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Cultural StressHow to overcome it

Start your journey! I am a global citizen. I am going on a trip around the

world. It‘s my first time going abroad. So I ask myself: What can I expect, what should I be

aware of? What if I get a cultural shock? What if I get

homesick? Maybe we can take that journey together and find

answers to all these questions.

Goal of the session

• Understand what Cultural Stress is. • Understand that it is completely

normal to run through certain phases.

• Get sensible and animated to act solution oriented!

Agenda• Start your journey!• Remember old journeys• Cultural Stress• What may cause Cultural Stress• Signs and results of Cultural Stress• The W-Curve–Phases–Symptoms and feelings

• Tips: Adapt to new culture

Remember old journeys

Let us look back for a second and remember journeys we already had. Holidays, exchanges, visiting friends abroad…no matter what. Did you find anything?Well, then ask yourself the following questions:1. What differences in behavior, attitudes,

customs or traditions did I notice? How did I react? (Consider emotions, thoughts, feelings)

2. Did I encounter any cultural barriers? What did I learn and how did I overcome them?

3. How can these experiences help me on my forthcoming trip abroad?

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Take some time, close the presentation and write down your thoughts.

Cultural Stress

• Culture Stress is a fairly short-term response to "stimulus overload.“

• It occurs when – You begin to respond to the behavior of the "new" culture.– You change to a different way of living in a new culture.– You move beyond understanding the culture to making it

your own so that you accept the customs, becoming comfortable and at home with them.

• If you are trying to become a real part of the culture, to become bicultural, you are likely to experience culture stress as you assimilate some of the conventions to the point that they feel natural to you.

• Cultural Stress often leads to culture shock.

InvolvementThe more you become personally involved in the culture, the more cultural stress you may feel.

CommunicationLearning the meanings of words and rules of grammar are only a small part of being able to communicate effectively. The whole way of thinking, the common knowledge base, and the use of non-verbals are necessary and come only with great familiarity with the culture.

What may cause Cultural Stress

ValuesThe greater the differences in values between your home culture and your host culture, the greater the stress. Cultures may appear similar on the surface but have broad differences in deeper values.

TemperamentThe greater the difference in your personality and the average personality in the culture, the greater the stress. A reserved person may find it difficult to feel at home where most people are outgoing extroverts. An extrovert may never feel at ease in a reserved culture.

What may cause Cultural Stress

Signs and results of cultural stress• Feelings of anxiety, confusion, disorientation,

uncertainty, insecurity, and helplessness• Fatigue, tiredness, lack of motivation, lethargy,

lack of joy• Disappointment, lack of fulfillment,

discouragement, feeling hurt, feeling inadequate, feeling "out of it"

• Anger, irritability, contempt for the host culture, feelings of superiority or inferiority

• Rejection of the host culture• Homesickness

Phase I: Arrival/Honeymoon

The W-CurvePhases of cultural stress/shock

The W-CurveSymptoms and Feelings

Phase I:Arrival/ Honeymoon

• optimism and wonder• excitement• focus on positive aspects of

environment

Phase II: Culture Shock

The W-CurvePhases of cultural stress/shock

The W-CurveSymptoms and Feelings

Phase II: Culture Shock

• changes in dining and sleeping habits

• acute homesickness; calling home much more than usual

• being hostile/complaining all the time about the host country/culture

• irritability, sadness, depression • frequent frustration; being easily

angered • self doubts; sense of failure • recurrent illness • withdrawing from friends or other

people and/or activities

Phase III: Recovery

The W-CurvePhases of cultural stress/shock

Phase IV: Adaption

The W-CurvePhases of cultural stress/shock

The W-CurveSymptoms and Feelings

Phase III/IV: Adaption/Recovery

• increasing self-confidence• improved self-motivation• cultural sensitivity• You will be expanding social

networks and exploring new ideas• You will feel increasingly flexible,

objective about your experience• learning to accept and perhaps

practice parts of the new culture

Phase V: Return home/Reverse culture shock

The W-CurvePhases of cultural stress/shock

The W-CurveSymptoms and FeelingsPhase V:Return home/Reverse culture shock

• You may experience confusing reactions or feel distant from family, friends, and peers.

• sense of disconnection or inability to articulate all that happened

• You may not feel particularly at home in what used to be very familiar surroundings.

• Frustration, Boredom , Restlessness• Confusion, uncertainty • Change in values, goals, priorities, and

attitudes • Feelings of isolation or depression• Negativity towards your native culture

Based on the five stages shown before think of…… possible symptoms/feelings that may occur in each stage… reasons why these symptoms and feelings come up… solutions how to cope with the challenges and symptoms especially in the phases of cultural shock

Again: Take some time, close the presentation and write down your ideas to each question.

It‘s your turn!

1. Realize that what you are going through is normal.

• Remember that the unpleasant feelings are temporary, natural and common to any transition that a person makes during their life.

• Be patient and give yourself time to work through the process.

• Use the opportunity to share in conversation and express your identity.

Tips: Adapt to new Culture

2. Keep an open mind.

• Do not automatically perceive anything that is different to be "wrong" or "negative".

• Withholding judgment will allow you to be an objective observer and will facilitate the process of cross-cultural understanding.

• Also, if you are going to a country with which you know close to nothing about, do a little background information.

• As you learn about the country in which you are going to, keeping an open mind is necessary, and, who knows, you may find the reason for something you may not understand.

Tips: Adapt to new Culture

3. Keep in touch with your home country.

• Read newspapers from home, international magazines, etc.

• Watch international television channels or surf the internet.

• Call home regularly. • Have familiar things around you that have personal

meaning, such as photographs or ornaments. • Find a supplier of familiar foods or visit restaurants

that are similar to your home cuisine.

Tips: Adapt to new Culture

4. Talk to someone.

• Find friends who are going through a similar process, call your family back home or see a counselor.

Tips: Adapt to new Culture

5. Get acquainted with the social conduct of your new environment.

• Do not assume or interpret behavior from your own cultural perspective or "filter".

• Behavior is not data.

6. Improve your language skills.

• Cultural adaptation is greatly enhanced by perfecting your language skills.

• Not being able to clearly communicate can create isolation and loneliness.

• Make a point to join activities that give you the opportunity to share in conversation and express your identity.

Tips: Adapt to new Culture

7. Most importantly, maintain a sense of humor.

• Don't be too hard on yourself if you make a cultural gaffe or don't know what to do in a social situation.

• Laugh at yourself and others will laugh with you.• Most individuals will admire your tenacity and

effort to understand their ways, especially if you are devoid of judgment and cultural comparisons that subtly and perhaps unconsciously convey a veil of superiority.

Tips: Adapt to new Culture

Last MessageBe proactive to overcome Cultural Stress!