Third-Culture Kids

For girls living between two cultures, Girl Scouts helps bridge the gap.

By Lindsey Pollak

Hope is an American-born 12-year-old Girl Scout who recently moved to Boston, Massachusetts, after spending the past six years in Kazakhstan and Kuwait. Her father's job in the Foreign Service dictated her family's moves. Hope has lived in an Embassy compound in Kuwait, visited American troops at Camp Doha, and made friends from many countries. She looks forward to getting reacquainted with American culture and Taco Bell—her favorite fast food—now that she is back in the United States.

Children like Hope, who spend a significant part of their developmental years in a culture different than the culture in which their parents were raised, are known as Third-Culture Kids (TCKs) or global nomads. According to Matthew Neigh, Executive Director of Interaction International, an organization for TCKs, Third-Culture Kids represent the single fastest growing population in the world today.

Between Two Cultures

The term "third culture" was originally developed in the early 1960s by Drs. Ruth and John Useem to define the experience of people who live between two cultures and, over time, feel distant from both their culture of origin—often referred to as their "passport country"—and the country in which they reside. In recent years, the term has broadened to include children of first-generation immigrants and refugee kids. These children experience many of the same feelings as traditional TCKs, except that they likely will not return to their parents' culture of origin.

The phenomenon of the TCK has increasingly touched Girl Scout troop leaders in the United States and abroad.

"What we once knew as the face of a Girl Scout and a girl in the United States is changing," said USA Girl Scouts Overseas Director Sandy Thomas. "To be forward in our thinking and outreach to this girl, we have to understand her and her needs."

Understanding the Third-Culture Kid

Third-Culture Kids face certain challenges and also enjoy unique advantages. While there is some variation depending on age, personality, and country, four common themes have been identified by experts Barbara F. Schaetti and Sheila J. Ramsey in their article, "The Global Nomad Experience," (MOBILITY magazine, 1999).

Change: TCKs learn to become comfortable with change. This can be a benefit—adaptability and flexibility—but it can also become a hindrance, as many TCKs appear generally noncommittal or have difficulty keeping jobs or maintaining long-term relationships as adults.

Relationships: TCKs typically have the experience of making and losing friends quickly. Because of this, Schaetti and Ramsey note, "Both the ability to make friends and the tendency to enforce a certain distance are global nomad survival skills."

World View: International understanding is among the best results of the Third-Culture experience. TCKs recognize that what happens in one country has an impact on what happens in other countries; they have a sense that countries of the world are connected. In fact, many TCKs go on to have careers in diplomacy or international relations.

Cultural Identity: TCKs experience the influence of two (or more) cultures throughout their lives. They often feel like outsiders in the country that is supposed to be "home," even when it comes to seemingly small differences.

"All of my friends in Kuwait had MSN Instant Messenger," said Hope, "but in America everyone I meet has AOL!"

A Need to Belong

Ask experts, parents, and girls what can help make the experience of being a TCK easier, and groups like the Girl Scouts are frequently mentioned. An American mother in Caracas, Venezuela, told Sandy Thomas: "When my daughter left her friends at school, her church, her grandparents, her dog, everything she knew, the only thing that saved her from despair was that she could be a Girl Scout when she got to Venezuela. She could hold the same handbook, wear the same uniform, and have an instant group of friends who understood her and had something in common."

Girl Scouts can provide a crucial link to a girl's passport country when she lives abroad and offers a haven when she returns. "Girls want to belong wherever they are," said Sandy Thomas, "so they are going to find something to belong to, positive or negative. Girl Scouts can play a very positive role."

Tips for Leaders

Reach out to your community to create a diverse troop. Heather, a troop leader who has lived in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, for the past 19 years, advised, "Take the opportunity to get to know people and don't just stay with what is familiar. You can learn so much firsthand about other cultures and customs, things you cannot learn from a book."

Be sensitive to cultural issues. For instance, Anne Copeland, Ph.D., director of the Interchange Institute, points out that sleepovers are not common in many foreign cultures. "If you propose an activity and the girl or mother doesn't show up, have a conversation about why and perhaps suggest alternate activities for the future."

Anne Copeland also recommends incorporating the various cultures of TCKs in your troop through cooking, crafts, or games.

Take advantage of existing resources. For those involved in an overseas move, Girl Scouts of the USA produces the Let's Get Movin' booklet and provides additional resources to help parents and girls in more than 90 countries. (Go to www.girlscouts.org/overseas for more information.)

Corporations and realtors provide extensive relocation and transition programs, as do military and government organizations. Third-Culture Kids returning to their passport countries are often helped by online communities such as those listed at www.interactionintl.org.

Third-Culture Kids and Girl Scouts are leading the way together to foster international understanding and friendship. And, everyone can play a part in encouraging international exchange by making connections with people from cultures and experiences different from their own. "At first it seems really strange," said Hope Jones, "but you'll get used to it pretty fast."

Adapted from LEADER, Winter 2004. © Girl Scouts of the United States of America.