Advantages And Disadvantages Of Cultural Shock Essay

The culture shock may be one challenge in the beginning, but it will be overcome. The locals may do something unusual that we may not do, but it might be nothing out of the ordinary for them. One way that the culture shock can be avoided or

Culture shock was the first thing that blew my mind when I first arrived in America. Alot of people define culture as a way in which an individual choose lead or live their life, their beliefs, customs, traditions and way of life. Being that Kenyan and America are two different countries from different continents, they might be differences in cultures and customs. This cultures present may not only distinguish them from each other’s, but there are some things in which they share with other cultures. There are some several differences and similarities between Kenyan culture and the American culture. This differences will helps us understand why people act and behave the way they do, thus preventing culture shock. Culture revolves around the high cost of living, family and food.

A sudden change in one’s surroundings can result in culture shock. Culture shock refers to the anxiety and surprise a person feels when he or she is discontented with an unfamiliar setting. The majority of practices or customs are different from what a person is used to. One may experience withdrawal, homesickness, or a desire for old friends. For example, when a person goes to live in a different place with unfamiliar surroundings, they may experience culture shock. Sometimes it is the result of losing their identity. In the article “The Phases of Culture Shock”, Pamela J. Brink and Judith Saunders describe four phases of culture shock. They are: Honeymoon Phase, Disenchantment Phase, Beginning Resolution Phase, and Effective

Cultural shock is a common feeling a person experiences when transitioning into a completely different environment and living situation. Throughout the world, immigrants experience many difficulties when assimilating into a new culture.

Now, if it happens in your own city, I believe you will feel extra shocked. That is because you know the accepted norms where you’re from. So the culture shock will hit you even harder because you will see it as something awfully weird to happen in, let’s say, America. That type of culture shock happens often. Therefore, in other words, you don 't need to be outside of your comfort zone (different city or country, for example) to experience culture

Coming to a different country and not knowing what to expect is quite the feat. In addition to being physically lost and not knowing where things are, one can be culturally lost by not understanding the norms and superstitions. This can lead to the concept that is known as culture shock; this is “feelings of alienation and helplessness that result from rapid immersion in a new and different culture” (Nanda & Warms, 2017). Culture shock is a common aspect of immigration.

Culture shock is the feelings of alienation, hostility, heightened ethnocentrism, sense of loss, depression and/or self doubt that may result from immersion in a new culture.

Pederson (7) explains that there are stages of culture shock, which he identifies as the honeymoon, negotiation, adjustment, and adaptation. In the honeymoon phase, a person is likely to get excited about being in a new place, meeting new people, tasting new foods, and acquiring new habits. However, as time passes by, they get into a phase of negotiation, where the differences between the culture one is used to and the one they find themselves in start to become apparent. Feelings of anxiety, anger, and frustrations start to take shape as unfavorable events perceived as strange come in the way of the person 's life, especially if a person does not feel accepted in the new culture (Mukherjee 273). Loneliness may set in, and the urge to go back to the familiar culture strongly comes into play. However, as time goes by, adjustment sets in, usually within six to twelve months, and one gets accustomed to the culture and also comes up with a routine. By this phase, one knows what is expected of them, and life once again becomes ‘normal.’

The feeling of culture shock, defined by macionis as “personal disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life”, is in part due to our closed mindedness. In general, we want to believe that our way of doing things is correct, so when we come across something that contradicts it, we become uncomfortable. This discomfort is most common and obvious when traveling abroad. In some South American countries it is normal to hug and give a kiss on the cheek when being introduced to someone. To an American, this would be considered an invasion of personal space and may be met with hostility, causing a

1. Culture shock- The disorientation that people experience when they come in contact with a fundamentally different culture and can no longer depend on their taken for granted assumptions about life. Pg. 35

Culture is all about an individual knowledge based on belief ,art,morals customs.Therefore culture shock occurs when people have different values and beliefs and are not tolerant of each others differences(Eckermann,Dowd,Chong,Nixon,Gray and Johnson,2006.).The separation of important people in

In this essay “Adapting to a new culture”, Maria Abroad discusses, Adapting to a new culture is not easy because from childhood onwards everyone has own culture. However, we are born into the culture, we are not born with the culture. So adapting a new culture is possible. According to Maria, when people move to a new country or a new place, they often find the new environment is quite different to what they have been used to. It is the best, exciting, and unbearable experience of your life. Maria states that experience with abroad living is challenge and adventure, because you have become independent and adjust to the different culture, without the support of friends and family. Maria gives us three ways to adapting to a new culture, when we moved to a new environment.

If I personally had the choice to go to New Guinea, I would say no because the reactions of William Wormsley would make me feel like I don't fit with the environment and also seeing everything differently would definitely be culture shocking to me. I have experienced culture shocking whenever I went to Mexico for the first time ever. I never thought that culture shock would be a realistic thing when it comes to living in a daily basis and realizing that many people go through that shock without people even knowing what’s the actual cause of it. I find that very interesting whenever I read about culture shock and also how ignorance is a huge part of all this anthropological perspective of it. I completely agree that culture shock is natural

The difficulty of moving to a new culture is that a lot of people would feel fear because they are so use to their own culture, so now they leave what they are used to a new way and it will be hard for them to adapt. Some may like the new food and the pace of life, then later on in the month’s people may feel like the new life and culture is unpleasant life for instance: public hygiene, the language barriers, traffic safety, and food accessibility. Still the most part in relocating to a different culture is the communication because they might not understand the language or might say the wrong word thinking it means the same in the other countries. People adjusting to a new culture often feel lonely and homesick because they are not yet

Culture Shock has played a tremendous role in the growth of cultural ecology because it is an issue that is constantly growing all over the world. In the United States, it may not seem like things are changing involving culture shock, but it is not any different then the changes in places like Africa and China for example. It is developing equally across the world because there are now more ways to travel. So, what exactly is culture shock anyways? Well, it is known as going to a foreign or unfamiliar territory that one is not used to, so they may feel symptoms of anxiety such as nervousness or shock because the customs, actions, beliefs, etc of those people may not seem familiar to them, so one may feel ill-prepared for the changing environment. Also, for example, if one was to go to school in the U.S. but came from China, they would feel culture shock because the rules in China are not the same as rules in the U.S. and so it may make one feel uneasy about the situation because they are not use to change and maybe the move was to quick for them to adjust properly. The United States is very different from foreign areas because the culture is very different. Where have people of Africa seen movie productions, music, sports, universities, iPhones, computers, etc? The answer is not where they live but in the United States if they traveled there before. This is exactly the issue with culture shock in ecology. Culture is what people behave like, feel, and do. Shock is a symptom