Culture Clash
Culture Clash
"I've learned a lot on this overseas assignment, but it will be good to get home," Bill Evans thought to himself during the going-away party his colleagues arranged for him. Bill had been working at the Hong Kong branch of a large investment firm for three years, and he was about to return to the Chicago home office. He was looking forward to seeing old associates at work, and he even planned to look up his former girlfriend. So many adjustments,
so little timeAfter an enthusiastic welcome back at the Chicago office, Bill began to feel a sense of discontent. His stories of life in Hong Kong were met with blank stares. He found that his work assignments dealing with domestic issues in the United States were uninteresting and seemingly unimportant. His old girlfriend was seeing someone else. He began to feel that his three years in Hong Kong were not the career advancer that his old boss said they would be.
Bill may be experiencing reverse culture shock. Many people who accept overseas assignments go through a period of stress known as culture shock as they adjust to new demands in another country. These same people often experience reverse culture shock upon their return home. Reverse culture shock can often be extremely intense since people don't expect difficulties. People often think, "What can be easier than returning to my home and to the country I know so well?" Reasons for reverse culture shock include the reactions of others. Old colleagues have difficulties relating to the stories that returnees tell since they have not had similar experiences.
"People listen to my stories for about 15 minutes, but at minute number 16 they start looking at their watches," returnees complain. People who were subordinates in the workplace may have been promoted and so the returnees have a new boss and must develop a different type of relationship. Old friends are likely to have experienced various life changes which gives them less time for interactions with returnees. The line from the old song, "Wedding bells have broken up that old gang of mine," becomes applicable.
Personnel specialists in an organization's human resources division can offer programs to prepare people for reverse culture shock, but attendance at such programs can be disappointingly small. People rarely consider the possibility of reverse culture shock and view the idea of attending a special program on "returning home" as a strange use of their time.
The purpose of this column is to increase understanding of human behavior as it has an impact on the workplace. Special attention will be given to miscommunications caused by cultural differences. Each column will start with a short example of such confusion. Possible explanations will be offered to encourage thought about these issues.
Richard Brislin is a professor in the College of Business Administration,
University of Hawaii. He can be reached through the
College Relations Office: cro@cba.hawaii.edu