Insights
When you first arrive in a new culture, there is a period of confusion that comes from the new
situation and from a lack of information. It leaves you quite dependent and in need of help in the
form of information and above. The second stage begins as you start to interact with the new
culture. It is called the stage of small victories. Each new encounter with the culture is fraught
with peril. It is preceded by anxiety and information collection and rehearsal. Then the even
occurs and you return home either triumphant or defeated. When successful, the feelings really
are very much as though a major victory has been won. A heightened roller coaster effect is
particularly characteristic of this stage. The support needed is emotional support, people who
appreciate what you are going through and who can cheer you onward. It often happens that
once some of the fundamentals of life are mastered, there is time to explore and discover the
new culture. This is the honeymoon stage of wonder and infatuation, in it there is a heightened
appreciation of the new, the different, the aesthetic. Depending on the degree of cultural
immersion and exploration it may continue for a considerable period of time. During this time
there is no interest in attending to the less attractive downsides of the culture.
After a while, a self-correction takes place. No honeymoon can last forever. Irritation and anger
begin to be experienced. Why in the world would anyone do it that way? Can’t these people get
their act together? Now the deficits seem glaringly apparent. For some people, they overwhelm
the positive characteristics
and become predominant.
Finally, if you are lucky enough to chart a course through these stages and not get stuck (and
people do get stuck in these stages), there is a rebalance of reality. There is the capacity to
understand and enjoy the new culture without ignoring those features that are less desirable.
This cultural entry and engagement process is both cognitive and affective. New information is
acquired and remembered; old schema and perceptions are revised and qualified. An active
learning process occurs. At the same time, anxiety arises in reaction to uncertainties and the
challenges of the learning processes. It must be managed, as must the extremes of feeling that
occur in this labile period. Thus, I am describing a learning process that results in valuing and
affirming the best in the culture while at the same time seeing it in its completeness, seeing it
whole. The capacity to affirm the whole- including those aspects that are less desirable yet are
part of the whole – is critically important.
An appreciative process, “appreciative inquiry” is proposed as a way of helping members of
different cultures recognize and value their differences and create a new culture where different
values are understood and honoured. Executives – those who must lead this culture–change
projects – need to understand that equal employment opportunity, affirmative action and
sexual harassment policies, as viewed and implemented in organizations, are problem oriented
change strategies. They focus on correcting what is wrong rather than creating a valued future.
Executives themselves will need to inquire appreciatively into cultures that are not known to
them before they are equipped to lead cultural change in their own organizations.
