CHALLENGES AND ADVANTAGES DURING EXPATRIATION: A STUDY ON ASIAN EXPATRIATES IN ISTANBUL

Abstract: Primary purpose of this thesis is to contribute to the currently rather limited academic literature on Asian expatriates in Turkey since this group has recently been growing in number and is expected to grow in the future. The research aims to see commonalities and derive generalizable inferences on advantages and problems of Asian expatriates in Istanbul. 23 semi-structured and mostly personal interviews were carried out with expatriates from some of the present Asian communities (Indian, Chinese, Japanese and South Korean). All answers were categorized on an excel sheet to detect the common points. Research findings were evaluated mainly with the help of patterns and degrees of expatriate adjustment, as well as the factors influencing it. The study presents the challenges as high cost of living, difficult official procedures, language and culture-related challenges, physical and social disturbances, on the one hand. On the other hand, the advantages are high living standards, secular social structure, liberal political atmosphere, cultural similarities and cheap local products. Besides, the study also exhibits the interplay between these challenges and advantages, and expatriate adjustment process.