Reverse Culture Shock
Reverse Culture Shock
Lauren Falzone
MBA61A
MGT 667: Global Business
Professor Thomas Beauford
14 October 2014
Culture shock is a psychological condition where a person experiences disorientation when they are suddenly exposed to a new and unfamiliar culture. Culture shock is a trauma that occurs when a person’s values and customers conflict with those of a new culture. Consequently, there is also something that is known as reverse culture shock which is when a person returns to their original culture after taking in another very different culture for an extended period of time. A major reason why a person might experience this upon their return is that, he/she has become accustomed to the new culture and now that he/she came back, he/she must adjust back to their old culture which can be very difficult. Just as with culture shock, reversed culture shock will take some time to readjust back to. The article, Home Sweet Home? Dealing with Reverse Culture Shock discusses different cases where people experienced reverse culture shock after being away from their normal culture and returning. It also discusses ways to re-adjust to your original culture after experiencing reverse culture shock. The first issue that causes people to have reverse culture shock is that they feel tongue-tied. The article gives an example of a person who states, “When I first got back from my Fulbright Fellowship in Thailand, I’d been speaking Thai for over a year, and the English I spoke while I was there had been pretty elementary. Returning to an academic setting and having to translate my thoughts into American jargon actually proved to be a hug challenge” (Forbeswoman, 2012, p.1). It is extremely difficult to speak a new language fluently in a different country, and even more difficult to come back to your original language after speaking the new language for a significant amount of time. The person who went to Thailand said they felt weird
Lauren Falzone
MBA61A
MGT 667: Global Business
Professor Thomas Beauford
14 October 2014
Culture shock is a psychological condition where a person experiences disorientation when they are suddenly exposed to a new and unfamiliar culture. Culture shock is a trauma that occurs when a person’s values and customers conflict with those of a new culture. Consequently, there is also something that is known as reverse culture shock which is when a person returns to their original culture after taking in another very different culture for an extended period of time. A major reason why a person might experience this upon their return is that, he/she has become accustomed to the new culture and now that he/she came back, he/she must adjust back to their old culture which can be very difficult. Just as with culture shock, reversed culture shock will take some time to readjust back to. The article, Home Sweet Home? Dealing with Reverse Culture Shock discusses different cases where people experienced reverse culture shock after being away from their normal culture and returning. It also discusses ways to re-adjust to your original culture after experiencing reverse culture shock. The first issue that causes people to have reverse culture shock is that they feel tongue-tied. The article gives an example of a person who states, “When I first got back from my Fulbright Fellowship in Thailand, I’d been speaking Thai for over a year, and the English I spoke while I was there had been pretty elementary. Returning to an academic setting and having to translate my thoughts into American jargon actually proved to be a hug challenge” (Forbeswoman, 2012, p.1). It is extremely difficult to speak a new language fluently in a different country, and even more difficult to come back to your original language after speaking the new language for a significant amount of time. The person who went to Thailand said they felt weird
References: Forbeswoman. (2012, September 6). Home Sweet Home? Dealing With Reverse Culture Shock - Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/dailymuse/2012/09/06/home-sweet- home-dealing-with-reverse-culture-shock/