Culture Shock Essay Example for Free

Culture Shock Essay Studying, working or living abroad can be a wonderful experience. However, this can also be an awful time in one’s life with some people finding a lot of discomfort in adapting to a new society. This impact of moving from a familiar culture to one which is unfamiliar is referred to as culture shock. It includes the different feelings and apprehension people have when learning the ways of a different society. This paper looks at this â€Å"occupational disease† as is commonly known. The term ‘culture shock’ was first used by the anthropologist Oberg back in 1960. According to Oberg, there are six main aspects of culture shock. The first is strain, an effect caused by the effort to adapt. Another aspect is a sense of loss and feelings of deprivation in relation to friends, status, profession and possessions. A third common aspect which especially affects people who relocate to a new environment without prior familiarisation with the environment’s culture and way of life is a feeling of rejection by the members of the new culture, or even rejecting the members. Confusion in roles, values and self-identity is another equally significant aspect of culture shock. A certain variety of people may experience anxiety and even disgust or anger about practices they may encounter in their new environment. Last but not least, Oberg identified â€Å"feelings of helplessness†, a case where one may be unable to cope with the new environment. Despite the many negative descriptions that Oberg gave about culture shock, in all its diverse firms, it has been acknowledged as a part of a successful process of adaptation. (Marx, 2001, 5) Culture shock has several stages and the many symptoms known usually occur after the first stage, the honeymoon stage. The honeymoon stage is an excitement stage experienced in the first few weeks of an individual’s relocation to a new environment. The honeymoon stage may last for even months, depending on certain circumstances, such as the person’s popularity. For instance, a well-known person may experience a long honeymoon stage, where he or she may be taken to the show places and given special attention. This experience may not last for long if the person is forced by circumstances to remain in the place for a long period of time. It is then that the person may start having a hostile and aggressive attitude towards the host country, and many symptoms may occur. (World wide classroom, 2008) For example, excessive concern over cleanliness, where one may find the new and strange experiences in-appropriate or plain â€Å"dirty†, especially in relation to drinking water, food and bedding. Another common symptom is a desire for dependence on long term residents of one’s own nationality. Other symptoms such as the fear of physical contact with attendants or servants, irritation over delays and other minor frustrations out of their proportion to their causes, excessive fear of being cheated, robbed or injured, great concern over minor pains and irruptions of the skin, delay and outright refusal to learn the language of the host country; and most significantly, the terrible longing to be in familiar environment, a situation where one would miss one’s relatives and friends. (World wide classroom, 2008) Everyone has been known to be affected by culture shock. Some people adapt quite easily, but others may take years to fully adapt to their new environment. It is therefore critical to understand how to deal with it. Culture shock is unavoidable, despite a person’s status or circumstances. However, various ways have been identified of minimizing it. Some of these steps include, firstly, allowing time to find out about culture shock, which may involve tasks such as reading and carrying out research about the intended place of destination, a step which encompasses learning to recognize the symptoms and their potential impact. Secondly, expecting culture shock to happen is an important step. This should be irrespective of location or distance, as culture shock is likely to occur in a neighbouring country as much as in a far country. The third step is identifying all the opportunities for building support networks with local people as soon as early as possible. Another equally important step to remember is not to give in to any stressful situation. Learning from people who have undergone similar experiences is an invaluable step as someone is able to avoid certain mistakes, hence adapting faster and easier. In some extreme cases, symptoms may persist despite a person’s coping efforts. In such situations, then one is advised to seek professional help through counselors or medical profession. It is critical to remember that reverse culture shock, a situation where the symptoms of culture shock re-occur to people when they get back home is equally normal. Most importantly, is to think about the positive aspects of culture shock; it is worthy noting that people who experience culture shock adapt better than those who do not. (Marx, 2001, 18) According to recent research, the more well-traveled and practiced at absorbing, accepting and adapting one is, the more easily one overcomes culture shock. Good adjustment to a new environment ensures that one competently performs the roles that each social context requires, thus avoiding frustrations resulting from inappropriate behaviour. (International Education, 2008) Managing culture shock is a skill which is increasingly gaining importance in almost all career fields, and can be of invaluable help to international students, job relocation and even living outside a person’s native country. Despite the many painful experiences associated with culture shock, minimizing it using the steps aforementioned can greatly assist in adapting to a new society hence maximizing one’s time and resources. Works Cited: Eickelmann C. , The International Educational Site: Studying abroad and Culture Shock. Retrieved 29 November, 2008 from: http://www. intstudy. com/articles/ec184a13. htm Marx E. (2001) Breaking through Culture Shock: What You Need to Succeed in International Business. Nicholas Brealey Publishing. World Wide Classroom. (2006) Culture Shock and the Problem of Adjustment to New Cultural environments Retrieved 29 November, 2008 from: http://www. worldwide. edu/about/index. html

