Moderating Effect of Paternalistic Leadership on the Relationship between Thriving at Work and Expatriate Performance

Abstract

This study explores the effect of thriving at work on expatriate performance and determines whether the paternalistic leadership of the local supervisor in a host country moderates this relationship. Convenience sampling was adopted. In total, 300 questionnaires were distributed, and 182 responses (20 invalid and 162 valid) were returned (effective questionnaire recovery rate = 54.00%). A regression model was applied to examine the causal relationship between thriving at work and expatriate performance and the moderating effect of paternalistic leadership. The analysis results indicated that more obvious learning and vitality characteristics were associated with higher task and contextual performances among expatriates. Furthermore, host country supervisors’ moral leadership moderated the relationship between expatriate task performance and both learning and vitality. Moreover, host country supervisors’ authoritarian leadership moderated the relationship between learning and expatriate task performance. Finally, host country supervisors’ authoritarian leadership moderated the relationship between vitality and expatriate contextual performance. Theoretically, this study is expected to fill the research gap in the expatriate literature pertaining to expatriate performance, thriving at work, and paternalistic leadership, because the relevant expatriate literature is quite lacking in this area. In practice, this study can be used as a reference by multinational corporations to create or shape a supportive employment environment, thereby enhancing expatriate performance.

1. Introduction

Multinational corporations (MNCs) must address the challenges of managing foreigners when they conduct business abroad [1]. The institutional distance between the host and home countries creates a multifaceted environment for expatriates [2]. To implement international strategies or establish the foundation for international careers in strategic human resources, MNCs continue to use expatriates as an essential component of their globalisation strategies. An international assignment typically involves overcoming challenges with respect to norms, cognition, and regulatory forces in a country.

Expatriates have to respond differently to directors from their home and host countries because of differences in international norms; examples include the handling of international joint ventures requested by local governments or the management of regional headquarters as part of an MNC’s global strategy. A dual-response system may create complex situations for those who are responsible for ensuring task completion and maintaining relationships simultaneously [3]. Therefore, the success of expatriates in terms of task and contextual performance is typically determined by their character traits.

Self-determination theory posits that self-determination is a crucial source of intrinsic motivation to participate in activities based on interest in such activities. When people develop in a work setting, they feel energised and experience high levels of mental function. Therefore, they perceive that they are thriving at work [4]. Thriving at work is a common experience and an expression of the character traits of vitality and learning [5]. Previous studies suggested that thriving at work can predict job performance, expatriate work engagement, and expatriate actual retention [6,7]. The effect of thriving at work on expatriate performance has yet to be explored in related studies; thus, this is the first research question of the present study.

In particular, Asia-based expatriates are often confronted with paternalistic leadership. In Asia, expatriates who were successful in their home country often have to cope with Asian values that are based on Confucianism; adapt to Asian management leadership within cultures based around authoritarianism, benevolence, and morality; and develop the ability to manage the contextual aspect of a work environment.

Previous studies investigated the effect of paternalistic leadership on task and innovative performance [8,9]. He et al. explored how paternalistic leadership influences Chinese expatriates’ work engagement in a cross-cultural context and examined how expatriates’ cross-cultural adaptability sets a boundary condition for this relationship [10]. This study explores the influence of thriving at work on expatriate performance. From the perspective of interactionism, expatriate behaviour results from the interaction between personality and situational factors. This study also investigates whether the paternalistic leadership style of a host country’s supervisors plays a moderating role in the relationship between thriving at work and expatriate performance. The literature on this topic is still lacking. This is the second research question explored in the current study.

The theoretical implications of this study are that it makes two contributions to the literature on expatriate performance. First, this work investigates the impact of thriving at work on expatriate performance from the perspective of self-determination theory. Second, this study explores the moderating effect of paternalistic leadership on the relationship between thriving at work and expatriate performance from the perspective of interactionism.

This study selected Taiwan for several practical reasons. First, Taiwan’s export-oriented, island economy encourages the growth of MNCs ranging from original equipment manufacturers to international trade corporations. Expatriates working in subsidiaries are likely to operate in an international environment for business activities involving manufacturing or marketing. Thus, Taiwanese companies deploy numerous expatriates to their subsidiaries overseas. Second, most expatriates deployed by Taiwanese MNCs are stationed in Southeast Asian countries, where paternalistic leadership is prevalent. Therefore, the management of expatriates in Asia warrants further investigation.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the effect of thriving at work on expatriate performance in a host country and the moderating effect of paternalistic leadership on the aforementioned relationship. Theoretically, this study is expected to fill the research gap in the expatriate literature pertaining to expatriate performance, thriving at work, and paternalistic leadership, because the relevant expatriate literature is quite lacking in this area. In practice, this study can be used as a reference by multinational corporations to create or shape a supportive workplace environment, thereby enhancing expatriate performance.

2. Literature Review and Hypothesis Development

2.1. Expatriate Performance

Ones and Viswesvaran [11] and Lee and Sukoco [12] reported that meeting specific mission requirements and developing and maintaining relationships with host country employees are the core aspects of expatriate performance. The success of an international assignment is determined not only by task accomplishment (as an on-the-job factor) but also by adaptation to local institutions (as an off-the-job factor). Therefore, several expatriate-related studies proposed the categorisation of expatriate performance into task and contextual performance [13,14,15].

