Coping with culture shock: a study of stressors, adjustments and stereotypes among chinese students at bangkok university

Perspectives of culture shock

Currently, debate exists as to whether culture shock is in itself a specific psychological event, or whether it is instead an instance of more general psychological and adaptive processes (Austin, 2007). As a general psycho-adaptive process, theories of culture shock may be organized along two major themes: culture shock as a culture- learning phenomenon, and culture shock as stress-coping process (Bochner, 1986).

The culture-learning perspective views culture shock in behavioural terms, as a time-linked phenomenon by which migrants learn social, linguistic and communicative customs, knowledge, and skills in order to flourish in a new society (Austin, 2007). Many scholars, including Argyle (1969, 1981, 1982) and Adler (1975) have discussed the vital importance of learning verbal, non-verbal and micro-rhythmic conventions of interpersonal interactions; from this perspective, ‘culture shock’ is simply a reflection of incomplete or faulty learning processes, and may best be remedied through education, rehearsal, practice and feedback. This view builds on the notion that social behavior is a learned, reciprocal, organized and skilled performance (Austin, 2007). The inability of one party to meet expectations of another leads to breakdown, stress and consequently culture shock (Austin, 2007).

Another perspective of culture shock, stress-coping perspective views culture shock within the context of socio-political and economic realities facing the individual,

and is influenced by the characteristics of both the society of origin and the society of settlement (Austin, 2007). From this perspective, geographical migration precipitates stress in so far as it will also entail movement, separation of spouses/family members, changing of jobs, etc. This stress produces a series of affective, behavioural, and cognitive coping responses (Austin, 2007). Berry (1994, 1997) and Berry et al. (1989) have presented an elaborate stress and coping model in which both societal-level factors and individual factors (such as cultural distance, locus of control, extroversion, and neuroticism) are important.

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