Which kind of perceived organisational support fosters self-initiated expatriate engineers’ creativity in high-adversity contexts? The moderating role of cross-cultural resilience

Abstract

Grounded in the conservation of resources and social exchange theories, this study aimed to understand how self-initiated expatriate engineers’ (SIEEs) perception of financial, adjustment and career support enhances their creativity level and how cross-cultural resilience (C-CR) moderates this perception. An online survey was conducted with 147 SIEEs from Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries working in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results were analysed by principal least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Findings demonstrated that financial and adjustment supports have a significant positive relationship with individual creativity while career support does not. Further, C-CR moderates the relationship between financial support and creativity. The study offers significant theoretical and practical implications regarding perceived organisational support (POS) and creativity for host organisations in high-adversity contexts.