Expatriates working for MNCs have two goals. Their first goal is to fulfil the purpose of their transfer with respect to the strategic, organisational practice of the headquarters and subsidiary [1]; their second goal is to balance the duality of legitimacy that exists between the headquarters and subsidiary for the expatriate [1]. These two goals can be interpreted as task and contextual performance.

The effective completion of a task by an expatriate contributes to an MNC’s technical-core-related activities; such tasks are either directly performed as part of the MNC’s technical process or indirectly performed through the provision of materials or services required by the MNC [16]. The expatriate’s contextual performance is related to activities that contribute to the maintenance of interpersonal relationships and psychological interactions in a local environment, thereby enabling a technical core to operate smoothly [16].

2.2. Thriving at Work and Expatriate Performance

Dispatching employees abroad is an important tool used by MNCs to facilitate global integration [17]. However, the increasing use of expatriates may conceal the significant challenges faced by individuals who are placed in such assignments [18]. Notably, a previous study indicated that personality type can be considered an essential condition of expatriate selection [19]. This study asserts that thriving at work may be a suitable personality indicator for expatriate selection.

Thriving at work is a mental state that results from a common experience of vitality and learning conscientiousness at work [5]. An expatriate with the learning trait can acquire and apply knowledge and skills to gain confidence and exhibit accountability [20]. According to the self-determination theory, an individual with self-determination typically has intrinsic motivation, which means that an expatriate participates in a task primarily because they are interested in the activity [21,22]. People with extrinsic motivation tend to engage in activities as a means of achieving a goal and not because of their interest in the activity; intrinsically motivated people tend to exhibit a desire to master the management of an external environment and are, consequently, more willing to learn to accomplish a task [23]. The character trait of learning also enables expatriates to adapt to a local environment so that they can maintain sustainable interpersonal relationships in this setting [22]. Thriving at work is also characterised by vitality, which refers to the expression of emotional energy [24] and passion for work [25]. Thus, expatriates who thrive at work display positive attitudes and behaviour [6,7,26]. Accordingly, having the vitality trait is expected to lead to higher performance.

A previous expatriate study argued that thriving expatriates are more likely to be engaged in their jobs and are more likely to stay on their assignments [7]. From the perspective of self-determination, intrinsic motivation refers to an individual’s willingness to participate in business practices driven by their own interest in the activity. Under the self-determination theory, competence, autonomy, and relatedness are the three main behavioural motivators. The autonomy trait helps individuals to control their behaviour and ensures their task performance, whereas relatedness enables individuals to derive interpersonal satisfaction from social interactions [21,22].

Expatriates with a more obvious vitality trait attempt to enhance their strengths. Their vitality trait allows them to persevere, which enables them to master a host environment, control their behaviour, complete assignments, and establish favourable work relationships. Therefore, this study presents the following hypotheses, which address the relationship between thriving at work (learning and vitality) and expatriate performance (task and contextual).

H1-1. 

The learning trait of an expatriate is positively associated with task performance.

H1-2. 

The vitality trait of an expatriate is positively associated with task performance.

H1-3. 

The learning trait of an expatriate is positively associated with contextual performance.

H1-4. 

The vitality trait of an expatriate is positively associated with contextual performance.

2.3. Literature Review of Paternalistic Leadership

Paternalistic leadership, which is an indigenous leadership style in Chinese societies, is characterised by motherly benevolence, fatherly authoritarianism, and moral integrity in a paternalistic environment [27]. Paternalism is a highly prevalent management style in many Chinese organisations, congruent with the collectivism and high power distance in Chinese culture [10]. Confucianism stresses the principle of a power-distance-based hierarchical relationship between the monarch and vassal, father and son, husband and wife, brothers, and friends [28]. Under authoritarian leadership, respect-based fear provides a solid foundation for autocratic dictatorship, and information control, stringent punishments, and top-down management are all elements of the fatherly, masculine style of leadership practice in Chinese companies, particularly in family-run businesses [29]. A similar approach is observed in product-centred initiating structures [30].

Benevolent leadership can be regarded as a combination of resonant leadership [31,32,33,34,35] and servant leadership [36,37,38,39,40]. Benevolence consists of elements of empathy, commitment, serving others, power sharing, and teamwork promotion [41]. The core values of motherly benevolent leadership are social support, emotional support, feedback, and self-confidence, which can be applied to establish mutual trust and reliable relationships [27,42]. Therefore, inspiration and sense of community create an atmosphere of positive emotional encouragement, which is identical to the concepts of resonant and service leadership. These similar concepts underpin person-centred considerations [30].

Moral leadership is similar to ethical leadership [43,44,45] because it values moral integrity above all else. Leaders should behave ethically and serve as role models for their followers so that these followers can emulate their good behaviour and norms. Morality cultivates leader–member exchange and a relationship characterised by honesty, equality, and self-empowerment. Moral leadership emphasises team management as the ideal style of the managerial grid [46].

From the interactionism perspective, behaviour results from the interaction between personality and situational factors. This argument is accepted in the field of personality and social psychology [47,48]. Therefore, the present study hypothesises that paternalistic leadership (situational factor) moderates the relationship between expatriates’ thriving at work (personality) and their performance (behaviour).

