Culture Shock : Adapting to a New World!
Canada could have enjoyed: English government, French culture, And American know-how. Instead it ended up with: English know-how, French government, And American culture
John Robert Colombo
It was my sister’s dream to get admission in one of USA’s premier colleges and do Phd. In 1991, she got this opportunity. Having been brought with the staple diet of everything India is dirty and behind times and everything in the USA squeaking clean and very progressive, quiet a few things shocked her. She found the practice of students calling their profs by first names a little unacceptable. And some of the toilets were really dirty and stinking. Not to speak of the dress culture that did not leave much to our imaginations.
But there were quite a few positive surprises as well. The dignity of labour. She found a few of her classmates working at the local McDonalds and at gas stations earning their pocket money. Then of course the work culture. And the respect they show to each other’s lifestyles and culture. It was really unbelieavable.
This is culture shock at the individual level. This phenomena is prevalent at the organizational level as well.
Starting with how to address your seniors to arrving on time to receiving your salaries in weekly instalments and flexi timings, all of which are essentially American contributions to the way we work and conduct our businesses, all require tremendous adjustments and adaptability at least in the initial stages. More than anyting else, what probably sets apart the American approach to their professional lives is the fact that they are keen to quantify everything. For a nation, who are not known that much for their ability with Mathematics, they have this inherent ability to put down in simple numbers all aspects of work. Otherwise, they find it difficult to do anything work wise. Culture Shock then occurs in their eating habits wherein it is not considered necessary to share whatever you are having with your colleagues and friends. Instead, you finish up as much of the chips as you want, and then ask your friends. The American culture also means paying for each penny that you and friends spend and also returning whatver cents your friend has spent on you the previous day.
There are in fact whole segments in HR departments whose sole responsibility is to orient people with the host country’s lifestyles and cultures including the organizaional dos and don’ts. It normally takes anyting from a month to three months for any average foreigner to settle down comforatbly in the alien atmosphere and begin behaving like the cititzens there.
But the study does not end here. These people soon have merged with the new culture, ideology and mindset. They then return to their home country after say a year or so and find what they get to witness back home even more shocking. This is called reverse Culture Shock.
Culture Shcok is simply a natural phenomena whereby our minds and heart take their time to adjust to foreign lifestyles and customs. You only need to allow yourselves that much time and not get unduly upset with yourselves at the slightest indiscretion on your part in a foreign land.