Dealing with Reverse Culture Shock after Cultural Exchange: Contributing Factors and Coping Strategies

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the contributing factors that make returning exchange students’ readjustment in their home culture difficult and lead them to feel reverse culture shock and the coping strategies they make use of to mitigate this reverse culture shock. Using purposive and snowball sampling, the data was gathered through a mixed method approach, including a questionnaire with 16 exchange alumni and a semi structured interview with 7 of them. The results of the study showed that most participants experienced difficulty readjusting due to different reasons, namely the unhealthy comparisons they made between their host and home cultures and the reverse homesickness and alienation they encountered in their home culture. The study also indicated two main coping strategies that students relied on to reduce their reverse culture shock: processing and accepting that they have become different after their exchange and staying in touch with fellow exchange alumni.