Towards smooth transition: Enhancing participation of expatriates in academic context

Abstract The current study deals with one of the most important issues and challenges of globalization prevalent in most governmental and private organizations due to high-rise multiculturalism in institutions. The study is an attempt to identify challenges faced by the female expatriate faculty at Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia, concerning the impact of academic, social, and cultural life and aspects on the productivity of the organization. The study is based on the stages included in the ”rites of passage” with its threefold model: separation, transition, and incorporation/re-aggregation. The study adopts a basic qualitative descriptive design as it examines the way expatriate academics share real-life experiences using their perspectives. Focus group interviews have been the main research instrument. Eighteen expatriate faculty members working in three colleges under Prince Sattam University, KSA, were the participants. The findings of the study revealed that despite facing many hardships during the periods of separation and transition, the expatriate female faculty members gradually adapted to the period of aggregation and continued to work at the same university, thus enhancing the productivity of the organization. Future studies that will evolve from this study have the potential for positive social change to improve the quality of work experiences for female expatriates that work in higher education.


Introduction
In today's global work environment, multicultural teams have become an essential part of an organization. Many organizations are building multicultural teams, where members come from cross-national borders and different countries of origin. (Minbaeva. et al., 2021;Chen, 2019;Arifa et. al., 2021;Noethen & Alcazar, 2020;Liu, 2021).
Though transboundary academics has become a significant feature in different professional communities and represents a large proportion of the workforce globally, several diversity issues create problems in organizations and have bad effects on the work environment and productivity directly or indirectly at both individual and organizational levels. Although a majority of expatriates are male, the number of women, pursuing a career overseas is increasing. Yet, many studies (Carly, 2017;Platanitis, 2017;Renate, 2019;Singh & Kaur, 2022) claim that many organizations are hesitant to send females overseas because they perceive that women will have difficulty in the cross-cultural environment. This could also be the reason for limited studies on women's expatriation. Thus, further research across different sectors is essential. It is significant to redefine theoretical and practical understanding of the barriers that hinder women's participation in the expatriation workforce and to enhance their opportunities, especially with limited literature on expatriate women in the education sector and the wide distribution of women among the different technical fields (Shortland, 2018).
Most of the expatriate problems are related to adapting to the new work environment and different living conditions. Often these difficulties arise because of either individual, the organization, or both. Most notable are the pressure experienced by the expatriate: Different organizational and administrative systems; Poor implementation of regulatory agreements and difficulties in communicating with the local population; various challenges related to employee family support for instance: issues related to partner employment, child education, and adaptation in a new environment (Cline, 2017). Numerous studies (Al Alaleeli, 2022;Haje & Ali, 2020;Wilkins &Neri, 2019;Jung Cheol & Douglas, 2018;Sibel, 2019;Hadeed & Campbell., 2021;Baluku et al., 2019) have focused on the role of organizational support in the adjustment of Expatriates and importance of selection process, criteria and expatriate training to resolve issues. Numerous studies (Skakni et al., 2022;Curtis, 2017;David et al., 2019;Elaine et al., 2022;Carolina et al., 2020) have addressed the phenomenon of culture shock and its psychological and emotional impact on expatriates.
Further, (Aryani & Widodo, 2020) discussed the key challenges present in international assignments and discuss the significance of expatriation and the various facets of an expatriate's role. In addition, (Fenech et al., 2020;Hajer & Ali, 2020;Joana et al., 2022;Roberta & Priya, 2020;Tony Xing et al., 2021) have discussed the adjustment process of academic expatriates in detail.
The present study attempts to throw light on the experience of expatriate female faculty members at PSAU by exploring the most common academic, social and cultural challenges that influence their participation. The study is based on three theoretical conceptualizations: the theory of work adjustment, the theory of social exchange, and the theory of human capital. This study is part of ongoing research, which aims to investigate and promote the values of multiculturalism, cultural pluralism, and intercultural academic education in a communication-driven and cultureconvergent world. Saudi Arabia has been chosen as the context of this study because people from across the globe travel to the country as it accepts an inflow of highly skilled foreign talent, especially those with the expertise needed by priority sectors, higher education, in particular, to fill critical skills gaps (Farag, 2015). This diversity represents different values, beliefs, languages, views, educational backgrounds, and experiences. Thus, this study aims to make the working environment more conducive for the  (2017)(2018) geographical area with branches in seven provinces. It has attracted about 32,995 international faculty forming more than 47% to teach various streams to university students (Ministry of Education. 2018; see, Table 1).