2.4. Moderating Role of Paternalistic Leadership on Task Performance

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates are not influenced by a superior’s moral persuasion when the local supervisor’s moral leadership level is low. Expatriates with a strong learning trait desire to complete assignments successfully even if they do not perceive the ethical behaviour of their supervisors to be that of a role model. Therefore, they work independently to identify solutions and accomplish their assignments. However, expatriates may also have supervisors who practice high moral leadership and persuade followers through morality. In this situation, expatriate performance improves more easily, and the learning trait of expatriates is not as crucial for achieving task requirements as in a situation where the moral leadership level of the local supervisor is low. Therefore, this study proposes the following hypothesis:

H2-1. 

Moral leadership moderates the relationship between expatriates’ learning trait and task performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates believe that a local supervisor cannot persuade them through morality when the local supervisor does not demonstrate moral integrity. In this situation, expatriates with a strong vitality trait can still complete assignments successfully even if they do not perceive the ethical behaviour of their supervisors. Instead, expatriates commit themselves to their work and demonstrate perseverance. Conversely, local supervisors with moral leadership can convince expatriates to complete assignments. In this situation, task performance improves more easily, and the vitality of expatriates is not as essential for improving task performance as in situations where the supervisor’s moral leadership level is low. Therefore, this study presents the following hypothesis:

H2-2. 

Moral leadership moderates the relationship between expatriates’ vitality trait and task performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates do not perceive the supervisor’s compassionate attitude when benevolent leadership is absent or insufficient. To compensate for this deficiency, expatriates with a strong learning trait attempt to complete assignments on their own. As a result, they develop multiple methods for completing tasks alone. Conversely, expatriates perceive the benevolent leadership of supervisors when these supervisors demonstrate care, empathy, and social support for their subordinates. In this situation, performance is achieved more easily through emotional support and feedback. However, the learning trait of expatriates may lose its main role in improving task performance. Therefore, this study proposes the following hypothesis:

H2-3. 

Benevolent leadership moderates the relationship between expatriates’ learning trait and task performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates do not perceive a host country supervisor’s compassionate attitude toward subordinates when that supervisor’s benevolent leadership level is low. Expatriates with high vitality raise their spirits and work hard to complete the assignments even if they cannot feel the kindness of their supervisors. Moreover, expatriates feel that supervisors with high benevolent leadership care for their subordinates. In this situation, performance improves more easily. The vitality of expatriates has a great effect on task performance. Therefore, this study presents the following hypothesis:

H2-4. 

Benevolent leadership moderates the relationship between the vitality of expatriates and task performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates perceive their host country supervisor to be affectionate when the supervisor’s authoritarian leadership level is low. Expatriates with high learning characteristics can work hard to learn professional knowledge in a working environment where it is easy to be close to supervisors, thereby improving their expatriate performance. However, expatriates feel daunted by their host country supervisor if that supervisor’s authoritarian leadership level is high. In this situation, the high learning characteristics of expatriates still encourage them to study hard to achieve the task assigned by the superior, but the improvement effect is limited. Therefore, this study posits the following:

H2-5. 

Authoritarian leadership negatively moderates the relationship between expatriate learning and task performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates perceive their host country supervisor to be approachable when that supervisor’s authoritarian leadership level is low. Expatriates with high vitality characteristics concentrate on work in a work environment where supervisors are easily accessible, thereby improving their expatriate performance. However, expatriates feel daunted by their supervisor if that supervisor’s authoritarian leadership level is high. In this situation, the high vitality of the expatriates still encourages them to prove their abilities to their supervisors and achieve the task assigned by their supervisors. Therefore, this study posits the following:

H2-6. 

Authoritarian leaders moderate the relationship between the vitality of expatriates and task performance.

2.5. Moderating Role of Paternalistic Leadership on Contextual Performance

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates do not perceive their host country supervisor’s moral persuasion when that supervisor’s moral leadership level is low. Expatriates with high learning characteristics identify methods to overcome these problems by themselves to establish high-quality relationships with their colleagues and comply with company regulations if they do not perceive that their supervisor has noble ethics. However, expatriates perceive that their host country supervisor is an individual who persuades others with morality when that supervisor’s moral leadership level is high. In this situation, the atmosphere in the office is more pleasant, and the learning characteristic of expatriates has more obvious effects on the improvement of contextual performance. Therefore, this study posits the following:

H3-1. 

Moral leadership moderates the relationship between expatriate learning and contextual performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates do not perceive their host country supervisor’s moral persuasion when that supervisor’s moral leadership level is low. Expatriates with high vitality characteristics identify methods to overcome these problems by themselves to establish a good relationship with their colleagues and abide by company regulations if they do not perceive that their supervisor has noble ethics. However, expatriates perceive that their host country supervisor can persuade them with morality when that supervisor’s moral leadership level is high. In this context, interpersonal relationships are easy to establish, and the effect of the vitality of expatriates on improving contextual performance is expected to be smaller. Therefore, this study posits the following:

H3-2. 

Moral leadership negatively moderates the relationship between expatriate vitality and contextual performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates do not perceive their host country supervisor’s compassionate attitude when that supervisor’s benevolent leadership level is low. Expatriates with high learning characteristics identify methods to overcome these problems by themselves so as to establish a good relationship with their colleagues and abide by company regulations even if they cannot feel the benevolence of their supervisors. However, expatriates perceive that their host country supervisor cares for them when that supervisor’s benevolent leadership level is high. In this situation, the atmosphere in the office is more pleasant, and the learning characteristic of expatriates has a more obvious effect on the improvement of contextual performance. Therefore, this study presents the following hypothesis:

H3-3. 

