Systematic literature review of factors influencing reacculturation after returning home from a stay abroad

Abstract

This paper reports results from a systematic review that organizes existing knowledge about re-entry stress and adaptation to one’s heritage culture after returning from abroad. In this review, we sought to describe the prevalence of re-entry stress, how stress levels change over time and identify factors associated with reacculturation. We searched seven subject-specific and multidisciplinary databases for English language, peer-reviewed papers, and theses/dissertations with original qualitative or quantitative data, published from 2009. Fifty-five studies met the selection criteria. The prevalence of re-entry stress ranged between 40 % and 92 %. Studies used various scales with distinct characteristics to measure re-entry stress. Longitudinal information about patterns of changes in re-entry stress levels was insufficient. The analysis provided information about the variety of situational, demographic, intrapersonal, interpersonal/intergroup, and contextual factors associated with re-entry stress and adaptation. The literature to date has mostly focused on situational and intrapersonal factors while explorations of the broader cultural context have been scarce. Current knowledge is largely limited to more privileged groups of returnees, such as students and employees from the Global North. This paper highlights important gaps in the literature and provides scope for future research. We argue that inconsistencies in reacculturation research are mainly due to a lack of clear conceptual and theoretical frameworks.