Culture shock: What is it?

 Being cut off from cultural cues and known patterns with which you are familiar.  Suatu bentuk ketidakmampuan menyesuaikan diri (personality mal-adjustment) yang merupakan reaksi terhadap upaya sementara yang gagal untuk menyesuaikan diri dengan lingkungan dan orang-orang yang baru (Lundstedt).  Trauma umum yang dialami seseorang dalam suatu budaya yang baru dan berbeda karena ia harus belajar dan mengatasi begitu banyak nilai budaya dan pengharapan baru, sementara nilai budaya dan pengharapan budayanya yang lama tidak lagi sesuai (Harris & Morgan).

Culture shock: What is it?

 Dalam istilah lain disebut: kejutan budaya, mengacu pada reaksi psikologis yang dialami seseorang karena berada di tengah suatu kultur yang sangat berbeda dengan kulturnya sendiri.  Meski pun gegar budaya dianggap normal (alamiah) tetapi pada tingkat tertentu menimbulkan perasaan tidak menyenangkan dan menimbulkan frustasi. Perasaan ini muncul seperti terasing, merasa beda dengan orang yang berbeda budaya, sehingga cenderung melakukan kesalahan yang serius (DeVito, 1974: 491)

Causes
 Climate, Dress, Food, Language, Rules of behavior, Values, etc  Benturan-benturan persepsi yang diakibatkan penggunaan persepsi berdasarkan faktor-faktor internal (nilai-nilai budaya) yang telah dipelajari orang yang bersangkutan terhadap lingkungan baru yang nilai-nilai budayanya yang berbeda dan belum dipahami.

The Symptoms
 Anxiety  Grief  Desperation  Disorientation  Resentment and loneliness  Insomnia  Lost of appetite or excess eating  Languidness  Headaches, pains and allergies

Stages of Cultural Shock (The U-Curve)

Stage One: Honeymoon Phase  Arrive with great expectations and positive mind set  Anything new is intriguing, fascinating and exciting  Focus on similarities and how people everywhere are really very much alike  May last from a week or two to a month or more Stage Two: Culture Shock  Feeling of disappointment and discontent  Becomes confused and baffled by his/her surrounding  Becomes easily irritated, hostile, impatient, angry, and even incompetent.

Stages of Cultural Shock (The U-Curve)

Stage Three: Gradual Adjustment  Has adopted some of the local values and feels less isolated  Finds increased self confidence  Becomes integrated into a new social network  Happens subtly and gradually  Crisis is over and slowly learn to function under new conditions Stage Four: Adaptation or Biculturalism  Increased enjoyment found in new customs and ways of doing/saying things  Ability to function in two cultures with confidence  Life may be just as good or even better than before  Realization that there will be things you will miss when you pack up and return home anticipate reality of reverse culture shock!
(Compiled by Window on the World, Inc.)

Stages of Cultural Adaptation

 Honeymoon period the visitor is fascinated and excited by everything new and by the new culture.  Culture shock the individual is confronted with new problems.  Initial adjustment everyday activities are no longer major problems.  Mental isolation having been away from the families and good friends for a long period of time, individuals feel lonely.  Acceptance and integration the visitor has accepted the habits, customs, foods, and characteristics of people in the new culture.

The Re-entry Process

 Acceptance and Integration  Return anxiety many people realize how much they have changed because of their experiences and may be nervous about going home.  Return honeymoon immediately upon arrival. in ones country, there is generally a great deal of excitement.  Re-entry shock Family and friends may not understand or appreciate what the traveler has experienced.  Re-integration The former traveler becomes fully involved with friends  Family and activities and feels home once again and fully integrated in the society.

Intensitas
Dipengaruhi oleh:  Faktor internal ciri-ciri kepribadian orang yang bersangkutan  Faktor eksternal kerumitan budaya atau lingkungan baru yang dimasuki. Tidak ada kepastian kapan gegar budaya akan muncul dihitung sejak kita memasuki budaya lain. Itu bergantung pada sejauh mana perbedaan budaya yang ada, dan apakah kita memiliki ciri-ciri kepribadian yang kondusif untuk mengatasi gegar budaya tersebut.
 The short period visitors do not always experience the same intense emotions as long time visitors.

Individuals Reactions
 Individuals experience the stage of adjustment and reentry in different ways.  Day-to-day living in another culture is undoubtedly an educational experience. Many people who have lived in other countries feel that exposure to foreign culture enable those to gain insight into own society and better appreciation of their own culture.  When facing different values, beliefs, and behavior, they develop a deeper understanding of themselves and the society that helped to shape their characters.

Cara mengatasi Gegar Budaya

 Teori U bahwa orang-orang yang menyebrang ke kultur lain akan mengalami tiga fase penyesuaian, yakni pada awalnya timbul kegembiraan dan optimisme, kemudian diikuti frustasi, depresi dan kebingungan, dan pada akhirnya muncul adaptasi.  Mode Culture Learning (Furnham & Bochner) Yang dibutuhkan hanyalah belajar dan beradaptasi terhadap sifat-sifat pokok dari masyarakat baru tersebut. Namun, individu tidak perlu menjadikan kultur baru itu sebagai bagian dari dirinya sehingga ketika ia kembali ke tempat asal, ida dapat membuang hal-hal yang telah dipelajarinya.(Anugrah, 2008)