The Cross-Cultural Transferability of a Peer-Based Employee Assistance Program (EAP): A Case Study

Member Assistance Programs (MAPs) are peer-based Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) that originated in the United States and have been transferred to other countries. The current case study aims at exploring the cross-cultural transferability of MAPs by comparing the first MAP established in Israel with the prototypical American program. The observed differences are explained on the basis of cross-cultural organizational theory. In addition, empirically-testable hypotheses regarding the cross-cultural variations of MAPs are developed. The implications for EAP and MAP research and practice are discussed.