Culture shock can never be fully avoided however the consequences of it will be softened. It occurs when your own cultural values and beliefs come into conflict with those of another culture. The larger the variations between the two cultures the bigger the possibility of culture shock. The foremost obvious conflict area is language. Of all aspects of culture, language is the foremost pervasive and the use or misuse of language is the most obvious space of cross-cultural problems.
Culture is outlined here within the anthropological sense, not in the fine arts sense. The anthropological term culture refers to any or all learned behavior and values within a specific society or group of people and consists of all of the aspects of life within that ethnic group. Thus, if culture is made of learned values and behaviors, it will be studied and a set up of action will be devised to assist us confront the resultant culture shock.
Cultural differences and the mis-reading of those variations are the most frequent cause of conflict between teams from different ethnic teams or countries. These differences are principally unconscious or subconscious variations, that makes them tougher to cope with.
Culture is by nature learned behavior. There is nothing innate regarding it. Culture is learned through use of language. Nonverbal communication happens in all societies, however the verbal language is the first medium of communication.
Language: The connection between language and culture is an inseparable one. Everything an individual experiences is perceived among the conceptual and grammatical perspective of that person's language. People can never perceive the impact this has on their thinking till they learn a completely totally different language. When you are doing this, the structural comparisons between the two languages highlights the customarily extreme variations within the method our thoughts are formed. Your language provides the framework inside that you perceive reality. You basically become a totally different person when you switch over to a second language. Thus, lesson variety one is to find out as much as you'll of the language of your expatriate destination.
Cross-cultural communication: What's said could not be what is heard Have you ever said to someone; "That is not what I meant". Well, what's said and what is heard varies based mostly on cultural variations also. What you say might be heard as you meant it. It could be heard as something totally different from what you meant or it might be perceived somewhere in between these two extremes. Culture acts as a filter for meaning. If this confusion is found when speaking our own language among ourselves, imagine how much larger the influence when the very thought patterns of the hearer is totally alien to ours. For instance, the word "it" in English covers a mess of meanings. In the Navajo Indian language there is no generic "it". You would need to use a type that describes a specific shape, form, or size of "it". Therefore, lesson number two is to bear in mind that what you say and what you hear may not be what's perceived by the party on the opposite end of the conversation.
Being conscious of cultural differences in language use will aid in adjustment to cultural variations, but solely through total immersion within the cultural tradition of the country can you avoid most culture shock. Since most expatriates never reach that level of immersion, be resigned to the actual fact that some time in your experience abroad you'll find yourself in a very state of culture shock. But that too shall pass.
Author Resource:-
Doris Hill has been writing articles online for nearly 2 years now. Not only does this author specialize in Cross Cultural, you can also check out his latest website about:
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