Literature review
Expatriate academics are becoming more important to the higher education sector as an increasing number of universities across the globe prefer to have an internationalization agenda (Jason et al., 2013). The term "rites of passage" has been used widely in the works of literature. Van Gennep's (1960)

Separation stage
The first stage represents the phase of the separation of the individual from his previous role. Richardson & McKenna (2002) suggest four metaphors as motivational factors for taking up foreign assignments. First, the explorer, who undertakes a foreign assignment to explore the world; second, the refugee who escapes the home country for a better life; third, the mercenary, who moves for financial benefits; and, the architect, who moves for better career opportunities. Before taking up the journey, expatriate academics develop certain assumptions and awareness about the society and work culture they would be living in. Lack of readiness on the part of the individual is cited as an indicator of career immaturity (Sampson et al., 2013). Stereotyping is an important aspect of this phase. It means carrying notions about a set of people and their culture, value judgments, overestimation, or over-exaggerations. However, stereotypes are the main reasons for the difference of opinions about the conflicting culture and lead to miscommunication (Jenifer & Raman, 2015, p. 332;Sudhiir & Sudhiir, 2016:96). Petersen (2011) points out that life in academia is the epitome of a vocational lifestyle and involves emotional, intellectual and sometimes even physical investment which are not a part of contractual agreement. Academic expatriation requires hard work, both at the emotional, and intellectual level, and, hence can be a risky career move especially if shifting with families. 2009. Selmer & Lauring (2011) state that despite chances to lose what they already have, expatriate academics prefer to outroot themselves and opt for international opportunities.

Transition stage
The second period is the Transition phase. Cross-cultural communication and intercultural adjustment are both rather complicated processes that demand considerable effort from migrants. They have to accommodate The W curve theory of adaptation asserts that adjusting to linguistic, cultural, psychological, and other peculiarities of the new culture has both ups and downs, and each individual goes through these at their own pace. The five stages include 'honeymoon', culture shock, initial adjustment, mental isolation, and, finally, acceptance and integration. According to , the second stage is the crisis phase, marked by uncertainty. (Platanitis, 2017) states that in this phase, the academic expatriate faces different types of challenges. Since they lack prior exposure and experience, they fall and rise by themselves. The study of culture has gained attention in expatriate works of literature, especially the study of culture concerning cross-cultural adjustment. Cultural differences can interfere with the successful completion of organizational goals. (Sarkiunaite & Rocke, 2015)state that what is described as "respectful" in one culture may be "disrespectful" in another culture. The language barrier is another challenging issue found in organizations due to extensive meetings and dealing with speakers of other languages (Jenifer & Raman, 2015, p. 334). There are possibilities of having a communication gap among the employees. These factors certainly affect the productivity of the organization. As per the theory of self-determination each individual reacts differently when in a situation that triggers culture shock.

