Third culture kids and the consequences of international sojourns on authoritarianism, acculturative balance, and positive affect

Third culture kids (TCKs) are the children of parents who live abroad in foreign countries. In this study we examined a population of US TCKs (N = 170) who have repatriated back to the US. We studied the factors that led TCKs to positive and less positive repatriation outcomes, including a focus on the variables of authoritarianism, acculturative balance, and positive affect. Multiple repatriations (i.e., parents moving back to the US between jobs) was related negatively to positive affect in men, and increased levels of authoritarianism in women. On the other hand, postings to multiple countries decreased authoritarianism for both women and men. TCKs who seemed comfortable balancing living abroad and in the US reported both good relationships with their parents and positive affect. Because they live in multicultural environments, TCKs are an important demographic to study in a rapidly globalizing world.