CULTURE SHOCK: ADJUSTMENT TO NEW CULTURAL ENVIRONMENTS

CULTURE SHOCK: ADJUSTMENT TO NEW CULTURAL ENVIRONMENTS

Culture shock is the anxiety and emotional disturbance experienced by many people when they travel or move to a new social and cultural setting. This article explores the issue of culture shock and offers some thoughts on how to relieve it, drawing on the author's own experiences. The term, Cultural Shock was first named by Kalervo Oberg in 1960 who described it as 'precipitated by the anxiety that results from losing all our familiar signs and symbols of social intercourse'.

There are myriad symptoms and signs of culture shock, including general unease with new situations, irrational fears, difficulty with sleeping, anxiety and depression, homesickness, preoccupation with health, and feeling sick or nauseous. Simply stated, any sort of mental or physical distress experienced in a foreign location could be a symptom of culture shock. Oberg creates an exhaustive symptoms list, including excessive hand washing, excessive concern over water and food safety, fear of physical contact with 'natives', a feeling of helplessness and dependence on long-term residents of one's own nationality, anger over delays and otherwise minor frustrations, excessive fear of being robbed or injured, concern over minor pains and cuts and abrasions. Finally, he describes that "...terrible longing to be back home, to be able to have a good cup of coffee and a piece of apple pie, to visit one's relative, and, in general, to talk to people who really make sense."

Culture shock is about being out of place in a certain place and time. Oberg distinguishes four stages of culture shock-honeymoon, crisis, recovery, adjustment-which, although useful, are somewhat artificial. Firstly, the progression of culture shock is not necessarily linear. One may experience multiple stages at one time or may 'revert' to an earlier stage during a time of crisis or other activity. Also, each individual reacts differently and some may not progress to the final stage before returning home.

The first stage is the honeymoon, which can last a few days or up to several months. At this stage, everything is new, exciting, and fascinating. The 'natives' are polite, gracious, and most welcoming. Another way of describing this stage is that of the tourist's experience. Tourists generally return home before the honeymoon ends, whereas anthropologists, aid workers and others move beyond this to the second stage, in which one 'has seriously to cope with the real conditions of life'. Not only do simple tasks, such as purchasing food or washing up, become complete fiascos, but the 'natives' do not seem concerned at all. In fact, they may seem unsympathetic or indifferent. A very common coping mechanism is aggression and frustration-a rejection of the environment that is causing discomfort. According to Oberg, one takes 'refuge in the colony of [one's] countrymen and its cocktail circuit which often becomes the fountain-head of emotionally charged labels known as stereotypes'. The individual vents his or her dissatisfaction towards the host country when amongst fellow ex-patriots. This social discussion of grievances lends itself towards the production of national and ethnic generalisations. The production of ethnographic knowledge at this point is hazardous. Oberg describes this second stage as a 'crisis in the disease.' It is at this point that one will either stay or leave.

If one stays, then the third stage starts as the visitor begins to learn the language and can negotiate daily life on his or her own. Difficulty still exists, but the visitor is able to handle it. The visitor even begins to help others who may be new to the situation. In the fourth stage, the visitor 'accepts the customs of the country as just another way of living'. Certainly, the visitor will not always understand what is occurring in social situations and may not notice nuances, but he or she has adjusted considerably. At this point, there are things that he or she will miss about the country when leaving. This is the stage at which ethnographic construction can most productively take place.

Finally, author says one can recover from culture shock by some measures. Once one begins to be able to carry on a friendly conversations with neighbour, or go on shopping trips, one can gain confidence to speak their language. Sometimes, it is helpful to be a participant observer by joining the activities of people and share feelings. Persons suffering from culture shock feel weak in the face of conditions which appear insuperable.

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