Re-aggregation stage
The third period is the phase of adjustment/Re-aggregation: The theory of Work Adjustment asserts that workers continually alter themselves and their job atmospheres until they achieve professional satisfaction. According to the theory, four basic variables: flexibility, activeness, reactiveness, and perseverance influence a worker's adjustment style. Onslow used a phenomenological approach to gain insight into the perceived challenges encountered by 15 expatriates during a cross-cultural assignment. His focus was on six main themes: social support, language ability, cultural difference, knowledge of the environment, openness to change, and adjustment process. He attributed cultural adjustment achieved over time to the social support received by expatriates. Further, Trembath (2016) states that academic expatriates who want to explore new cultures, experience greater job satisfaction as they tend to value cross-cultural interactions and thus progress smoothly through work adjustments. Wilkins (2013) states that lucrative benefits and a better lifestyle motivate most of them to stick to their positions irrespective of organizational climate and culture. Moreover, (Richardson & McKenna) claims that academic expatriates who are isolated from the host culture operate as 'tightrope walkers', as they are conscious of the risks of expatriation and job instability. Similarly, Wilkins & Neri (2019) claim that many individuals have issues with adjusting to the new country, working differences, and interacting with others. Focusing on expatriates' emotional challenges and coping strategies, Platanitis (2017) uncovered the specific psychological needs of expatriates based on their personal opinion from a counseling psychology perspective. Five main themes were identified: challenges, coping strategies, adjustment, personality, and cultural differences. While personality traits, work adjustment, family, and social networks were identified as the main expatriates' coping strategies (Perera, H.K., Chew, Y. & Nielsen, I. (2018) too made a significant contribution to the expatriates' literature. In addition, studies on expatriate family adjustment (McNulty & Selmer, 2017;Shockley et al., 2017) show that the career decisions of expatriate workers are influenced by their families. In this phase, the role played by the family is very crucial as the family's successful adjustment and cooperation determine the faster adjustment of the employee, better results of his/her activity, and the success of the entire expatriation process. As the saying goes: 'Every cloud has a silver lining' so is the case with the process of settlement or the Re-aggregation phase. This period is marked by maturity, learning from experiences, making logical decisions, desire to balance life and move on. Thus, it can be said that Cross-cultural adjustment for an expatriate entails a process of learning the culture of the host community, as well as accepting living with the difference in the culture. Osland (2000) considers expatriation similar to a hero's journey. The hero undertakes a challenging journey, overcomes obstacles, experiences personal growth, and returns home changed by the adventure.

Method
The present study attempts to throw light on the experience of expatriate female faculty members at PSAU by exploring the most common academic, social and cultural challenges that influence their participation. The study adopts a qualitative descriptive design It is based on a qualitative approach as it examines the way employees share real-life experiences using their perspectives Morgan (1996). For the study, focus group interviews have been the main research instrument as focus group interviews are very productive for the analysis of perceptions, attitudes, motives, etc., and enable the researcher to derive a large variety of information Cropley (2019).In addition, the researchers' diverse experience has been taken into consideration while analyzing the data as the researchers tried to have insight and analyzed the situations from a wide range of perspectives. It is to be stressed that the human experience is complicated and requires special skills to deal with different aspects.

Participants and procedure
The study relied on a purposive sample that included non-Arab female faculty members in three colleges under Prince Sattam University. The three colleges were specially selected due to having the largest number of female members, and secondly, covering different academic disciplines. Eighteen female full-time faculty participated in this study, 70% of them had joined the university before 2016. While the majority of participants in the College of Business administration were from India, both College of Sciences and Humanities and Medical College has better ethnic diversity with a good percentage of Pakistanis and Filipinos (see, Table 2).

Procedure
The study was approved by the vice deans of three colleges (female sections), thereafter, consent for participation was obtained from respondents after they were notified of the aims, methods, and anticipated benefits of the research. They were informed that confidentiality would always be maintained in terms of their responses. Despite having predetermined questions, the interviewees were allowed to proceed flexibly to discuss their experiences.

