3. You are Kelly. What should you do now?

Given the fact that my family and I is at the stage of culture shock in which we are rejecting the
new culture and the environment, we are feeling frustrated because we can hardly communicate
or negotiate well with the people (Zacarian and Haynes 2012; Blake 2012). I believe that I need
to do something that would prevent the situation from getting worst and helping us cope and
adjust to the new environment. Also, I would spend time in researching and understanding the
Japanese culture. Based on my analysis and observations, the problems I have at work are mainly
caused by poor cross-cultural communication and understanding. It is believed that when I can
gain enough knowledge about the Japanese culture, I would be successful in my journey in Japan
together with my family. Moreover, I would also seek professional assistance from my home
company to help me and my family to adjust to the foreign environment and culture we are into.
I would specifically ask them to provide me and my family with proper training and orientation
about the behaviors of the Japanese and their culture and language because my family and I had
only a little knowledge about Japan. Apart from this, I would also spend the time to get to know
more about my colleagues at work. They seemed to be uncomfortable in working and socialising
with me because I am a woman. I believed that this issue at work could be resolved by building a
good working relationship with them. I would also ask Peter, my assistant, to help me better
understand the behaviours of my Japanese colleagues, and what are the things I must do to build
a good working relationship with them successfully regardless of my gender and nationality.

References
Blake, Andrew. 2012. African Students Studying in America: Their Experiences and Adjustment
Problems at an HBCU. USA: iUniverse.
Zacarian, Debbie, and Judie Haynes. 2012. The Essential Guide for Educating Beginning
English
Learners. USA: Corwin.