Benevolent leadership moderates the relationship between expatriate learning and contextual performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates do not perceive their host country supervisor’s compassion when that supervisor’s benevolent leadership level is low. Expatriates with high vitality identify methods to overcome these problems by themselves to establish a good relationship with their colleagues and abide by the company’s regulations even if they cannot feel the kindness of supervisors. However, expatriates perceive that their host country supervisor cares for them when that supervisor’s benevolent leadership level is high. In this situation, the vitality trait of the expatriate has a great effect on improving contextual performance. In summary, this study puts forward the following hypothesis:

H3-4. 

Benevolent leadership moderates the relationship between expatriate vitality and contextual performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates perceive their host country supervisor to be easy-going when that supervisor’s authoritarian leadership level is low. Expatriates with high learning characteristics can establish good interpersonal relations with their supervisor and colleagues in a work environment where getting closer to their supervisor is easy and, thus, can improve their contextual performance. However, when the authoritarian leadership level of the host country supervisor is high, expatriates feel daunted by that supervisor. Under these circumstances, the high learning characteristic of the expatriates still promotes accomplishing their tasks and establishing good interpersonal relationships with colleagues, thus, improving their contextual performance. Therefore, this study proposes the following hypothesis:

H3-5. 

Authoritarian leadership moderates the relationship between expatriate learning and contextual performance.

From the interactionism perspective [47,48], expatriates perceive their host country supervisor to be warm-hearted when that supervisor’s authoritarian leadership level is low. Expatriates with high vitality can establish favourable interpersonal relationships with their supervisors and colleagues in a work environment where getting closer to their supervisor is easy and, thus, can improve their contextual performance. However, when the host country supervisor is highly authoritative, expatriates are daunted by that supervisor. Under these circumstances, the high vitality of an expatriate motivates them to persevere despite adversity and establish good interpersonal relationships with their colleagues, thus, enhancing contextual performance. Therefore, this study posits the following:

H3-6. 

Authoritarian leadership moderates the relationship between expatriate vitality and contextual performance.

The research framework of this study, developed based on the literature review and hypotheses, is presented in Figure 1.

3. Methods

3.1. Participants and Sampling Method

The sample was gathered from Taiwanese MNCs listed in the directory of Taiwanese companies in China (Chinese National Federation of Industries). Because of the difficulties associated with obtaining the target sample, a convenience sampling method was adopted. The current participants had at least 6 months of expatriate work experience in an overseas branch of a Taiwanese multinational company. These participants had been expatriated to different countries, such as Indonesia, Thailand, India, Vietnam, and so forth. A total of 300 questionnaires were issued. The questionnaires were administered in two parts. First, the managers of the human resources departments of 15 companies were contacted and asked to forward the questionnaire to their expatriate staff. Then, 150 questionnaires and return envelopes were sent to the human resources managers (10 questionnaires were sent to each company). When the questionnaires were completed, participants sent them back to us directly to ensure the anonymity of participants. Furthermore, we commissioned senior executives of Taiwanese multinational companies to assist us in distributing another 150 questionnaires to expatriates (Appendix A).

3.2. Measures

The 10 items developed by Porath et al. [26] were used to measure thriving at work; the traits of learning and vitality were each measured using five items. Sample items relating to learning were ‘I think I have learnt a lot at work’ and ‘I have grown a lot at work’. Sample items relating to vitality were ‘I feel energetic at work’ and ‘I look forward to every day at work’.

Paternalistic leadership was assessed using 15 items developed by Cheng et al. [49] that measured moral leadership (five items), benevolent leadership (five items), and authoritarian leadership (five items). Some sample items relating to moral leadership were as follows: ‘Compared with the leaders of other companies, the supervisor in the host country is a leader with good morals’, ‘Overall, I think the host country supervisor is a leader worthy of respect’, and ‘The host country supervisor is a good role model for me’. Some sample items relating to benevolent leadership were as follows: ‘The host country supervisor’s care for me extends to my family’ and ‘The host country supervisor usually greets me’. Some sample items relating to authoritarian leadership were as follows: ‘The host country supervisor requires that I stay within established upper and lower boundaries’ and ‘When I fail to achieve a work objective, the host country supervisor scolds me’.

Various measures are used to assess expatriate performance, and they include one- and multidimensional measures; the most widely accepted and utilised classification model involves the classification of expatriate performance into task and contextual performance. We adopted a two-dimension measure because it corresponds to the on-the-job and off-the-job concepts and scenarios involving international assignments that are given to meet product- and people-centred requirements.

The expatriate performance was assessed using six items developed by Kraimer et al. [13] that measure task performance (three items) and contextual performance (three items). A sample item relating to task performance was ‘I am able to achieve the work goals of the host country subsidiary’. A sample item relating to contextual performance was ‘I can adapt to the relevant regulations of the host country subsidiary’.

Participants responded to these items using a five-point scale. The answer options were Strongly disagree (1 point), Disagree (2 points), Unsure (3 points), Agree (4 points), and Strongly agree (5 points). Furthermore, gender, age, and current assignment tenure may affect expatriate performance. Therefore, they were set as control variables.