Data collection tools
The main research instrument was focus group interviews as it is very productive for the analysis of perceptions, attitudes, motives, etc., and enables the researcher to derive a large variety of information Cropley (2019). The study used Snowball sampling for the focus group interviews. Three rounds of discussions were held for a period ranging from one hour to three hours and fortyfive minutes. Initially, the researchers formed separate focus groups for each of the colleges: College of Business, College of Sciences and Humanities, and, Medical College. The first round included six faculty in each of the above-mentioned colleges. The focus groups discussed the period of separation. The discussion was held in their respective colleges. The duration was one hour. However, for the second group discussion, twelve faculty from the College of Sciences and Humanities and, Business formed the group together at Business college. The discussion lasted for two hours. Participants from the College of Medicine were discussed separately. The discussion revolved around the period of transition. The third round of group discussion comprised eighteen participants from all three colleges and the discussion was arranged at the College of Medicine, Alkharj. The duration of the final meeting was three hours and forty-five minutes. The two researchers were the moderators. While one moderator recorded the statements, the other noted down the key concerns. In addition, the researchers' diverse experience has been taken    A I got used to wearing Abaya and continue to do so even in my country.
P I learned to be more accommodating into consideration while analyzing the data as the researchers tried to have insight and analyzed the situations from a wide range of perspectives. It is to be stressed that the human experience is complicated and requires special skills to deal with different aspects (Figure 1).

Analysis and results
The researchers adopted thematic analysis, one of the effective methods used in the analysis of qualitative data as stated by (Creswell, 2014).
Data analysis was a continuous process from the first interview and continued throughout the data collection. Using the "rites of passage" theory as a framework, it can be said that the process of transition and work in a new culture for the participants is a unique journey termed by alienation literature as "a trip to the unknown". .It is a "journey to the unknown" in more than one sense, Apart from being a transition to different countries, it is also a process of change in terms of place, language, religion, society, and the nature and degree of social relations between individuals.
One of the strengths of qualitative research approaches is that they enable researchers to photograph and document social processes and attitudes. Moreover, they do not stop at knowing the opinion of individuals on specific aspects, as is the case with most of the other research methods. They go further, as in this particular study, to draw a clear picture of their experience in the new culture and to understand their attitudes toward all its different aspects and its interactions such as: How was the experience of moving to the new system? How did they see themselves and the life around them? How were their first days in the experiment? What did they like and what they did not like? What, and to what extent, did reality meet their expectations? What kind of difficulties did they face? How did they cope with the challenges?
The analysis of the data from the focus group interviews covers four main themes: under the three main stages. The first stage 'Period of Separation' focuses on awareness, before their arrival. It includes readiness and expectations. The main issues covered under the second stage' Transition Stage' are reality shock, cultural differences, language barriers, and ethnocentrism. While the third stage: The re-aggregation stage includes: Cross-cultural adjustments and the role of the family (See Figure 2).

Period of separation
The participants had different reasons to step out. While 4 out of the 18 participants preferred to be 'explorers, 2 preferred to be "refugees", 7 as "mercenaries" and, the remaining 5 as "architects". As discussed in the theoretical background, most prospective employees embarked on their new journey with preconceived notions. For most of the participants, the awareness was limited to media stereotypes of Saudi Arabia as a conservative and wealthy country with the world's largest oil reserves (See Table 3).

Students
Most of the participants, especially from the college of medicine, expected the students to possess competency in English and, participate actively in classroom discussions. Participants, also expected the students to have a positive attitude and professional approach like in any other country to reach their goal. Two participants who had worked in other GCC countries where English is a foreign language were ready to face challenges in dealing with mixed-ability students. Academics, especially from Business college expected cooperation from the students at the initial stage due to cultural and linguistic differences.

Colleagues
Participants had a preconceived notion that since they would represent their countries each would try to conduct themselves in the best possible manner. Most of the participants especially from the College of Business had expected very friendly and cooperative colleagues. Some of them opined that healthy competition among regions would push them to deliver their best and to keep them updated. Moreover, they all agreed that the more exposure to teaching methodologies, the finer one becomes.

