There are many reasons why you may be considering move abroad. Maybe you have found love outside your country and you want to fight for it no matter where. Maybe you are leaving to seek your luck at work in a more prosperous country, where they are looking for people with a profile like yours. Or maybe you simply want a change of scenery and start over in a new place.
This is the case of Laura, a young woman who has been attending therapy for many months and is now seriously considering moving to another country. She hopes that her future prospects will be better there, but she is not sure. Her psychologist is having a hard time, as she keeps asking everyone: «Should I try my luck abroad or stay at home?»
Neither answer pleases you, and it is entirely logical that it should be so. After all, the decision to move abroad can change every aspect of your life. Not only does it have to be a very well thought-out decision, but it has to be completely and utterly staff.
Factors to consider before moving abroad
In early 2019 a study entitled How personality moderates the impact of social norms on pilgrims' adaptation revealed the factors that influenced adaptation to foreign cultures.
Researchers surveyed 889 students who were living in other countries during a cultural exchange. In doing so, they came to the conclusion that There are two key factors that influence your adaptation process when you move abroad.
The study was based on the fact that Some countries have more rigid sociocultural norms than others.In these countries, which the study calls «strict,» social norms are held in high regard and violations are not tolerated.
For this reason, people who live in these cultures have a greater ease in detect social norms tacit understandings that will help them adapt to a new environment.
On the opposite side we find the countries with more flexible sociocultural normswhere adherence to norms is not as high and there is room for a greater variety of behaviors. Individuals belonging to these cultures have more difficulty detecting the norms prevailing in other environments, which leads them to adapt less well.
That is to say, if you come from a country like Japan, considered one of these strict societies, it will be easier for you to adapt to other cultures, whether they are more lax or just as strict as yours.
On the other hand, if you come from a more flexible country, such as Spain or Latin American countries, you may find it more difficult to adapt to more rigid cultures.
In any case, lThe adaptation will be greater the more similar the source culture is to the destination culture.For example, travelling from Spain to Portugal should not cause much of a culture shock. However, if your destination is Norway, the adaptation process may be longer and more complex.
If you live abroad and are having trouble adjusting to your new destination, it may be time to contact an online psychologist.
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Of course, your personality will also have a significant influence on the process of adaptation to the target culture. The study proposed, in one of its hypotheses, that certain personality traits cushion the impact of moving to a more rigid culture than their home culture.
Thus, the study showed that kindness, honesty and humility of travelers positively influence their adaptation to the new culture.
Also the fact of being a person outgoing and open-minded It can help you get used to life in another country.
These are the advantages of moving abroad…
- You have the opportunity to meet new peopleMoving abroad is the perfect excuse to train your social skills. It will force you to leave your comfort zone and open yourself up to new horizons. And, without a doubt, meeting people who are used to that new culture will help you gain flexibility.
- You have the opportunity to change the things in your life that you don't like. Do you have a boring job that you're not passionate about? Do you constantly argue with your parents about living together? Do you not get along with your lifelong friends? A new destination means hundreds of thousands of new opportunities to start over, don't hesitate to take advantage of them.
- You can develop very important skills. Living abroad will undoubtedly help you develop numerous skills that will be useful both in your daily life and in your workplace. In fact, many companies value candidates who have lived abroad, as they are usually perceived as decisive people and capable of facing new challenges.
…and these are the drawbacks
- The process of moving will be stressful. If everything were as easy as hopping on a plane and settling into a new destination, going to live in a foreign country would be a piece of cake. However, you have to fill out paperwork, look for an apartment, carry your things from here to there, apply for visas… A host of tasks that can cause you great amounts of stress.
- You will have to adapt to a new culture and a new language. Social norms, customs, timetables, types of food, traffic rules, language… One of the disadvantages of moving abroad is having to adapt to a completely new world.
- You may feel like you don't know who you are. Sometimes expatriates, torn from their culture of origin, lose their sense of who they are. A fish is still a fish if you take it out of its bowl and throw it into the sea, but it may struggle to find its way in this new environment, even if it still knows how to swim.
- You will have to face the migration grief. Every loss is accompanied by grief. When you move abroad, you don't lose just one thing, but many. You lose, although not permanently, your home, your job, your family and your friends. You lose your habits, your routines and even the route you take every day to get to work. And, of course, all these losses hurt and require a period of adaptation.
Fortunately, access to psychological care can help you overcome all the inconveniences you will encounter if you finally decide to move abroad. The fact of making the therapy in your language natal can significantly influence the success of treatment.
In this context, online therapy has the power to bring you closer to mental health professionals who speak your language and can understand you in every way. If you are reading us from Spain or Latin America, you should know that our team of psychologists can help you coping with culture shock what it means to live in another country.
In addition to Spanish, our team of psychologists is prepared to assist you in English and Catalan. At we have helped more than 1,600 patients overcome their mental health problems. If you also want to take the step, you can request a consultation First date free by clicking the button below.