3.3. Pilot Test

Because the study population consisted of Chinese-speaking expatriates, the questionnaire was translated into Chinese with back translation. A pilot test of the questionnaire, with 80 sample employees, was conducted to ensure its reliability and validity before final data collection.

3.4. Common Method Bias

Common method bias is related to the use of self-reported data [50,51,52]. To minimise common method variance (CMV) bias, the questionnaire was designed according to the principles proposed by Podsakoff et al. [53], including the use of reverse items and random item arrangement and the maintenance of anonymity and the concealment of the purpose of the study.

3.5. Data Analysis

The analytical tools used in this study for analysing the collected valid questionnaire data were SPSS 24.0 and AMOS 24.0 statistical analysis software (IBM Corporation, Armonk, New York, NY, USA). Narrative statistical analysis, Cronbach’s α value, correlation coefficients, and confirmatory factor analysis were used to test the composite reliability, convergence validity, and discriminant validity of the questionnaire. Moreover, regression analysis was employed to test the hypotheses.

4. Results

4.1. Descriptive Statistical Analysis

Demographic information about the respondents is reported in

Table 1. Participant information.

Demographics
Gender	Male	Female	Total
(Frequency)	137 (84.6%)	25 (15.4%)	162 (100%)
Age (Years)	Range	Frequency	Percentage
	20–29	10	6.17%
	30–39	65	40.12%
	40–49	67	41.36%
	50 and above	20	12.35%
Current assignment tenure (Years)	Range	Frequency	Percentage
	0.5–2	98	60.49%
	2.5–4	43	26.54%
	4.5–6	12	7.41%
	6.5 and above	9	5.56%

. Of the 300 questionnaires distributed, 182 were returned; of these, 20 were invalid and, thus, were disregarded. In total, 162 valid questionnaires were analysed. The valid response rate was 54.00%. Invalid questionnaires (questionnaires that contained incomplete, blank, missing, or double selected responses and questionnaires that failed to meet the sampling criteria) were removed from the sample. The analysis of the sample revealed that the majority of the participants were male (84.60%); most respondents belonged to the 40–49 age group (41.36%), followed by the 30–39 age group (40.12%). Regarding the current assignment tenure of the participants, most respondents belonged to the 0.5–2 years group (60.49%), followed by the 2.5–4 years group (40.12%). The expatriates worked for 15 Taiwanese MNCs that operate in 13 countries (primarily Southeast Asian countries, with some operating in the United States, the Netherlands, and Nigeria).

4.2. Reliability and Validity

A Cronbach’s α of >0.70 was used as the measurement standard. As illustrated in

Table 2. Confirmatory factor analysis results.

Items	SFL	t-Value	AVE	CR
Learning (Cronbach’s α = 0.78)			0.47	0.81
I think I have learnt a lot at work	0.82	-
I continue to learn more because time flies at work	0.74	9.58
I find that I continue to improve at work	0.71	9.17
I did not learn anything at work	0.38	4.55
I have grown a lot at work	0.68	8.64
Vitality (Cronbach’s α = 0.73)			0.48	0.80
I feel energetic at work	0.97	-
I have enough energy and spirit at work	0.79	13.64
I do not feel energetic at work	0.20	2.45
I think I stay alert and sober at work	0.49	6.71
I look forward to every day at work	0.74	12.29
Moral leadership (Cronbach’s α = 0.92)			0.70	0.92
Compared with the leaders of other companies, the supervisor in the host country is a leader with good morals	0.86	-
Overall, I think the host country supervisor is a leader worthy of respect	0.92	16.29
Compared with leaders that I have met in the past, the host country supervisor has good morals	0.85	14.19
The host country supervisor is responsible for doing things and does not shirk their responsibility	0.76	11.70
The host country supervisor is a good role model for me	0.78	12.34
Benevolent leadership (Cronbach’s α = 0.94)			0.76	0.94
The host country supervisor’s care for me extends to my family	0.86	-
The host country supervisor helps me to solve problems in my life	0.88	15.35
The host country supervisor cares about my personal life	0.97	18.89
The host country supervisor meets my requirements	0.82	13.48
The host country supervisor usually greets me	0.82	13.47
Authoritarian leadership (Cronbach’s α = 0.88)			0.59	0.88
The host country supervisor requires that I stay within established upper and lower boundaries	0.55	-
The host country supervisor displays authority	0.75	6.85
The host country supervisor deliberately maintains a distance with me	0.79	7.07
If I do not follow the principles of the host country supervisor, I am severely penalised	0.90	7.51
When I fail to achieve a work objective, the host country supervisor scolds me	0.81	7.17
Task performance (Cronbach’s α = 0.88)			0.72	0.88
I am able to achieve the work goals of the host country subsidiary	0.92	-
I am confident in my ability to work in the host country subsidiary	0.87	14.85
My overall work performance in the host country subsidiary is good	0.74	11.57
Contextual performance (Cronbach’s α = 0.82)			0.60	0.82
I can adapt to the relevant regulations of the host country subsidiary	0.84	-
I can build relationships with important people in the host country subsidiary	0.77	10.81
I interact well with my host country subsidiary colleagues	0.71	9.76

Note: SFL: standardised factor loading; t-value: significance level; AVE: average variance extracted; CR: composite reliability.

