Types of Culture Shock

• Expatriate culture shock is when an expatriate can not adjust to foreign cultures which can lead to failures in foreign assignments or the process of coming to understand and adapt to differences in culture manifest through daily interaction. The differences in behaviour combined with the stress of adapting to a new daily routine leads to a dislike and criticism of the host culture. There are some symptoms of culture shock, such as homesickness and boredom.

• Return culture shock is when the expatriate can not transfer from one culture to another after they return, which results in loss of self-esteem, self-confidence, and prestige among their peers. In addition, return culture shock is what we experience when we return home and have to readjust to our own country. This is a difficult process and is usually unanticipated. For example, students or expatriates who live abroad for a significant period of time are having difficulties re-adjusting, they might find it very stressful.

• Host national culture shock is when the presence of foreigners in the workplace is considered disruptive by the domestic staff. Domestic staff considers the expatriates as threat. They also feel many symptoms of culture shock, such as anxiety, fear, depression, ineptitude and fatigue. Their stereotype and ethnocentrism become prejudice resulting in mistrust, hostility, and even hatred. They are afraid that the expatriate would be paid a lot higher than the natives and win recognition and promotion.

To avoid expatriate culture shock we must begin with appropriate anticipatory in the form of screening and training. Adequate follow through in the form of direct (organization-sponsored) and indirect (organization-encouraged) are needed. Furthermore, companies should train expatriates and their families to adjust a new culture, because poor adjustment by expatriate’s spouse is the key reason why expatriate return early from their assignment.

To avoid host national culture shock, companies should motivate domestic staff to cooperate with expatriates by anticipating domestic staff’s needs and taking account of their feeling.
These are some suggestions to managing host national culture shock:

1. Communicate the arrival of foreign staff early and clearly. It means that domestic staff should be well informed about the newcomers.
   
2. Present a congenial image of the foreign staff by providing some information. So the domestic staff would know about the newcomer’s background, family and interest.
   
3. Communicate company objectives regarding expatriates presence clearly. So the domestic staff would not feel that foreigners have been put in pace to do the job domestic staff could not.
   
4. Set up a structure to handle communication between domestic staff and newcomer. Company should provide an intercultural mediators, he/she may be an outside consultant or a company employee.
   
5. Present the positive impacts of working with foreigners. This could be in the form of training.
   
6. Develop domestic staff’s cultural awareness. Company must train the domestic staff about cultural differences which can create barriers to communication.
   
7. Train staff to develop their verbal communication with expatriates. Domestic staff should not only learn to use a foreign language better, they should learn to help foreigners improve their language learning.
   
8. Train staff to develop their nonverbal communication with expatriates. For example, domestic staff should learn about gestures and contextual, including messages implicit in silent, possession and roles.
   
9. Involve host nationals actively in a specific programme to initiate foreigners. For example, domestic staff can prepare information about living in the area.
   
10. Collect feedback in a systematic manner. This can be done by using a questionnaire which can be distributed to both foreign and domestic personnel.
    
11. Reward domestic staff for their co-operation, such as job promotion, a dinner, or even a short trip to the expatriate employee’s country.
    
12. Take employee suggestions into account. Listen to domestic staff’s complaints.

(Gouttefarde, 1992).

In my opinion, it is quite difficult to consistently avoid culture shock. An individual may avoid the culture shock if he/she posses enough knowledge and cross cultural skills. However, he/she may enter the emptiness phase, if he/she has enough awareness. He/she would not be long in that phase. If he/she already in the conforming phase, it means that he/she starts making adaptation and starts to function. So it is clear that awareness is the most important skill in order to avoid culture shock.