National Ingroup Bias in Multicultural Organizations: A Study of Latin-American Expatriates

Abstract

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The world goes through constant changes nowadays as a result of globalization, these changes can be seen through the increase interdependence of individuals from different societies. There is a need, however, to understand how Latin-America faces different processes in the context of globalization; not focusing solely on countries as a whole, but on individuals that are part of a nation or region. This study addresses the challenges that expatriates from Latin-America face in multicultural environments and their encounters with national ingroup bias in the workplace. The purpose of this study is to examine ingroup bias experiences that Latin-American expatriates in the United States and Dominican Republic might have towards other groups. This study further explored some of the determinants of national ingroup bias in multicultural organizations, and what are the different strategies managers and organizations implement in order to promote inclusion. A qualitative research approach was selected to conduct this study and the data was collected through semi-structured interviews. The participants were 18 Latin American expatriates, coworkers and managers located in the United States and Dominican Republic. This study found evidence of ingroup bias in Latin American expatriates and some of the challenges they go through when interacting with individuals of different cultures and their reasons they have for this bias. Additionally, the study found different programs that organizations in the United States and Dominican Republic implement to promote inclusion.