Students and School Uniforms Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Students and School Uniforms   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The implication of school uniforms on the public school system would make a dramatic positive change for the students now and in the future. Currently the public school system allows casual dress code attire throughout the United States. Differing from private school institutions, where uniforms are mandatory. School uniforms are beneficial to the students and to the parents of these students. Secondly, uniforms provide structure and unity within the schools. Lastly, school uniforms make the environment in which the students conduct in for approximately 6 – 7 hrs. of their day a safer place.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How much does it cost to dress for school? The prices in the fashion market targeted to school age children are on the rise yearly. â€Å"The $28 billion children's apparel market experienced continuous growth from 1998 to 2003 up 32%† (Key note publications, 2003), this statistic showing the growth in spending on fashion clothing for young children. The clothing market now being a large expense for parents of these children. The purchasing of school uniforms is proven to be less expensive than the competitive fashion market at this time. School uniforms are typically purchased yearly, with the growing child. This lessening the amount of money spent on uniforms and attention paid to the fashion market’s competiti...

My Favourite Author Essay

â€Å"A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts, they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.† -Roald Dahl Roald Dahl has written numerous children’s books in his career as a writer. He had fun playing around with words, inventing new ones. He always capitalized on his humor, never failing to think to think out of the box. He always wrote from the point of view of a child. Roald Dahl was an acquisitive reader in his younger days. According to him, â€Å"An autobiography is a book a person writes about his own life and it is usually full of all sorts of boring details, this (Boy: Tales of Childhood) is not an autobiography† These words brought a smile on my face. I love Dahl’s silly yet creative style of writing. His book ‘Boy: Tales of Childhood’, is a favourite of mine. It is a memoir of Roald’s childhood. I find it utterly fascinating. This autobiography contains incidents about his childhood. He was born in Landaff, Cardiff, Wales, in 1916. He attended The Cathedral School in Llandaff. One of the events in this book is when he was eight. His friend Thwaites among his four friends was spanked by the headmaster for putting a dead mouse in a jar of hard candy, called ‘gobstoppers’ at the local sweet shop, owned by Mrs.Pratchett, an old woman whom Dahl described as â€Å"mean and loathsome†. Roald and the other four boys called the â€Å"Great Mouse Plot of 1924†. Along with his passion for literature, Dahl also developed an interest in photography; it is one of my favourite hobbies too. Roald Dahl was made captain for school fives and squash teams, and he also played football, his exceptional height helped him. In ‘Boy: Tales of Childhood’, Dahl also said that the chocolate company sent over boxes of new chocolates to be tasted. The chocolates were expected to be rated and commented on, be it the flavor or the enhanced needed in those chocolates. Roald wished to earn the praise of Mr. Cadbury himself. This wish of his gave him the inspiration to write the amazing book, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. Roald had also said that he originally did not plan to include children in his book at all! But he changed his mind when his nephew said to him, â€Å"Uncle Roald, I do not like it a bit.†Ã‚  Another book, ‘Matilda’ is the second of my favourites of his books. It revolves around Matilda Wormwood, a girl who had an immense love for reading. Matilda, because of her parents’ ignorance towards her, taught herself to do things like cooking and reading. Her parents considered her a nuisance, who, according to them, should’ve been watching more television and reading fewer books! To add up to this, Matilda’s headmistress, a horribly cruel woman, Miss Trunchbull who believed Matilda’s father’s words indicating that his daughter-Matilda- was not well-behaved. Matilda later discovers magical powers within herself, powers that, with practice, allowed her to levitate things, with just a glance in its direction and a little concentration. This book is about how Matilda teaches her parents and headmistress a lesson, and makes friends with Miss Honey in the process. I have observed that Roald Dahl’s books for children, quite typically, comprise of evildoers who hate little children. These wicked people are either simply villains or tremendous gluttons. These characters or stories can also be a metaphor for the abuse the older boys put him through. His books also usually contain dark humor. These wicked people are usually punished for their evil, wicked deeds. Some of Roald Dahl’s other well known children’s books are, The BFG, The Twits, The Witches, Fantastic Mr. Fox, James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Dahl joined the RAF (Royal Air Force) as an aircraftsman. He married actress Patricia Neal fourteen years later after his involvement in wars, and they had five children. Roald Dahl died in 1990 of leukemia. Though Roald Dahl is no longer in this world, the magical worlds created by him in his wonderful, or, in his words- phizz-whizzing!-books, and characters will always live on. Roald Dahl will always be my favourite author.