University system
All the participants expected well-constructed huge university buildings with spacious classrooms and state of art Technology and well-equipped laboratories. All the participants were moving to a financially sound country that invests heavily in the education sector. Therefore, they had high expectations about the facilities.

Social and cultural life
Saudi Arabia is an economically sound country most expatriates had expected huge malls and shopping centers. They had expected the standard of living to be higher when compared to their countries. In terms of commercial aspects, some of the expatriates had expected huge malls and shopping centers as Saudi Arabia is an economically sound country. They had expected the standard of living to be high when compared to their countries. Some of the participants revealed that they also preferred to move out of their countries to have a better quality of life.
Thematic analysis revealed that due to the strong economic position of the country. 7 of the 18 participants, opted to be "mercenary" while 5 choose to be "architects".The data analysis indicated that there is a difference and variation in the expectations of the participants, ranging from negative to positive. Participants' expectations were focused on four aspects: students, colleagues, the university system, and social and cultural life. As discussed in the theoretical background, most prospective employees embark on their new journey with preconceived notions. Either they surf the net or they blindly believe what is shared with them by their friends and relations. At times, this can be highly detrimental as it would act as a hindrance and slow down the rate of adaptation. The thematic analysis further revealed that since for most of the participants, it was their first foreign assignment, they lacked preparation to be part of a culturally diverse environment. Findings, lead to the establishment of stereotypes (Jenifer & Raman, 2015, p. 332;Sudhiir & Sudhiir, 2016::96) claim to be instrumental in widening the communication gap. The expatriates' expectations concerning cultural and social life were shaped by four factors: sound economy, media, closed and conservative society, and amalgamation of cultures due to cross-cultural employability.

Period of transition: reality shock (negative and positive)
The second phase of an employee's journey is marked by reality shock, a combination of surprises and shocks. This state of mind is the direct product of preconceived notions (See Table 4).

Students
The participants, mostly from India and, Pakistan from the College of Sciences and Humanities commented on the behavior and attitude of the students. However, some participants took the differences positively and, considered culture shock as a positive step for the betterment and wellness of the students. Most of the faculty, also expected the students to have a positive attitude and professional approach like in any other country to achieve their ambition and reach their goals. . Some faculty members were ready to face challenges in dealing with mixed-ability students. While a few expected cooperation from the students at the initial stage due to cultural and linguistic differences. Participants reported that they were lacking in preparation to be part of a culturally diverse workforce.

Colleagues
Participants, especially from the college of sciences and Humanities and, the College of Business, observed that a few colleagues prefer to mingle with faculty belonging to their own culture and nationality. The new appointees prefer to seek advice from seniors belonging to their country due to common perceptions and experiences in their home country. The participants were keen to learn in a multicultural setup as they opine that the selected candidates possess strong professional and academic skills. They believe the more diverse the work culture the more beneficial it is. The participants had a preconceived notion that since they would represent their countries each would try to conduct themselves in the best possible manner. Therefore, most of the participants expect very friendly and cooperative colleagues. Some of them opine that healthy competition among regions pushes them to deliver their best and to keep them updated. Moreover, they all agree that the more exposure one gets in terms of teaching methodologies the finer one becomes.

Academic Life
Some of the faculty members complain about the difficulty in locating their respective colleges under the jurisdiction of Prince Sattam University. To avoid the blame game and have coordination between the organization and the employees, the new member has to get in touch with the Human Resources Department and get to know the whereabouts of the place they would be working in. It is also, the responsibility of the university authorities to send location maps and guidance on how to reach respective colleges.

