When will I ever learn. Culture Shock!!!

My recent consultancy assignment to United States has been an extremely difficult learning curve. Especially adapting to culture. Before sharing my views on the culture of United States I would like to initially set a baseline to my understanding on the term culture. I would like to stick to a simple definition of culture which is Deal’s and Kenedy’s (2000) the “The way we do things around here”.

We are Independent

The way Americans do things challenges the fundamental concepts of humanity. One of the most prominent philosopher’s Aristotle stated that ““Man is by nature a social animal; an individual who is unsocial naturally and not accidentally is either beneath our notice or more than human”. In simple words men can survive without one another. Americans challenge this core concepts of human existence by giving prominence to “independence”.

We have a support system to be Independent

Me being a Sri Lankan, even a tea is not consumed alone, drinking a tea is accompanied by someone. To understand how independent American’s are, the best place to go is their source of food. If you go to a super market, most of the food requirements are easy to make, serving one person and packaged for ease. Unlike in Asian cultures where  the mother of the house prepares food for everyone in the house each meal preparation takes 2, 3 hours of preparations, in US the food preparation not only takes a maximum of 30 minutes and also anyone can make the food.

I don't need your help

Recently a person traveling on a wheel chair was trying to open the door it seemed a bit difficult for the person. Me being an Asian, and we being taught to help whoever needs help I went to help him to open the door. The person was offended that.  I learnt that day Americans are independent people who never ever give up. They want to stand by themselves. So to speak there is so much to learn.

Well planned life cycle

It is amazing when I heard the story of an old family themselves selling their house and deciding to go to an elderly home. From where I come from making parents to stay at an elderly home is a cultural crime. I still would have love to see the American culture to be a bit more family centric, it seems they have moved forward from the family concept with a good understanding.

No one will help you - Grow up

I recently moved from Connecticut to Boston. In Sri Lanka if I was moving from one place to another. All my relations would have come to help me, all the neighbors would have come to help. This instance no one knew, I just went to home depot got the packaging material and called the movers. None of my neighbors even knew that I existed. This is cultural shock to me, but I am learning every step of the way. These cultural aspects surely have made America the power house in the world.