Most experts in inter-cultural communication agree that the basic cau of culture shock is the abrupt loss of the familiar, which in turn caus a n of isolation and diminished lf-importance. „Culture shock“, says anthropologist Kalvero Oberg, „is brought on by the anxiety that results from losing all our familiar signs and symbols of social intercour. The signs or cues include the thousand and one ways in which we orient ourlves to the situations of daily life: when to shake hands and what to say when we meet people, when and how to give tips, how to give orders to rvants, how to make purchas, when to accept and when to refu invitations, when to take statements riously and when not.“
caterpillarsAccording to Dr. Oberg, the cues, which may be words, gestures, facial expressions or
businessweek英语故事短文带翻译customs, are acquired by all of us in the cour of growing up and are as much a part of our culture as the language we speak or the beliefs we accept. All of us depend for our peace of mind on hundreds of the cues, even though we may not be consciously aware of them. „When an individual enters a strange culture,“ Dr. Oberg says, „all or most of the familiar cues are removed. He or she is like a fish out of water. No matter how broad-minded of full of goodwill he may be, a ries of props has been knocked out from under him.“
英语四级查询Sometimes the transition to an alien culture has an immediate impact. A short term American visitor to certain Eastern European countries may find himlf dismayed or depresd by living conditions that em perfectly normal and acceptable to the people of that country - toilets with no ats, for example, or even more primitive bathroom facilities. It may come as a real shock to a teenager from Texas to find that hamburgers are non-existent, or, that local hairdresrs never heard of plastic curlers.
More insidious is what might be termed delayed culture shock. Often when a person take
s up residence in a foreign country there’s a period of excitement, and exhilaration when everything ems new and challenging and fascinating. If one has friends of business connections one may be asked to dinner, taken sight-eking, made much of - at first. Also, in the beginning similarities between cultures are more apparent than differences. Almost everywhere people live in hous, go to work, relax on week-ends, do the shopping, eat three meals a day and so on. All this ems reassuring.eop
It’s not until this honeymoon period ends that the newcomer begins to reali that there are endless subtle differences that leave him facing a host of perplexing problems. Many of the problems never bothered him at home, becau they solve themlves almost automatically. Now, to his incread dismay, he finds that he has language troubles, housing troubles, money troubles, transportation troubles, food troubles, recreation troubles, perhaps even health troubles. All of the things drain away his rervoir of good-humour and equanimity. Having his laundry done bay become a major struggle. Making a telephone call may be a small crisis. It may em to him that people say yes when they mean no and promi to do things which they never do. Time may be regarde历史考研
d quite differently by the people among whom he finds himlf. So may space, in some countries people like to stand very clo together when they conver, in others this violates a deep-rooted n of privacy.
Underlying all the difficulties is the uncomfortable feeling of not really belonging, of being an outsider. In changing cultures, the newcomer has inevitably changed his own status. At home he was „somebody“ or at least his place in society was established and recognid, here he is a relative „nobody“ As a foreigner, he is a member of a minority who voice counts for little or nothing. He may find that his homeland, so important to him, is regarded with suspicion or dismisd as unimportant. In sort, as one obrver put it, he finds himlf in „circumstances of beleaguered lf-esteem“.
A mature, confident person may be able to shrug off the circumstances. But if the newcomer is incure or nsitive or shy, they may em over-whelming. Furthermore, as troubles pile up and he begins to look around for help, he may conclude that the natives of the country in which he finds himlf are either incapable of understanding his
绀野朝美plight or are indifferent to it. This in turn triggers the emotion that is one of the surest signs of culture shock: hostility to the new environment. The victim says to himlf, „The people don’t em to know or care what I’m going through. Therefore they must be lfish, innsitive people. Therefore I don’t like them.“