, the reliability of each factor measurement was as follows: the Cronbach’s α for learning, vitality, moral leadership, benevolent leadership, authoritarian leadership, task performance, and contextual performance was 0.78, 0.73, 0.92, 0.94, 0.88, 0.88, and 0.82, respectively. The reliability analysis revealed that the reliability of each scale of this study was satisfactory.

Furthermore, following the procedure proposed by Noble and Mokwa [54], a series of confirmatory factor analyses were performed on construct measures and related items using AMOS 24. The measures were generally acceptable, with all of the constructs having overall acceptable fit indices. The value of average variance extracted (AVE) for learning, vitality, moral leadership, benevolent leadership, authoritarian leadership, task performance, and contextual performance was 0.47, 0.48, 0.70, 0.76, 0.59, 0.72, and 0.60, respectively (see Table 2 for details). Nearly all the constructs exceeded the suggested critical value of 0.50 [55]. The analytical results validated the convergent validity of the constructs.

Discriminant validity can be established by demonstrating that the AVE for a particular construct’s indicators is higher than its squared correlation (shared variance) with another construct [55]. Each squared phi coefficient between the repatriate general adjustment and each other variable was examined. The analytical results indicated that each construct’s extracted average variance was higher than its shared variance with learning. The following values in parentheses were the shared variances between learning and vitality (0.45), learning and moral leadership (0.10), learning and benevolent leadership (0.03), learning and authoritarian leadership (0.00), learning and task performance (0.17), and learning and contextual performance (0.27) (see

Table 3. Descriptive statistics and correlations between variables.

Variable	Means	SE	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
1. Learning	3.93	0.68	(0.69) 1
2. Vitality	3.62	0.69	0.67 **	(0.73) 1
3. Moral leadership	3.45	0.68	0.31 **	0.38 **	(0.92) 1
4. Benevolent leadership	3.13	0.83	0.18 *	0.32 **	0.67 **	(0.94) 1
5. Authoritarian leadership	3.09	0.79	0.03	0.05	0.09	−0.02	(0.88) 1
6. Expatriate task performance	4.20	0.65	0.41 **	0.47 **	0.43 **	0.21 **	0.02	(0.88) 1
7. Expatriate contextual performance	3.87	0.75	0.52 **	0.59 **	0.59 **	0.32 **	0.03	0.65 **	(0.82) 1

Note: SE = standard error; root mean squares of AVE are in parentheses along the diagonal; * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01.

for details). These results appeared to validate the discriminant validity of the constructs.

4.3. Hypothesis Testing

To verify H1-1, H1-2, H1-3, and H1-4, task performance and contextual performance were used as dependent variables. Gender, age, and current assignment tenure were set as the control variables. Learning and vitality were set as independent variables. These variables were included in the regression formula, and the results are listed in

Table 4. Multiple regression analysis of thriving for expatriate performance.

		Dependent Variables	Expatriate Task Performance		Expatriate Contextual Performance
	β		Model 1	Model 2	Model 3	Model 4
Independent Variables
Gender			0.05	0.13	0.03	0.14 *
Age			0.19 *	0.21 **	0.06	0.08
Current assignment tenure			0.05	0.04	−0.05	−0.05
Learning			0.39 ***	-	0.52 ***	-
Vitality			-	0.50 ***	-	0.62 ***
R2			0.21	0.30	0.28	0.38
Adj-R2			0.19	0.28	0.27	0.37
F			10.60 ***	16.50 ***	15.17 ***	24.35 ***

Note: n = 162; * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.

. The analysis results indicated that the predictive ability of learning and vitality on task performance (β = 0.39 and 0.50, respectively; both p < 0.001) and contextual performance (β = 0.52 and 0.62, respectively; both p < 0.001) is significant. Therefore, H1-1, H1-2, H1-3, and H1-4 are all supported.

To verify H2-1, H2-2, H2-3, H2-4, H2-5, and H2-6, task performance was set as the dependent variable. Gender, age, and current assignment tenure were set as the control variables. Learning and vitality were set as the independent variables. Moral leadership, benevolent leadership, and authoritarian leadership were set as moderating variables.

Table 5. Moderating effect of paternalistic leadership on the relationship between thriving and expatriate task performance.

		Dependent Variable	Expatriate Task Performance
	β		Model 1	Model 2	Model 3	Model 4	Model 5	Model 6
Independent Variables
Gender			0.04	0.11	0.04	0.14 †	0.04	0.13 *
Age			0.18 *	0.17 *	0.18 *	0.20 **	0.21 **	0.21 **
Current assignment tenure			0.00	0.01	0.04	0.04	0.03	0.04
Learning			0.29 ***	-	0.38 ***	-	0.39 ***	-
Vitality			-	0.43 ***	-	0.50 ***	-	0.49 ***
Moral leadership			0.35 ***	0.31 ***	-	-	-	-
Benevolent leadership			-	-	0.12	0.02	-	-
Authoritarian leadership			-	-	-	-	0.04	0.01
Learning * moral leadership			−0.12 †	-	-	-	-	-
Vitality * moral leadership			-	−0.17 *	-	-	-	-
Learning * benevolent leadership			-	-	−0.02	-	-	-
Vitality * benevolent leadership			-	-	-	−0.03	-	-
Learning * authoritarian leadership			-	-	-	-	−0.13 †	-
Vitality * authoritarian leadership			-	-	-	-	-	−0.03
R2			0.32	0.38	0.23	0.30	0.23	0.30
Adj-R2			0.29	0.36	0.20	0.27	0.20	0.27
F			11.99 ***	15.78 ***	7.52 ***	10.90 ***	7.62 ***	10.91 ***

