global leaders may enroll in language courses orjoin language groups such as a Stammtisch (a German tradition in many cities in theUSA. It is a group of people who meet regularly. However, in the USA the Stammtisch

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is expressly for the purpose of practicing German). Finally, international businesseducators may also consider including language immersion as a requirement oftheir programs.

The fourth transformational trigger dealt with finding time for self-reflection.Without taking time to consider the relative meanings associated with internationalexperiences, it appears cultural self-awareness may be limited until the impact of theself-reference criterion is fully recognized. Participants benefited from journalingabout the experiences in the new cultural context, particularly the interactionswith local nationals and cultural assumptions that were challenged. Human resourceprofessionals may provide business sojourners platforms to enable easy journaling asa means to encourage such reflection. The quintessential image of an individual usingpen and paper to capture their experiences is no longer the only means for journaling.Global leaders and HR managers may explore “apps” that not only encourageself-reflection, but prompt busy sojourners to stop for a moment and capture responsesto specific questions related to comparing a new cultural experience to a home culture’snorms on a tablet or smart phone.

Although this study fills a gap in the literature regarding the antecedents that triggertransformation in individuals during international experiences, there are researchlimitations. For qualitative analysis, the sample size is robust, however, a sample ofundergraduate students may limit generalizing to a broader population. A follow upstudy with the participants as they advance in their career could provide insight into theimpact of additional international experiences on their development as global leaders.

ConclusionsThe study highlights that organizations and proactive managers may take stepsto accelerate the development of intercultural competencies during internationalexperiences through encouraging certain types of events (i.e. immersing in localcustoms, experiencing novelty, learning the local language, and finding time for self-reflection). The implications of this study suggest that sending managers abroad cantransform individual’s frame of reference if the organization and/or manager createthe conditions for experiencing and reflecting on specific types of transformationaltriggers. This research suggests four types of experiences are likely to shift a cognitiveframe of reference and result in the development of certain intercultural competencies.Thus interventions can be designed to accelerate global leader development using thefindings from this study.

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Further reading

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About the authors

Dr Rachel Clapp-Smith is an Assistant Professor of Leadership in the School of Managementat the Purdue University Calumet. She received her PhD in Organizational Behavior andLeadership at the University of Nebraska and MBA in International Management at Thunderbird,the School of Global Management. Dr Clapp-Smith has devoted her research to global mindset andglobal leadership development, publishing articles in journals such as the International Journal

of Leadership Studies, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, Human Resource

Management, and the Journal of Business Studies. She has also published a chapter in Global

Mindset: Advances in International Management. Dr Clapp-Smith has presented at a number ofannual meeting of the Academy of Management. Dr Rachel Clapp-Smith is the correspondingauthor and can be contacted at: Rachel.smith@purduecal.edu

Dr Tara Wernsing is an Assistant Professor at the Instituto de Empresa – IE Business Schoolin Madrid Spain, where she teaches Organizational Behavior, Leadership, and Coaching.She obtained her PhD in Management from the University of Nebraska, Master’s Degree inMarketing from the University of Arizona, and Bachelor’s Degree in Advertising from the

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University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign in the USA. She has more than ten years businessexperience in the marketing field, working inside the large corporations of Sears and Brunswick/Life Fitness, and within boutique firms in direct marketing and research. She has consulted withvarious types of organizations including Johnson & Johnson, Hollywood Entertainment,Walgreens, Unilever, Nebraska Council of School Administrators, and the US Department ofJustice. Her research investigates the processes involved in leadership development, includingdeveloping self-awareness to enact more authentic forms of leadership and recognizing theconstraints that unconscious factors place on the process.

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