Sarah Hanson

Dr. Tammy Gregersen

Studies in Multicultural Contexts
June 30, 2015
Action Research Proposal
Grow where your seed is planted. The glass is half full. Wherever you go, go with all
your heart. The grass is always greener on the other side. The glass is half empty. A persons
outlook can make or break life experiences. In some cases, this can negatively influence a child
if a parent has a negative outlook. Moving overseas is difficult, particularly if there is no choice
in the matter (this is usually the case for military families). If both parents arent fully
committed to a cross-cultural move, the experience often ends in disaster. Any reluctance easily
turns to resentment and hostility under the pressure of adjusting to the assignment. An unwilling
parent may use extremely damaging passive-aggressive methods to sabotage the experience for
the entire family (Pollock et al, p. 170). Luckily, not all families view an overseas move in a
negative light.
Parents are the most important caregivers in any childs life. Indeed, researchers say that
this relationship is the single most significant factor in determining how TCKs (or any kids)
ultimately fare (Pollock et al, p. 173). Because of the huge influence parents have on their
children, they are accepting the responsibility to guide them through life and set an example.
What example they choose to give is up to them. Any situation can be turned around. A rainy,
dreary day could be a childs most fond memory if a parent has them put on their rain boots and
splash in the backyard. Alternatively, a beautiful afternoon picnic can be ruined by a parent
complaining about the insects, the heat, and the smell of a nearby dog park. Children are very

impressionable and are looking to their parents for how to react to certain situations. It is
imperative to keep this in mind in the smallest of moments as well as huge life decisions.
Moving overseas is hard, but with the right steps and mindset, the transition and time in a
new country can be more enjoyable for everyone. Take the following piece of advice from a man
named Charles Frame to his daughter:
Wherever you go in life, unpack your bags-physically and mentally-and plant your trees.
Too many people never live in the now because they assume the time is too short to settle
in. Following this piece of advice can make all the difference in whether it is a positive
experience or not. It means you have made a choice to embrace all the possibilities and
live with an openness to all the opportunities this life affords rather than to live in a selfprotective mode. As parents model this, TCKs get the picture and will do it themselves
(Pollock et al, p. 218).
There are people that would give anything to be living and working in a foreign country and be
able to travel and experience life in a new country. There are also people living abroad that do
not use or desire the opportunity presented to travel and experience a new culture. Germany is a
gateway to fascinating countries, famous historical sites, castles, museums, and more. The travel
opportunities are virtually endless. However, there are multiple occasions where I have spoken to
people who have not gotten their passports to travel outside of Europe. How does this affect their
families? What message are they sending to those around them? Will they regret their choices
after leaving their current duty station?
In most instances, families are initially excited to be overseas to experience new things.
When families arrive overseas, parents shouldnt forget the plans they made beforehand to get
to know their host country. Ironically, the richness of their lives can become so routine that TCKs

and their families forget to notice it (Pollock et al, p. 219). The easy access to a military base
that meets the needs of military members can be a trap and limit the cultural experience that
Germany offers. Little America as some call it, Ramstein Air Base is home to 50,000
Americans (2013). Falling into a rut and missing out on cultural opportunities happens all too
often and families miss out on the rich experiences that Europe provides.

Objectives:
1. To discover the differences or similarities between parent versus child viewpoints about living
abroad.
2. To examine the areas of strength and/or weakness that living in a large military community
provide for families moving overseas.

Question: How do parents of a TCK influence a childs overseas experience?

Data Collection: I gathered my data by having parents of TCKs take an online survey using
Google forms. The questions included multiple choice as well as free format to fill in with a
comment as needed. TCKs (students) took a similar survey refined to their level of learning
(grades K-3 and 4-8) in a multiple choice, fill in the blank, and yes/no answer format. My sample
includes 13 parents as well as 15 students. The students and parents were chosen based off of
their participation in a survey sent out school-wide.
Some sample questions include the following:
On a scale from 1-5 with 1 being highly disagree and 5 being highly agree, please rate the
following questions:
Overall, I enjoy living in Germany
Overall, my family enjoys living in Germany
I would be happier living in the United States

 I was excited when I first found out I was moving to Germany

I initially did not want to move to Germany/overseas
How often would you say your family travels outside of a 60 kilometer radius from where you
live? (once a year, once every 6 months, once every 3-4 months, once a month, 2-3 times a
month, weekly)
What is the most positive aspect of living overseas?
What is the most difficult aspect of living overseas?

Results: When comparing parent and student data, I found that most questions were answered
similarly. If a parent overall does not enjoy living in Germany, the childs data showed similar
results. In most cases, the child enjoyed living in Germany slightly more than the parent, but not
in every case. For instance, one fourth grade child said she ranked enjoying living in Germany as
a 3 out of 5, but her mother ranked her experience as a 1 out of 5. The mother also said there was
nothing she enjoyed about living overseas while her child said her least favorite part about living
in Germany was that her mom is sad. In a another case, a first grade child said he enjoyed
living in Germany while his mother ranked her experience a 1 out of 5. One other result that
stuck out was a different first grade child that responded that she sometimes enjoyed living in
Germany while her mother ranked enjoying living in Germany a 4 out of 5.
Out of the thirteen parent and child pairings, 7% of parents responded that they rank
enjoying living in Germany as a 1 out of 5. No children ranked the same question as a 1 out of 5.
On the contrary, 61% of parent participants ranked enjoying living in Germany as a 4 out of 5 or
higher while 69% of student participants ranked enjoying living in Germany as a 4 out of 5 or
higher. 23% percent of student and parent pairings strongly believed they would be happier if
living in the United States. The most common response for what is the most difficult aspect of
living in Germany was being far away from extended family. This response showed up often for
both students and parents. Other difficulties included language barriers, everything is a great

distance away, and the lack of conveniences. The most common response for the most positive
aspect of living overseas was the opportunity to travel followed up by local markets and
festivals, and experiencing another culture.
Conclusion: Overall, parent and student responses were similar. If a parents responses displayed
an extreme enjoyment of living overseas, the child had similar responses as well. The positive
and difficult aspects of living overseas were very similar and those with high enjoyment of living
in Germany did not rank moving back to the United States as something of high importance to
their happiness. Aside from two responses, if a parent ranked enjoying living in Germany as 3
out of 5 or lower, the child felt similarly. The difficulties listed were the same as were the
positive aspects of living in Germany.
When delving into these responses, it was clear that parental opinion of living overseas
directly influences their child/children. If a parent is viewing the move as unenjoyable from the
beginning (as were some cases from the data), the child had the same feeling. As mentioned in
the results, one child enjoyed living in germany but knew her mother did not, thus potentially
affecting what she takes away from her overseas experience. From this data, most parents and
children rank Germany as at least a 3 out of 5. Both parent and child are able to see the positives
and negatives of living overseas.
One way of improving life overseas may be learning the language. Many participants
mentioned how it was difficult not understanding the language or did not enjoy the people. This
could be potentially resolved through German classes. Looking ahead may help with the lack of
conveniences of shops closing on holidays and Sundays. There are also many different free
classes and workshops to help become more comfortable with traveling and living overseas that

are great resources to families in the area. Preparing for an overseas move and taking time to
look at the positives will help the whole family enjoy the experience of living in another country.

References
Pollock, D., & Reken, R. (2009). Third culture kids growing up among worlds (Rev. ed.).
Boston: Nicholas Brealey Pub.
Where is Ramstein? (2013, June 20). Retrieved June 30, 2015.