Up or out: Next moves for the modern expatriate

Perhaps the greatest obstacle to the success of an expatriate placement lies with the expat’s spouse or children, who may resent the separation from their own career, social life, schooling and routine. This was one of the main findings of a broad report into international assignments, based on a survey of some 400 executives who were currently or recently in expatriate assignments, or had responsibility for them.
Report by David Bolchover and Paul Lewis of the Economist Intelligence Unit, 2010