Social and cultural life
Most of the participants coming from non-Arabic backgrounds find the Saudi culture to be too different when compared to their home country. Some participants were shocked by the gender separation in Saudi society, education, and places of recreation. While others appreciated the concept of segregation and said that it is better as it increases job opportunities for women and helps in providing education to girls belonging to orthodox families Thus, promoting women's empowerment. In addition, a few participants also had issues with the dress code. Since wearing of Abaya has been mandatory irrespective of the religion one follows, some of the participants practicing other religions felt religious freedom was being curbed. In addition, the participants were highly impressed by the warm hospitality of the Saudis. This was in contrast to the impression they had of being snobbish. They found the natives to be very sociable, ever ready to serve food, avoid interference, and look relaxed. The participants were surprised to find that despite the segregation of genders they led a very active social life. They give a lot of importance to relationships. The participants were delighted to observe that before official discussions and meetings, one is made to relax and served 'Gahwah'(Traditional coffee) and dates setting the ambiance for exchanging pleasantries and cordially resolving issues.
The thematic analysis revealed differences and variations in the expectations of the participants, ranging from negative to positive. From the analysis it is evident that academics faced three types of challenges: a) instructional challenges b) behavioral and psychological challenges and, c) contextual challenges as discussed by Soleimani & Razmjoo (2016). The thematic analysis revealed that the experience of interpersonal experience differed among faculty. While some adopted the norms of social exchange theory, a few faced difficulties due to cross-cultural communication barriers such as anxiety, uncertainty, stereotyping, and ethnocentrism. Personality traits such as cultural flexibility, ethnocentricity, stress reactions, and interpersonal and relational skills are most likely to affect the individual (Roberta & Priya, 2020).,

Period of re-aggregation
This period is marked by acceptance, reconciliation, or compromise. Factors are critically analyzed for their plus and minus points eventually leading either to 'give up or 'take up. According to (Guo, Chen & Ling, 2018) Organizational development depends to a great extent on employees' ability and motivation. Hence, employers try to attract and retain employees by acknowledging their efforts and promoting loyalty through goodwill. As a result, it has been observed that seldom expatriate employed in the education sector finds it difficult to adapt and thus give up. Moreover, it is the human tendency to be ready to give up to get something as there goes the saying no pains, no gains (See Table 5).

Students
Saudi Arabia is a country with a rich cultural heritage. It is these values that have led to tolerance and a friendly attitude toward the expatriates. Initially, the students took time to adapt themselves to faculty from different cultural backgrounds and teaching methodologies but over a period, they got accustomed. Students watch Indian, Turkish, Korean, and English movies with subtitles and have an idea about cultures across the globe. Some students even greet the faculty in traditional ways like 'NAMASTE' for Indians. The participants also shared that over some time the students developed closeness and fondness towards the teachers and took pleasure in assisting the teachers in presentations and activities.

Colleagues
Most of the participants preferred to mingle and interact with colleagues from diverse cultural backgrounds and show a high degree of adaptability. They considered it as an opportunity to hone their skills and improve their knowledge by interacting with faculty from different parts of the world, thus imbibing the best teaching practices. The participants agreed that in every organization there is bound to be unhealthy competition to outdo each other. Especially, when there is no job security. They, however, realized that instead of competing with others they need to give their best. They started to ignore when intentionally co-faculty avoided sharing their ideas to escape criticism and competition. On the contrary, some of the participants complained about the indifferent behavior of their colleagues and compatibility issues. On the contrary, others found the colleagues to be accommodative and approachable. They felt it is a human tendency to be negligent and indifferent at times and one of the causes could be personal issues. Therefore, they tried to adapt themselves to diverse cultural backgrounds and different working styles. Some of them tried to exchange memoirs from their home country and arranged small gatherings to know each other better way. The striking difference in opinion is directly related to the interpersonal skills they possess. Those with strong interpersonal skills believed in 'forgetting and forgiving' to move on. They collectively agreed that collaboration enabled them to develop and improve their research skills and collectively publish papers in reputed journals. They accepted that collaboration saves time and energy.

