Business Ethics

Most international students spend the first few weeks in Champaign settling in and getting adjusted. Adjustment, however, is often not accomplished in the first few weeks. Adjustment is an on-going process. We hope that the following information will help you to understand this adjustment process, and provide you with some ideas on how to overcome culture shock.

• Four Stages of Cultural Adjustment

• Tips for Coping with the Hostility Stage

________________________________________

The Four Stages of Cross-Cultural Adjustment

The Honeymoon Stage

The honeymoon stage is characterized by feelings of exhilaration, anticipation, and excitement. You are fascinated with everything that is new. You are embarking on your “dream come true”, study in the United States. You may feel eager to please the people around you. You display a spirit of cooperation, and show an active interest in others. Because you want to please others, you may nod or smile to indicate understanding when in fact you have not understood. When the misunderstandings mount up, you move into the second stage of cultural adjustment, the hostility stage.

The Hostility Stage

The second stage of cultural adjustment is characterized by feelings of frustration, anger, anxiety, and sometimes depression. You may feel frustrated by University bureaucracy and weary of speaking and listening in English daily. It can be upsetting to realize that, although you have studied English, you don’t seem to understand anyone. Sleep patterns may be disrupted. You may suffer from indigestion and be unable to eat. You might react to your frustration by rejecting your new environment. The internal reasoning might be, “if I feel bad, it is because of them”. At this point it is likely that you will display some hostility towards American culture. Some of this hostility is translated into fits of anger over minor frustrations, excessive fear and mistrust of Americans, frequent absenteeism, lack of interest, lack of motivation, and, at worst, complete withdrawal. Many academic problems begin during this stage.

The Humor