Note: n = 162; † p < 0.10, * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.

illustrates that the interactions between moral leadership and learning and vitality had significant predictive effects on task performance (β = −0.12, p < 0.10 and β = −0.17, p < 0.05, respectively), indicating that moral leadership moderates the relationships between thriving at work and task performance. Therefore, H2-1 and H2-2 are supported. The interactions between benevolent leadership and learning and vitality were not significantly predictive of task performance (β = −0.02 and −0.03, respectively; both p > 0.10), which indicates that benevolent leadership has no moderating effect on the relationships between task performance and learning and vitality. Therefore, H2-3 and H2-4 are not supported. The interaction between learning and authoritarian leadership was significantly predictive of task performance (β = −0.13, p < 0.10), which indicates that authoritarian leadership has a moderating effect on the relationship between learning and task performance. Therefore, H2-5 is supported. The interaction between vitality and authoritarian leadership was not significantly predictive of task performance (β = −0.03, p > 0.10), indicating that authoritarian leadership has no moderating effect on the relationship between vitality and task performance. Therefore, H2-6 is not supported.

Figure 2 illustrates that the learning trait did not have an obvious improving effect on task performance in the context of a high supervisor moral leadership level, whereas it had a significant positive effect on task performance in the context of a low supervisor moral leadership level.

Figure 3 illustrates that the vitality trait did not have an obvious improving effect on task performance in the context of a high supervisor moral leadership level, whereas it had a significant positive effect on task performance in the context of a low supervisor moral leadership level.

Figure 4 illustrates that the learning trait did not have an obvious improving effect on task performance in the context of a high supervisor authoritarian leadership level, whereas it had a significant positive effect on task performance in the context of a low supervisor authoritarian leadership level.

To verify H3-1, H3-2, H3-3, H3-4, H3-5, and H3-6, the contextual performance was used as the dependent variable. Gender, age, and current assignment tenure were set as the control variables. Learning and vitality were set as independent variables. Moral leadership, benevolent leadership, and authoritarian leadership were set as moderating variables.

Table 6. Moderating effect of paternalistic leadership on the relationship between thriving and expatriate contextual performance.

		Dependent Variable	Expatriate Contextual Performance
	β		Model 1	Model 2	Model 3	Model 4	Model 5	Model 6
Independent Variables
Gender			0.02	0.10 †	0.02	0.13 †	0.03	0.15 *
Age			0.05	0.04	0.03	0.06	0.05	0.08
Current assignment tenure			−0.13	−0.11 †	−0.06	−0.06	−0.05	−0.05
Learning			0.37 ***	-	0.48 ***	-	0.52 ***	-
Vitality			-	0.49 ***	-	0.59 ***	-	0.63 ***
Moral leadership			0.50 ***	0.47 ***	-	-	-	-
Benevolent leadership			-	-	0.23 **	0.12 †	-	-
Authoritarian leadership			-	-	-	-	0.01	0.00
Learning * moral leadership			−0.04	-	-	-	-	-
Vitality * moral leadership			-	−0.16 **	-	-	-	-
Learning * benevolent leadership			-	-	0.00	-	-	-
Vitality * benevolent leadership			-	-	-	−0.03	-	-
Learning * authoritarian leadership			-	-	-	-	0.01	-
Vitality * authoritarian leadership			-	-	-	-	-	0.05
R2			0.49	0.56	0.33	0.40	0.28	0.39
Adj-R2			0.47	0.54	0.30	0.37	0.25	0.36
F			24.73 ***	32.37	12.70 ***	16.91 ***	10.00 ***	16.19 ***

Note: n = 162; † p < 0.10, * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.

indicates that the interaction between learning and moral leadership was not significantly predictive of contextual performance (β = −0.04, p > 0.10), suggesting that moral leadership does not have a moderating effect on the relationship between learning and contextual performance. Therefore, H3-1 is not supported. The interaction between vitality and moral leadership was significantly predictive of contextual performance (β = −0.16, p < 0.01), indicating that moral leadership has a moderating effect on the relationship between vitality and contextual performance. Therefore, H3-2 is supported. The interactions between benevolent leadership and learning and vitality were not significantly predictive of contextual performance (β = 0.00, p > 0.10; β = −0.03, p > 0.10), indicating that benevolent leadership has no moderating effect on the relationship between contextual performance and learning and vitality. Therefore, H3-3 and H3-4 are not supported. The interactions between authoritarian leadership and learning and vitality were not significantly predictive of contextual performance (β = 0.01, p > 0.10; β = 0.05, p > 0.10), indicating that authoritarian leadership has no moderating effect on the relationships between contextual performance and learning and vitality. Therefore, H3-5 and H3-6 are not supported.

Figure 5 illustrates that the vitality trait did not have an obvious improving effect on task performance in the context of a high moral leadership level, whereas it had a significant positive effect on task performance in the context of a low supervisor moral leadership level.

This work also examined multi-collinearity problems among independent variables using the variance inflation factor (VIF) and conditional index (CI). In all regression equations, the value of the VIF for each independent variable was below 1.5, while those for tolerance were greater than 0.5, and CI values were below 30. These values were consistent with the satisfaction criteria proposed by Myers [56]. This study thus concluded that the multi-collinearity problems existing between independent variables and the regression models might not result in bias.