University system
Most of the participants appreciated the attitude of the administrative staff. They observed that despite having limited experience in holding new responsibilities, they put in their efforts to cooperate and resolve issues through rigorous follow-ups with the male section. They also find it interesting to see them manage communication with the help of some of their co-members as translators. Moreover, The participants were contended with long summer breaks and traveled to their home country every nine months. Since the extreme climatic conditions, especially, summers in deserts can be very challenging, Saudi universities provide long summer breaks as a preventive measure thus, providing ample time to both the faculty and students for self-development and rejuvenation. Psychologists opine that a break enhances productivity. Moreover, all the participants unanimously agreed that backup from family members is a crucial factor in not only taking up a job outside one's country but also in settling down and giving one's services. They agree that family plays an instrumental role in their success. Therefore, they tried to weigh the pros and cons taking into consideration the welfare of their family members. It is clear from their priorities that successful adjustment of the family, members determines the faster adjustment of the employee, better results of his/her activity, and the success of the entire expatriation process. It is to be stressed that the well-being of the family leads to well being of the faculty which in turn leads to the well-being of the organization (Denson & Szelenyi, 2022).

Social and cultural life
The participants proved their success in adapting to the new culture by continuing to offer their services for more than five years. Some of the participants have been working in the kingdom for more than thirteen years. There goes the saying 'be like a Roman in Rome'. Therefore, they said that they could understand the Arabic conversation to some extent and imbibed Arabic cuisine. They no longer considered the dress code to be a matter of concern and have gotten accustomed to it. They too used religious phrases like Alhumdullilah, and Insha Allah often and just loved to use the words 'Bukra' (Tomorrow) and 'Taban' (Tired).
The thematic analysis revealed that the pace of adaptation varied among the academics as claimed by the theory of adjustment. Findings revealed that family played a very crucial role and helped in the process of faster adjustment of the employee, better results of his/her activity, and the success of the entire expatriation process. The benefits provided by the government to the expatriate academic have been a great motivating factor to be a "successful expatriate" as claimed by theory of Human capital.

