Culture Shock

So you're getting along fine, your area studies is interesting, you love the new place you're in and the new culture you're getting to know. Soon, though, for no apparent reason, you are totally depressed. You can't seem to think straight. You might be homesick, or go through a religious crisis, or just find that you can't stand the food or the weather or the people.

This is something that happens to basically everybody. It is part of culture shock. A shift in your surroundings often makes you question your own self, values, ideas, or identity. This questioning is partly the basis of critical thinking and experiential learning, but when it happens to you in this huge and uncontrolled way (as culture shock), it becomes really disorienting and demoralizing. It sounds simple, but it's hard to recognize when it happens, let alone to deal with it.

Studies on culture shock have shown that it tends to happen in cycles of bliss and disillusionment (see Kirk Wattles' senior thesis of 1982 for an application of this cycle to culture shock, the learning cycle, and everything else in Friends World). You can get culture shock, come through it, and go back into it again months later. The cycles tend to be longer when you're in a place for a longer time, and shorter for shorter sojourns.

The most important thing with culture shock is probably recognizing it when it happens. Then you can try things to make it easier. Sometimes coddling yourself works. Or setting up something in your room to make it more homelike. Or crying, or talking with others going through the same kind of thing (and there will probably be others), or hiding for a little while (but not forever), or distracting yourself by reading a lot, or just being really patient with yourself. Share your solutions as you find them. Try some of the ideas in the STRESS section (H.3).

Workshop Discussion Sparks

Sharing culture shock feelings, experiences, episodes, solutions, etc.

Inspired and Creative

Rigorous Training

AAAAAGGGHHHH!

Try some of the suggestions in the section on Stress; then be tolerant of yourself until you come out of the far side of disillusion into a new perspective on things.

See Also

STRESS (H.3)
OBSERVATION (F.6)
EXPERIENTIAL EDUCATION (C.1)
PERSPECTIVE SHIFTS (D.3.b)
QUESTIONING ASSUMPTIONS (C.2)
Kirk Wattles' thesis of 1982, an examination of the cycle of illusion, disillusion, and reconstruction

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