Culture clash: Kelly moves from Malaysia to USA

1. Explain the clashes in culture, customs, and expectations that occurred in this situation.

   The cultural crash started upon arrival as Kelly and her family noticed that apartments in Japan were much smaller than what they used to have in the USA. Normally, American houses are largely sized and have gardens for kids and pets. Those in Japan are smaller without gardens. Thus, this was the first disappointment that Kelly and her family had. Afterwards, they began to face numerous other challenges. Kelly met two Americans, two Germans, and two Japanese colleagues at the company's first meeting; she experienced the awkward greeting from the Japanese, who were silent and shy. Additionally, they believed that Kelly was a man, and upon discovering the reason why she wasn’t a man, made them laugh and somewhat ignored her. She experienced the most embracing situation when she assigned presentations to them individually, as she discovered the next day that the Japanese workers did not do anything. The reason was that the Japanese were used to doing work in groups and they expected that Kelly would assign them the presentation as a group. On the same note, Kelly’s husband was not finding life in Japan any easier as he couldn’t find any job and wasn’t able to pay for the high cost of products in Japan. The children also experienced culture shock and were disappointed as well because they noticed that no one was speaking English in the school where they were enrolled, and as such were not able to make new friends or understand the Japanese pupils. Additionally, they found it difficult to adapt to the Japanese cuisine. Both Kelly and her family didn’t find the whole situation pleasant at all.

   What stage of culture shock is Kelly’s family experiencing?

   Kelly and her family are experiencing the second stage of cultural shock, known as the irritation and hostility stage. Throughout this course, it has been learned that the culture of any society consists of assumptions, values, and goals that the society shares, which are transferred from one generation to the other, and they are distinctive from those of others. Thus, culture can have a strong influence on people’s work-life. As for Kelly, she experienced numerous stages of cultural shock with her family on a daily basis and also at her place of work. In the course of such an experience, they felt embarrassed and frustrated, and confused as well, because they couldn’t decide whether they should stay and get acclimatized to the new cultural change or if they should return back to the States.

   Turn back the clock to when Kelly was offered the position in Tokyo. What, if anything, should have been done differently, and by whom?

   From my personal point of view, prior to making the life-changing decision of moving to an entirely new country, Kelly should have conducted in-depth research about the new country. Such research would have alerted her that Japanese culture and etiquette were different from those of the USA. Additionally, she should have put into consideration that in the course of the entire family moving down to Japan, her husband would be losing his job, so he should have first sorted for employment from a Japanese company while in the USA before moving down with Kelly in order to ensure that they wouldn’t face such challenges once they reach Japan. Additionally, she should have put into cognizance the fact that her kids will have to face a huge cultural shock and it won’t be easy for them to adapt to a new culture and attend schools where no one speaks English.

   You are Kelly. What should you do now?

   As an international student in the USA, I view myself as being in a similar situation to Kelly. I also encourage her zeal to move to another country and be able to face the challenges discussed above. However, like I did before moving down to the USA, I would have done more research about the country if I were to be Kelly. In any case, Kelly’s situation is more difficult because she came down with her family and, as such, has more responsibilities. Essentially, if I were to be Kelly now, I would stay back in Japan and cope with the situations until they were overcome. I do not believe in giving up. Besides, they have an apartment in Japan, which Kelly’s company pays for, and she does have a job. Moving back to the USA means they will have to lose all because both Kelly and her husband will end up as job seekers (with higher uncertainties). Kelly can take advantage of her job opportunities to be more involved with the Japanese people in order to better understand their culture. Additionally, they can see if there are any English-speaking schools around where they can enroll their children. In the course of their stay, they are better positioned to seek re-employment in the American labor market and only move back once they have been offered another better job in the USA.