5. Conclusions and Discussion

5.1. Conclusions

The findings of the present study are consistent with the principles of self-determination theory. Stronger learning and vitality traits are associated with improved task and contextual performance. We concluded that paternalistic leadership reduces the relationship between thriving at work and expatriate performance. Specifically, moral leadership has a strong reducing effect. When local supervisors exhibit low moral leadership with respect to expatriates, the trait of thriving at work (i.e., learning and vitality traits) leads to higher task performance, and the relationship between vitality and contextual performance is reduced when the local supervisor exhibits low moral leadership. Both low moral leadership and authoritarian leadership can trigger an expatriate’s learning trait with respect to the completion of tasks. An unanticipated finding is that benevolent leadership does not play a moderating role in the relationship between thriving at work and expatriate performance. Its effect is negligible regardless of whether the host country supervisor is overly kind or strict.

The lack of differences in performance could be because expatriates with a strong learning trait strive for excellence in a host country, identify methods for improving work efficiency, and integrate into the host country’s workplace environment. Therefore, the benevolent or authoritarian leadership style of a host country supervisor is not as crucial for expatriates as for non-expatriates.

5.2. Discussion

Our findings correspond with the interactionism perspective. A minimum level of paternalistic leadership can trigger an expatriate’s intrinsic motivation to thrive at work through their learning and vitality traits. Interviews revealed that paternalistic leadership is an undesirable situational factor. However, our results indicate the opposite. Paternalistic leadership and its triad model (comprising morality, benevolence, and authoritarianism) is a comprehensive beacon that provides guidance (moral leadership) and a light that provides direction (authoritarian leadership) and warmth (benevolent leadership) to expatriates. For an international assignment, having a direction can be more essential than the need to feel warmth and support. Nevertheless, moral leadership plays a major role in paternalistic leadership.

Various expansions of this study needed to be considered. Thus, we divided respondents into managerial and technological types for further investigation. In the present study, the managerial type was typically found in Southeast Asian countries among middle-class managers who manage factories, whereas the technological type was usually found in other countries among managers engaged in technology transfer or support activities. The results of the robustness test corroborated our findings. Moral and authoritarian leadership also reduce relationships (H3-2 for both managerial and technological types, H2-5 for the technological type, and H2-2 for the managerial type). Only support for H2-1 was missing, but it was replaced by support for H3-4, which surprisingly revealed the reducing effect of benevolent leadership on the relationship between vitality and contextual performance.

5.3. Theoretical Implications

Few studies have examined the antecedents of expatriate performance [57,58,59]. The above studies pointed out that the antecedents of expatriate performance include perceived support, culture, and organisational embeddedness. The findings of the present study correspond with the viewpoints of self-determination theory [21,22] and interactionism [47,48]. Therefore, our analytical results help to expand the literature on expatriates.

Although the concept of ethical leadership developed rapidly and steadily in the West, the moral leadership (including the paternalistic leadership) that is practised in Chinese societies shares some similarities with the western approach. Chinese expatriates must cope with cross-cultural problems when they work in a host country, and the findings of this study should help scholars who are studying leadership styles to establish a dialogue between Chinese paternalistic leadership and western ethical, resonant, and servant leadership.

5.4. Suggestions for Managerial Practice

For MNCs, the traits of learning and vitality serve as key indicators for selecting the most suitable expatriates. When an expatriate candidate underperforms, MNCs can make training arrangements (e.g., assigning senior expatriates who are familiar with paternalistic leadership and the Asian style of management to share their knowledge). Such knowledge transfer can strengthen expatriates’ learning and vitality traits, thereby improving expatriates’ performance in a host country.

For the training of supervisors of subsidiaries in Asian countries, a moderate level of paternalistic leadership is beneficial in creating intrinsic motivation among expatriates so that they can apply their learning capabilities to engage in trial-and-error activities and increase their vitality to confront challenges with enthusiasm.

For task performance, moral and authoritarian leadership can be helpful in enabling expatriates to apply their learning trait to thrive at work, and moral leadership can be helpful in enabling expatriates to apply their vitality trait to improve their task performance. A low level of moral leadership can be helpful in enabling expatriates to apply their vitality trait to achieve contextual performance.

5.5. Limitations and Future Directions

This work is not without limitations. This study adopted a convenience survey method rather than a random sampling method due to the difficulty in obtaining samples of expatriates. This study used a Harmon one-factor test to search for possible common method bias [53]. The analytical results identified seven factors, suggesting that contamination of the observed results by the bias of common method variances was not likely. Although precautionary measures were included to reduce common method variance, the relationships between variables may be false because of cross-sectional sampling methods. Future studies could collect different variable data at different time points to verify the present findings. Furthermore, other personality antecedents that may affect expatriate performance could be explored, such as regulatory foci (promotion focus and prevention focus). Moreover, multiple classifications of expatriate performance could be applied. For example, Caligiuri and Day [60] used three performance dimensions (i.e., technical, contextual, and expatriate-specific dimensions). Future research could conduct empirical analyses involving the aforementioned expatriate performance classification model. Finally, Liao et al. [61] pointed out that in order to reduce the possibility of social expectations, future research should use sources other than self-reports, such as supervisor or spouse assessments, for the measurement of research constructs.