***disclaimer***
This is by no means a scientific or politically correct post. Do not be offended. If you are indeed offended, please, let me know and I'll send you some Swiss chocolate, you can eat it, and everything will be just fine.
Okay, now that we have that out of the way, I thought it would be interesting to talk about cultural differences and a few of the things I have observed after spending ohhh...exactly 19 days in Switzerland.
My intercultural human resource management course actually sparked this idea. The first day of class we were assigned a group project where we had to break down different cultures and basically just give the class a feel for common perceptions. My group was made up of myself, from the United States, Dougal, originally from Scotland, but now Swiss, and Hans, an Icelander.
We decided to tackle this project by having each person talk about how their country perceives the next country. I put together a slide with bulletpoints explaining what Americans think of Icelandic people. (see below)
Hans talked about how the Icelandic people perceive the Swiss, and finally, my favorite part of this project......seeing how the Swiss perceive Americans.
Of course this wasn't meant to be the most professional, business-like or fact-based of presentations. These are also all generalizations, of course they don't apply to every American in America. :)
haha.. This slide made me laugh though (but not too loud). To explain this a little bit more.
#1 - Speaking loud, kind of explains itself. We laugh loudly, talk loudly even though we're super close to someone, and talk loudly in public.
#2 - Geographically rude. My teammate worded it something like this : "I wish some Americans would open a map and just look at where the European countries are located. And seriously, stop confusing Switzerland with Sweden!!" this was a new one for me, but once he said it I realized its pretty true. This summer, while I was still at home, many people knew I was heading abroad to study. They would come up to me and say, now when do you leave for Sweden? "Well, I'm actually going to Switzerland, and I leave on september 4th". **hint to fellow Americans, just because it starts with the letter s, doesn't mean it's the same country. Harsh, yeah, but I can see how it would be annoying.
#3 - I don't really know how to explain this one. Preachers of "do what I say, not what I do". I think it meant that Americans tend to use their authority to overpower those under them.
#4 - Follow the American dream...the Swiss tend to think that we Americans believe that we can do anything. Not necessarily a bad thing. He also mentioned that because we have this "confidence" we usually do end up achieving our crazy dreams. We are much bigger risk takers than the Swiss.
#5 - Ahh yes, GUNS!!! and 'merica .. red, white, & blue! Swiss people tend to think that we are some what out of control and obsessive when it comes to guns. Gun laws in Switzerland (I'm totally not an expert on this topic) are different because most men have been formally trained in the army and almost every household has a gun. We also have a reputation for being overly patriotic. I guess if you checked social media on the 4th of July it would probably prove this point true.
Here's what I think about the Swiss culture based on my experiences in the land of cheese and chocolate. Most of these are my observations from being on the streets in Geneva. When I'm at school it's a much different atmosphere. Things change a lot when you're around people who are closer to your age and with people who have things in common with you.
I'd also like to add that culture shock was relatively non-existent for me. I really expected Europe to be a "whole different world". It's not that at all. So far, the hardest part was getting over the weird feeling of not having a clue what people around you are saying, what posters or advertisements say, and feeling dumb when someone wants to speak in French with you. You quickly get over it though, sometimes ignorance really is bliss. Okay, I got totally distracted. Back to my perceptions of the Swiss culture. Take no offense, Swiss people.
-They aren't necessarily always eating cheese and chocolate, but they are always eating croissants and drinking espresso. I wasn't used to seeing people walking down the streets munching on baguette bread for breakfast. Bread for every meal.
-Swiss people are very reserved and quiet. They generally walk with their eyes on the sidewalk in front of them. The only people that make eye contact seem to be creepy people you don't want to be making eye contact with.
-Extremely formal and wearers of neutral colored and styled clothing. You don't see people begging for attention through their clothing as much as you do in America. If you're planning a trip to Europe, don't bring a neon crop top, and leave the Miss Me jeans at home.
-Quiet. Many mornings I sit on the tram to school and it's dead silent. when the occasional phone rings everyone jumps a little bit and looks around to see who disturbed the whole tram. I haven't spent much time on public transportation but i feel like in America the area would be filled with the voices of people doing business over the phone and the occasional strangers who strike up a conversation.
-Rule-followers. If the sign says don't walk, you don't walk. There are always exceptions to the rule, but most people will wait until the sign says walk to cross the street
-Swiss people value breaks and time off. Most stores are closed by 6 or 7 pm and closed all day Sunday. Another example: my classes each last 1 hour and 45 minutes, but the class is broken up into two 45 minute segments. We get a 15 minute break in the middle to grab a drink, eat, smoke...whatever. 15 minutes exactly though. Swiss people are punctual.
I've really enjoyed being introduced to the Swiss way of life. You really do learn so much when you leave the environment you are used to and jump into a different culture. None of these perceptions are bad at all, just a different way of life.
Americans, I'll continue to share our stereotypes with you in case you ever get the opportunity to visit this wonderful country. You will be prepared. :)