Culture Shock At The Work Place Coursework Assignment (Coursework Sample)

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Culture Shock at the work place
According to Kohl’s (1979), culture shock is defined as “the term used for the pronounced reactions to the psychological disorientation that is experienced in varying degrees when spending an extended period of time in a new environment”. It is the feeling that one experiences when they have moved from a familiar organizational culture to a new work place with a totally new culture. It is the shock of being in unfamiliar place where one is separated from the important people in their lives such as family friends and colleagues. In general, culture shock at the work place can be described as the stress or anxiety caused by being in a new or foreign place devoid of the familiar things and people one is used to. According to some researches, up to 40% of new employees don’t make it past one year in a new organization for several reasons, top of them being stress caused by being in a new environment. Every organization has their own cultures, though not written in any manual or employee handbook, the culture is very much alive. Culture shock at organizations must be taken seriously by organizations and individuals so as to minimize stress in individuals that would result in underperforming by new employees.
Culture shock at the new environment leads to confusion, stress, headache and quick anger at even very mundane matters. Confusion may come about as a result of matters of the unwritten or and etiquettes of the organization. Such issues as refusal by colleagues to answer the new employees after hours, an organization culture where people don’t share information or a culture where bosses don’t mix with junior employees (Gabel 375). All these issues and many more others can become stressful to the new employee especially where they is no sense of direction or stewardship. These are just but a few of the issues that define an organizations culture that may be different from other organizations. The following is a graph depicting the stages of culture shock in the work place.
Some aspects of culture shock at the organization may be very unpleasant to go through while some are mild and can be contained quite easily.
1 Honeymoon Phase
This phase is characterized by some kind of enthusiasm, euphoria and even excitement. This stage most commonly occurs at the stage where one is hunting for the job, going for interviews and eventually joining the new organization. Anxiety is as a result of not knowing what the future holds, facing the interviewers and eventually meeting the new faces who will be the new employees’ colleagues.
2 Anxiety Stage
This comes about as a result of facing unknown situations which can lead to anxiety and frustrations. This is the duration when one is starting to get acclimatized to the new organization. This is the stage where one gets anxious about such things as the dress code, how do they take lunch? Do they hang out after work? With time, one can be able to address these issues by observing what goes on around him or her. Alternatively, they can ask questions to these effects and other issues that causes them anxiety. It is best for one not to pretend to follow what’s going on just by following the words being thrown about casually by the colleagues, it is best to seek proper communication regarding matters that may not be clear to avoid making mistakes.
3 Adjustment Stage
This is the stage where one begins to shed off fear, the initial insecurity, anxiety and stress and begins to conform to the practices and norms of the new organization, otherwise called the organization culture. This is achieved with the help of time, patience and putting on the right attitude towards ones new environment. Through participation of social events as well as being open, one is able to get an excellent chance of learning the new cultures faster.
4 Acceptance
This is the stage where one has learnt from the initial shocks of being in a new organization with different work cultures from their old organization. This is the stage where one is being accepted into social circles of co-workers (Guy 393). The co-workers have also started to develop some like and trust for the new organization and are beginning to feel comfortable working on projects as a team.
Symptoms of culture shock at work place
* Frequent headaches
* Anger- One is always angry, even small issues cause tremendous amount of unwarranted anger.
* Anxiety resulting in unusual sweating, rapid palpitations, and general uncomfortability.
* Confusion
* Having sleepless nights and restlessness.
Effects of Culture shock at the work place
* Irritability and uneasiness
Because one is unsure of what to do and how to behave in a new organization they become very uneasy. The lack of a sense of knowing what to do makes them become irritated. In this situation, it is very easy for a new employee to misinterpret even a friendly joke as they become super-sensitive to what people say and do. The uneasiness and irritability may seem as a mild situation, however if not properly controlled by the individual, can lead to bigger problems for the new employee such as making irrational decisions and making a lot of mistakes in the course of their work.
* Effect on health
Culture shock at the organization can cause worry in new employees. This worry can lead to headaches and stomachaches leading to discomfort. All of these effects can make it increasingly impossible for the new employee to concentrate on their work which may in turn lead to poor quality work. Worry, if it goes on for long unchecked, can lead to bigger health issues such as ulcers and other problems.
* Stress
New employees are bound to be stressed stemming from the fact that they do not know what to do or how to behave in their new environment. Issues like, who do I talk to? How will they take me? And other numerous questions cause worry and eventual stress on new employees. Stress is a serious health issue which if goes unchecked, may lead to serious health issues to an individual. Stress has been said by the health experts to be the number one killer disease ahead of HIV AIDS, cancer and even heart disease (Guy 393). In places like Latin America for instance, work related stress is at the present day acknowledged as one of the most serious epidemics in the work place where a lot of employees are increasingly being diagnosed with such dreadful ailments as high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases and others. Stress can impact individuals emotionally, physically, mentally and even behaviorally.
Dealing with culture shock
There are several ways in which organizations and individuals can use to reduce or stop culture shock from being a big issue at the work place
* At the time of inducting new employees, an organization must give clear directions regarding issues of dress code, code of conduct, chain of command among other things in order for new employees to have a sense of direction. Most organizations have the habit of bringing in new employees without taking them through induction, the end result is that the said employees make a lot of mistakes because they have no sense of direction.
* New employees must be made to feel part and parcel of their new organization. They must be guided accordingly and the existing employees must be made aware well ahead of time about the impending changes so that the transition is both smooth for the incoming employee as well as the existing employees.
* New employees must feel free to ask questions. A lot of times, new employees shy from asking questions because they are afraid of being taken in bad light. The only way to minimize making mistakes is by asking questions (Guy 393). Questions relating to their work and position, questions relating to code of conduct in the organization, questions relating to social structure of the organization among other questions. By so doing, the new employees will be able to get information that will help them to strike a balance in their new environment.
* Part of integrating into the new culture will involve making mistakes. The mistakes here are not deliberate are mistakes. A new employee must expect to make mistakes. No one is perfect, least of all a new employee in a new organization. Fear and anxiety will lead the employee to making mistakes. This is the storm before the calm and one must take it in his stride and learn from the mistakes. Mistakes such as forgetting new names, titles, directions among other things will be common in the first few days but will fade away with time. With the right attitude and patience, these are problems that will fade away ...