Attractiveness of Japanese firms to international job applicants: the effects of belongingness, uniqueness, and employment patterns

Abstract

This article investigates factors related to the attractiveness of Japanese firms to international job applicants. The results of the policy-capturing study, using samples from 116 international students with 928 observations, found that Japanese workplaces that provide employees with a sense of belongingness and a sense of uniqueness in addition to having the performance-based rather than seniority-based employment patterns increase organizational attractiveness to international job applicants. We also found that the effect of uniqueness on organizational attractiveness depends on the applicant’s academic qualifications, the level of language skills, and the degree of embeddedness in the applicant’s community.