Making the Most of Your Study Abroad experience:

1
Making the Most of Your Study Abroad experience

• Suggestions for Successfully Adapting to Life in
  the U.S
• Adrian F. Aveni
• Professor of Sociology
• Jacksonville State University

2
Why Live Abroad

• Study at a College
• Job Opportunities
• Someone Else Wanted Me Go
• Employer
• Government
• Parents
• Wanted to Learn More About the Country
• Thought It Would Be Fun

3
Traveling to Another Country

• How People Think, Feel, Behave Will Be Different
• Choices Continue As If I Still Were Back Home
• Change Some My Thinking,
  Feeling,
• Behaving
• Adapting Involves Changing Some of My Thinking,
• Feeling and Behaving While Away
• Adapting Does Not Involve Changing What You Love
• About Your Country

4
Ways That the US and Brazil Are Alike

• Large Land Areas
• Part of the Americas
• Large Populations
• Colonized by European Countries

5
Ways That the US and Brazil Are Different

• The US Is More Physically and Culturally Isolated
  than Brazil

6
(No Transcript)
7
(No Transcript)
8
Ways That the US and Brazil Are Different

• The US Is More Physically and Culturally Isolated
  than Brazil
• People in the US Are Called By Others
• and Call Themselves Americans
• (When, of Course, Brazilians Are Also
  Americans)
• There Is A Large Middle Section in the US
• That is Far From Any Ocean

9
Useful Concepts Tools You Can Use

• Culture
• Ideal vs. Real Culture
• Subculture
• Cultural Maze Ways

10
(No Transcript)
11
Cultural Maze Ways

• Provide Paths for Solving Problems
• Physical Locations
• Practical Problems
• Social Relationships

12

• Many Maze Ways Useful in One Country
• Are Not Useful in Another Country
• When You Approach People in a Different
• Country They Will Be Operating on the
• Basis of Maze Ways From Their Country
• and Not Your Country
• To Successfully Adapt to a New Country
• You Must Develop New Maze Ways

13
U-Shaped Curve of Feelings Toward The Host
Countryfrom University of the Pacific website
http//www2.pacific.edu/sis/culture/pub/1.6.1-_Com
mon_Reactions.htm
14
Stages of Cultural Adaptation

• The Honeymoon Stage
• The Conflict Stage
• The Critical Stage
• The Recovery Stage

15
Honeymoon Stage from website of the Office of
International Programs at North Carolina
Agricultural and Technical University
http//www.ncat.edu/oip/cultureshock.htmUcurve

• Common thoughts Isn't this exciting? I can't
  wait to tell _____ about this. Aren't they
  interesting? Everything here is so _____!
• Characteristics
• Busy taking care of business (registration,
  housing, bank account, etc.)
• Observing the new culture and familiarizing
  yourself with the new environment
• Meeting useful and friendly university staff
• Making your first social contacts with members of
  the host culture
• Seeing and doing new things and enjoying a new
  world

16
The Conflict Stage from website of the Office of
International Programs at North Carolina
Agricultural and Technical University
http//www.ncat.edu/oip/cultureshock.htmUcurve

• Common thoughts We would never do that in my
  country! Why can't they just _? I only have _
  months before I go home. These people are so _!
• Characteristics
• Want more personal relationships with local
  people
• Have little time or opportunity to make friends
• Feeling isolated, out of place
• May feel tired, sick, depressed, angry, or
  frustrated
• Have an awareness that your home culture's
  behaviors may not be accepted in the host
  culture, and you may have to give up, suspend, or
  modify your own behavior
• Blame the host culture for your problems
• Spend lots of time with members of your home
  culture complaining about the host culture

17
Critical Stage from website of the Office of
International Programs at North Carolina
Agricultural and Technical University
http//www.ncat.edu/oip/cultureshock.htmUcurve

• Common thoughts Why shouldn't they say/do that?
  We say/do that too, but differently
• Characteristics
• You choose to become an "explorer" in the new
  culture
• You accept the challenge of self-reflection
• You assume responsibility for your own cultural
  adjustment

18
Recovery Stage from website of the Office of
International Programs at North Carolina
Agricultural and Technical University
http//www.ncat.edu/oip/cultureshock.htmUcurve

• Common thoughts You don't understand them like
  I do. I'm beginning to like this
• Characteristics
• Language skills improve noticeably
• Begin to understand the actions of members of the
  host culture
• Finally made friends and feel part of the
  community
• Develop a greater tolerance for what is strange
  and new
• Become a mediator between the two cultures
• Feel proud that you can make yourself understood
  in the target language and that you can
  understand native speakers.

19

• New Maze Ways Help Adaptation
• Be Sensitive to Differences in Maze Ways
• Recognize That Some People Will
• Easily Adapt to Your Maze Ways
• Recognize That Some People Will
• Not Easily Adapt to Your Mazeways
• and That This Doesnt Mean They Dont
• Like You or People From Your Country

20
Useful Concepts Tools You Can Use I I

• Norms
• Beliefs
• Values

21
Norms

• Some Areas in Which Norms Operate
• Time
• Arrival at a Job Interview
• Arrival at Dinner at a Friends House
• Arrival at a Party
• Space
• Eye Contact
• Dating
• Making Friends

22
Beliefs

• If you work hard you will get ahead
• People are poor because they dont work hard
• A college education is the best way to getting a
  good job
• It is not what you know it is who you know
• It is better to delay marriage until after
  college
• When you find the right person you should marry
  him/her

23
Values

• Individualism Material Comfort
• Privacy Morality
• Freedom Equality
• Democracy Life/Safety/Health
• Success Linear Thinking
• Hard Work Quality of Life
• Efficiency Openness to Change

24
Using the Internet

• YouTube http//www.youtube.com/
• Facebook http//www.facebook.com/
• WFMU http//wfmu.org/
• IMDB http//www.imdb.com/
• Hulu http//www.hulu.com