During my work abroad I frequently sought research and
publications about the expatriate work experience. With expatriates from many
different countries and with a variety of educational backgrounds, one of our
biggest concerns at Qatar Foundation was identifying the right people and
helping them to adopt a style of intercultural engagement that would be
effective. I recently joined a local church reading group that dove into
Bernard Adeney’s Strange Virtues: Ethics
in a Multicultural World. Although the book was written by a theologian who
was writing for missionaries and others working or serving abroad in
faith-based groups, Adeney’s writing shed light on a number of things worth
considering in relation to traveling, living, working and ministering abroad.
One of the core challenges with expatriates or visitors from
the West is that most are actually much less aware of the world beyond their
Western borders although they generally believe they are more aware than
everyone else. This lack of understanding then leads to Westerners ignoring how
their own cultural perspectives influence their ideas, lifestyles, and ultimate
virtue. In cultural settings where degrees of honesty and forthrightness, deference
to hierarchy, voicing opposition, or advocating for social justice vary from
Western sensibility, the lack of awareness about the origin of these beliefs is
particularly important. Effectiveness in another culture starts with humility
and curiosity and develops through dialogue and true encounter.
Adeney advocated finding a local cultural advisor as one of
the best ways to understand another culture. Authentic cultural understanding
offers the opportunity for expatriates/visitors to adopt the truth of her/his
host as their own. A beautiful song shared in a sermon given by our church’s
South Korean ministerial intern captures this sentiment:
I want my mind to go where your
mind goes.
I want my tears to be where your
tears drop.
I want my sight to see whom your
sight sees.
I want my steps to give compassion
to whom you love.
I want to understand your heart, so
all my plans may be your plans.
I want to know your heart, so all
my life will be a sacrifice for you.
What is interesting about the song is that it could be
interpreted as a statement of a believer to his/her God or it could be
interpreted as a statement of the relationship one has with a deep and abiding
friend, the kind of friendship inspired by appreciation, respect, and faith.
Several cross-cultural communication models were included in
Adeney’s book. None of these represented break-through thinking especially by
comparison to newer models such as Molinsky’s cultural dexterity approach. He
did indicate how important it is for expatriates/visitors to realize that
communication and work efficiency are likely to decline in working/visiting
abroad. Some expatriates eventually begin to resent the countries and the
nationals with whom they work; Adeney explained that this may be the outcome of
culture fatigue and may even end up in chronic unhappiness that only gets worse
with time.
While much of Adeney’s book deals with theological and
religious questions across cultures, the core of his advice is consistent with
other research and theories I’ve read as well as reasonably reflective of my own experience. The bottom line to remember is that expatriates/visitors
should seek to understand themselves through the eyes of their hosts which will
shine a light on “very personal issues of lifestyle and very private matters of
finance, family relations and personal integrity” that influence how they are
perceived as strangers in another culture.