Discussion
The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of expatriate university faculty in Saudi Arabia. The three main themes following data analysis were the 'period of separation, 'the period of transition ' and, 'the period of re-aggregation.
Pre-departure preparation during the first stage or period of separation reduces the adverse effects of culture shock. Before taking up a foreign assignment, it is imperative to develop skills of adaptability. The foreigner has to be realistic about changes and, aware of the problems of living in a foreign country. Since Saudi is a very conservative society, foreigners cannot ignore the fact that there would be a good number of social and cultural restrictions. The results of the study revealed that some of the academics were ill-informed about the extremely conservative nature of society. Some of them had worked in other middle -eastern countries and expected the same norms in Saudi Arabia.
The second stage or the period of transition is the process of exploring. During the process, the expatriates come across cultural shocks. As participants belonged to non-Arab backgrounds, they found the Saudi culture to be too different when compared to their home country. Culture shock is universal and can happen even on migration from one advanced nation to another (Singh, 2014). As in the United States of America, people across the globe in multicultural societies face psychological crises and social dysfunctions. Another factor that aggravates the issue is ethnocentric thinking. The cultural background of expatriates has been very influential in their approach toward the students. Since all the academics were Asians, they preferred indirect communication to be non -aggressive, unlike the preference for direct communication in western countries. 'what is described as "respectful" in one culture may be "disrespectful" in another culture. (Caroline, Hellen & David, 2021). Most respondents felt welcomed and comfortable in their interactions with their colleagues, while some experienced some difficulties either because of language barriers or because their relationships were limited to their fellow citizens. Ethnocentrism can be a hindrance to cross-cultural communication in the workplace. It leads to anxiety and eventually mars relationships between colleagues. Ethnocentrism leads to the formation of groups and compatibility issues as mentioned by some of the participants. The results are in line with the theory of social exchange introduced by (Homan, 1958). According to this theory, people weigh the potential benefits and risks of their social relationships. The Theory proposes that behaviors can be thought of as the result of cost-benefit . If a person is able to extract more of a reward through a behavior, then the person will perform the behavior The period of re-aggregation covers three-dimensional adjustment: adjustment to the general environment, adjustment to the work situation, and, adjustment to interacting with host nationals. Some expatriates, despite being well-adjusted concerning one of these dimensions, might simultaneously be maladjusted concerning another (Puck et al., 2017;Skakni et al., 2022). The period of re-aggregation is considered a period of "Expatriate success" and, is marked by a shift from a unicultural to a bi-cultural approach of the foreigners resulting in adaptation to the existing conditions. Successful adaptation requires learning the host culture's styles of relating, communicating, reasoning, managing, and negotiating. International assignments are a strong catalyst for changes in both the family and work lives of expatriates (Wilkins, 2013;Steel et al., 2018). According to the theory of Human capital, the success of an organization always depends on the participation and job performance of its employees. Employees' positive characteristics and feelings towards the work they perform lead to job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is influenced by many factors and each employee's job satisfaction is different from one other. Some of the factors that influence attitude and job satisfaction among employees in organizations are the working environment, chances of promotions, increment, management, and co-workers. Job satisfaction trends can affect behavior and influence work productivity. Hence, Organization's acclimate is a key factor contributing to individual involvement in an organization as it can either facilitate or impair employee participation (Sarkiunaite & Rocke, 2015). The results of the study indicate the willingness of the expatriate academic to adapt and move on. First, the privileges provided by the Ministry of Higher education are the main source of attraction. To attract distinguished faculty, the government formulated lucrative wage protocols: tax-free salary; paid vacations, housing, and transportation allowance, medical services, children's educational allowance, and round-trip airfare to the home country annually (Al-Otaibi, 2012;Al-Asiri, 2013;Farag, 2015). These policies are in line with Heyman (2017) stressing the significance of motivating employees to enhance the production of the organization. The second important factor that holds them to the workplace is the "transient" nature of their job. Academics consider the challenges as a temporary phase. Another important factor instrumental in holding back the expatriate is support and family adjustment. Once the family settles down, the focus of the employee shifts toward the organization. This leads to enhancement and productivity (Tahir, 2020). Though multiple studies have discussed "expatriate failure" or premature return of the expatriates, none of the participants prefer to return till the authorities decide to do so.
Limitations of the study: It is a single institute study and excludes western expatriate faculty members.

Conclusion
It is the responsibility of both the expatriate and his organization to work towards smooth adaptation and embrace diversity. When one plans to move to another country for greener pastures, one should be mentally prepared and have adequate information about the host country. One should be prepared to encounter cultural differences ranging from subtle to dramatic that might affect his relationship with students, colleagues, and supervisors. Though one can learn a great deal from others' cultural experiences and perspectives, such differences could also lead to miscommunications or differences in working styles. As far as the organization is concerned, its ability to attract, retain, and motivate people from diverse cultural backgrounds, may lead to maintaining the highest quality human resources. Further, cultural diversity in organizations could prove to be highly beneficial for creativity, problem-solving, and flexible adaptation to change. It is to be stressed that since a Multicultural workforce is becoming the norm, it is imperative while hiring a workforce for the organizations to not only take into consideration the educational qualifications, work experience, research contribution, and academic achievements but also, include adaptability skills and cross-cultural awareness, degree of compatibility in the criterion for selection. In addition, the heads of the organizations should be culturally sensitive and promote creativity and motivation through flexible leadership. This would not only boost organizational achievements but also minimize potential risks.
It is recommended that the faculty coming from different cultures should have adequate awareness of the new culture, possess strong interpersonal skills, and be ready to adapt to the new work culture. While the University should have employee-friendly laws to encourage a multidiverse environment and elaborate orientation for the newly appointed faculty in English.

Research implications
Future studies that will evolve from this study have the potential for positive social change to improve the quality of work experiences for female expatriates that work in higher education. Data source triangulation is recommended for future studies.

Funding
The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).