Prison Incarceration And The Criminal Justice System

Executive Summary Jail and prison populations are swelling as a result of increased crime and sentencing in the criminal justice system. The criminal justice system has piles of cases that need to be sorted and suspects who need to proceed with their trials. It is clear that the system needs an adjustment. One significant method to reduce the population in jails and prisons is to changing the rehabilitation strategies. Rehabilitation is important in the criminal justice system, but even more significant in keeping individuals out of jail, out of prison, and out of trouble. Mass incarceration does not work, simply put. It has been utilized in the past and based on that, has been proven to not work effectively. The state of Virginia decided to do away with parole in the year 1995, causing increased prison inmates to remain in the system, even though they should be out paying their own taxes instead of taking them from taxpayers while sitting inside of a prison cell. An individual must serve at least eighty-five percent of his or her sentence whether or not that person has proven themselves to be accepted back into society (Roeder, et al, 2015). It is clear that this method is outdated and only increases the amount of money taxpayers must put towards the swelling prison system The solution of mass incarceration simply does not work anymore; it is an outdated concept that will be shown in this brief why it does not work and why it needs to be changed. There are several issuesShow MoreRelatedThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1199 Words   |  5 Pagesperceptions on the American criminal justice system? Michelle Alexander was able to accomplish that by altering some people s entire perception on the American criminal justice system by focusing on our most pressing civil right issues of our time for some of those who did read her book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age of Colorblindness. Michelle Alexander stated that The most despised in America is n ot gays, transgenders, nor even illegal immigrants - it is criminals. That was an importantRead MoreThe Judicial Corporal System Of Islamic Criminal Justice System Essay1299 Words   |  6 PagesIncarceration, especially in the United States, is widely known to be a massive taxpayer burden— to the tune of over $52 billion per year (CITE p414). In 2012, the annual cost per inmate in the United States was approximately $21,000 for low risk inmates, and up to $34,000 for high risk offenders (CITE p386). Additionally, incarceration places a significant financial burden on the offenders themselves, because they would lose their current jobs, and any job prospects they would have in the futureRead MorePrivatization Within The Criminal Justice System Essay1510 Words   |  7 Pages The United States has an incarceration problem that personifies issues throughout the entire criminal justice system. 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The United States prison population is the largest in the world. In fact, the United States has 2.3 million persons in institutions which is more than the rest of the world combinedRead MoreThe Failure of the War on Drugs Essay1529 Words   |  7 PagesThe War on Drugs in the United States has a profound influence on both the incarceration rates and activities of the criminal justice system. Many politicians and advocates of the policy claim that the War on Drugs is a necessary element to deter criminal behavior and reduce the crime rate. However, studies show that drug deterrent policies on possession and use have been inadequate and unsuccessful (Cole Gertz, 2013). Studies also show that the War on Drugs has not attained its objectives because