Every semester, students migrate to and from study abroad destinations to learn from new experiences, places and people. Whether students are traveling to Paris or Madrid to study for the semester, or are heading home, culture shock is a common experience
For example, living in Madrid, where having a few beers at lunch, taking a siesta everyday, or putting relationships before work can all be a shock to a student who has lived in the hustle and bustle of the United States for their whole lives.
As a result, many travelers will experience feelings of anxiety, homesickness and even depression from being in an unfamiliar environment with new cultural customs.These feelings are completely normal and should not be a source of shame.
However, it is crucial to not let these feelings get in the way of enjoying time abroad. The feelings of cultural shock are a normal process of adapting to a new environment, and there are many ways to cope with these feelings of culture shock.
Culture shock is referred to as “acculturative stress” and rather than focusing on the purely negative aspects, psychologists describe it as a process of stress and adjustment. The curve of acculturative stress goes from joy in a honeymoon-like state, to anxiety of realizing new surroundings, to adjustment and lastly acceptance.
Tactics for reaching the acceptance state include staying busy and getting involved to get your mind off of the new environment. Not only will staying busy help keep the mind off these feelings, but going outside and experiencing this new place will help to understand common behaviors and customs.
Finding other students or peers that are familiar with the environment who can show students around will help students adjust. From this, students can create a support network through peers and people to vent feelings toward.
Mental health professionals are also an excellent resource for feedback and advice. It is also perfectly acceptable to stay connected to at-home comforts, such as by grabbing food that reminds a student of home.
Another tactic to combat culture shock is to understand personal reasons for traveling abroad. This will help to understand and ground a purpose abroad.
Using these strategies, students will quickly understand the importance of the behaviors they are experiencing.
Lastly, it is important to remember that these feelings are temporary and that being immersed into a new community is an exciting new experience. Remember that traveling is a gift and that experiencing new cultures is one of the best ways to understand the world that we live in.