Title: The role of motivation and adjustment in selection of expatriate academics in China: an intensive study of a Chinese university with one of the largest foreign faculty staffs

Authors: Mary K. Swanson; Brian A. Swanson

Addresses: Robbins College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Fort Hays State University, 600 Park Street Hays, KS 67601-4099, USA ' Robbins College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Fort Hays State University, 600 Park Street Hays, KS 67601-4099, USA

Abstract: Throughout the world, numerous universities seek foreign faculty to meet their annual staffing needs for both English-speaking academic lecturers and oral English teachers. Recruiting and selecting quality foreign teachers are a great challenge for many learning institutions, including universities. Although there is ample research on adjustment and selection practices in international business operations, there is a lack of research for academic expatriates (Selmer and Lauring, 2011). This paper concentrates on a 25,000 student university located in central China. Although its location is less developed, pay is minimal, and pollution is significant, this university manages to boast a significantly large population of foreign faculty. This study shows a relationship between the expatriate faculty's motivations for coming to SIAS and their adjustment to living abroad and expands on this relationship's implications on selection of the best candidates.

Keywords: academic expatriates; recruitment; selection; international universities; teaching English; expatriate motivation; expatriate adjustment; working abroad; teaching abroad; foreign teachers; China.

DOI: 10.1504/IJQRS.2017.088110

International Journal of Qualitative Research in Services, 2017 Vol.2 No.4, pp.251 - 261

Received: 13 Oct 2016
Accepted: 23 Nov 2016
Published online: 24 Nov 2017 *

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