Culture Shock

Your long expectation has finally been realized: you are going to a university abroad. This new challenge and opportunity might soon collide with the reality of being in a new culture, something known as culture shock. Culture shock has been viewed as a psychological reaction or a generalized disorientation and trauma experienced by a person learning to cope with a new culture and circumstances. It is a normal and natural part of living in a foreign cultural environment. Culture shock doesn’t mean that one is adjusting poorly – it means that one is undergoing a normal reaction. However, the way that one manages culture shock can have important implications for the success of one’s adaptability to the new culture. The psychological reaction in coping with culture shock includes emotional and cognitive components, as well as the effects of social changes. These changes also result in a psychophysiological reaction to the experience of another culture. The changes caused by culture shock include fatigue, role stress and identity loss, excessive concern with cleanliness, and a fear of danger from food and water.