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Cross-Cultural Considerations for Women
"Despite our personal beliefs about what women should have the right to do around the world, we need to reach a balance of maintaining our identity and respecting the culture we are visiting. Women face unique challenges as we travel abroad. While we are excited to meet new people, we also have to think about our personal safety. Understanding cultural differences in the areas of sex roles, verbal and non-verbal communication and the reputation of foreign women can empower us as we go abroad." - from American Women Abroad by Holly Wilkinson-Ray
Female students traveling abroad are typically adventuresome, independent, and eager to meet people and fully experience life in a new country. In the United States, female students are accustomed to being active and free to do and act as they wish: talking with new people, traveling, making friends quickly, and going out at night. However, it is important for students to recognize that in other cultures there can be subtle and sometimes significant differences in the perceived role of women, how women are expected to behave and interactions with the opposite sex.
Dress, behavior, activity, eye contact, and topics of conversation are shaped by spoken and unspoken cultural norms. There are often strong differences between how women are expected to act in public and in private. In many countries, it is not uncommon to receive a lot of potentially unwanted attention for being an American woman. You have to learn what the unwritten rules are about what you can and cannot do while abroad, paying attention to messages you yourself may be unintentionally communicating to others.
Although it can be difficult adjusting to attitudes encountered abroad, it is important to maintain the perspective that these challenging experiences are part of the growth of cultural understanding which is one of the important reasons you are studying abroad.
Tips for Female Study Abroad Students:
- Research the country: Find out what the dress code is for women, what message non-verbal communication such as eye-contact sends, etc. Begin gathering this information by talking to women who are either from that part of the world or who have traveled there, or by reading books by and about women from that country.
- Observe: You can learn a lot about roles, attitudes, and customs by watching. How do women carry themselves in public? What is the role of women in the host culture? What is the reputation of foreign women?
- Honor the customs: We travel to other countries to learn, so we need to make the effort it takes to show respect for our host culture. Remain yourself but be culturally sensitive.
- Express yourself: Share the difficulties you experience to someone who can understand or in a journal. We all need an outlet.
- Use common sense and listen to your instincts: Be constantly aware of your environment, take the usual precautions with strangers, and never walk alone after dark. Learn about the safest way to return to your home.
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