Third culture kid
[1] The term third culture kid was first coined by researchers John and Ruth Useem in the 1950s, who used it to describe the children of American citizens working and living abroad.
[9] Useem et al. (1963) depicted individuals who have undergone such an experience as having distinct standards of interpersonal behavior, work-related norms, codes of lifestyle and perspectives, and communication.
"[12][13] David C. Pollock and Ruth Van Reken pioneered the TCK profile with the publishing of their book, Growing Up Among Worlds (first edition 1999),[14] which brought to light the emotional and psychological realities that come with the TCK journey, often resulting in feelings of rootlessness and grief but also an increased confidence and ability to interact with many cultures.
Their definition of what it means to be a TCK is widely referenced: "[A] person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents' culture.
Although elements from each culture are assimilated into the TCK's life experience, the sense of belonging is in relationship to others of the same background.
"[This quote needs a citation] Through interviews and personal writings, this seminal work explored the challenges and benefits that TCKs encounter.
Later editions widened the net to discuss the experiences of CCKs (cross-cultural kids) who may be immigrants, international adoptees or the children of biracial or bicultural parents.
However, there has been further research done on TCKs that shows that the same characteristics described by Pollock and Useem in the most prominent TCK literature also apply to individuals from other nations who have also lived abroad for extended periods of time during their developmental years.
The term TCKs may be applied to all social classes and includes immigrant and refugee students (Dewaele 8c van Oudenhoven, 2009).
Cultural homelessness has been found to have both advantages and disadvantages, at times to being associated with low self-esteem, perceiving less control over one's own life, and an unsatisfactory level of experience with belonging and attachment.
[25] Researcher and teacher Wenda Sheard surveyed some of her multi-cultural students, most of whom were fluent in two or more languages, and found that many felt that they had an increased tolerance of other cultures.
However, as one student explained, part of this tolerance was out of necessity for maintaining a healthy social life in one's new environment and culture.
[25] In a study by Dewaele and van Oudenhoven (2009), it was found that TCKs scored higher on the open-mindedness scale on the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire (MPQ).
According to the study, "this dimension [of the test] evaluates for open and unprejudiced attitudes toward out-group members, as well as diverse cultural norms and values.
One particular study by Lee and Bain (2007) that was found to have significant findings was conducted on young native Koreans who had recently moved to the United States and were attending school in America.
The researchers were looking to see how these students would respond to explicit instruction aimed to work with their originality and fluency and that is specific to TCKs.
This study has implications for the ways that TCKs can be instructed differently from the traditional curriculum to enhance their creativity and problem solving abilities because of their third culture experience.
[27] Intellectual effect is also possible through differences in choosing to continue studies in higher education after high school.
[15] Much of the literature and research surrounding TCKs has found that these individuals are more open to learning new languages, demonstrate more flexibility when interacting with a novel culture than their monoculture peers, and have a greater interest in continuing a global nomad lifestyle, which includes an interest in international careers.
[29] Such findings were used in the hypothesis of a study conducted by Gerner & Perry (2000) that predicted that gender differences would also be found in the cultural acceptance and experiences of TCKs.
The stress and grief students feel during transitional phases can distort their psycho-social development, which can affect their grades and school work.
Although their study was unable to find enough evidence to support their hypothesis, they agree that school belonging influences emotional-behavioral problems.
[32] Families tend to seek out schools whose principal languages they share, and ideally one which mirrors their own educational system.
However, views of kikokushijo have not always been positive; in the 1970s, especially, they were characterised in media reports and even by their own parents as "educational orphans" in need of "rescue" to reduce their foreignness and successfully reintegrate them into Japanese society.
