Powrotna akulturacja, powrotny szok kulturowy i relacje rówieśnicze młodych reemigrantów powracających do Polski: trzy studia przypadków

Kinga Lisowska

doi:10.21852/sem.1892

Published: 2026-06-30

Vol. 47 No. 1 (2026)

Re-Acculturation, Reverse Culture Shock, and Peer Relationships among Young Return Migrants to Poland: Three Case Studies

Kinga Lisowska

Seminare

Section: Articles

https://doi.org/10.21852/sem.1892

Abstract

Young return migrants may experience re-acculturation and reverse culture shock when re-entering peer and school environments in their country of origin. This qualitative study examines how young re-emigrants returning to Poland interpret peer relationships, cultural in-betweenness, and their sense of belonging. Three purposively selected participants aged 15–18, who had returned from the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States, took part in semi-structured, problem-focused interviews. Their narratives were analysed using predefined analytical categories and analytical induction. The cases show that peer environments may either support integration or reinforce social exclusion. Participants described social distance, labelling, language and communication difficulties, limited opportunities to use competencies acquired abroad, and problems rebuilding social belonging and cultural identity. One case indicated partial adaptation supported by family resources and a change of school environment, whereas two cases revealed persistent marginalisation and withdrawal from peer relationships. The findings suggest that re-acculturation trajectories are shaped by the quality of peer relationships, school practices, and access to social support. Although the small sample size precludes generalisation, the study identifies mechanisms to support young return migrants in educational and social settings.

Keywords:

return migration, young re-emigrants, re-acculturation, reverse culture shock, peer relationships, cultural in-betweenness, school adjustment

Download files

PDF

Citation rules

Lisowska, K. (2026). Re-Acculturation, Reverse Culture Shock, and Peer Relationships among Young Return Migrants to Poland: Three Case Studies. Seminare, 47(1), 107–120. https://doi.org/10.21852/sem.1892

Cited by / Share

Licence

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Adamski, Jakub Krzysztof. 2020. Adaptacja i postrzeganie imigrantów w państwach europejskich: Studium porównawcze [Adaptation and Perceptions of Immigrants in European Countries: A Comparative Study]. Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego. https://doi.org/10.18778/8220-253-3.
Google Scholar

Berry, John W. 1997. “Immigration, Acculturation, and Adaptation.” Applied Psychology: An International Review 46 (1): 5–34. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1464-0597.1997.tb01087.x.
Google Scholar

Bron, Agnieszka. 2000. “Floating as an Analytical Category in the Narratives of Polish Immigrants to Sweden.” In Allvarlig debatt och rolig lek: En festskrift tillägnad Andrzej Nils Uggla [Serious Debate and Playful Fun: A Festschrift Dedicated to Andrzej Nils Uggla], edited by Elżbieta Szwejkowska-Olsson and Michał Bron Jr., 119–132. Uppsala University, Centre for Multiethnic Research.
Google Scholar

Demes, Kali A., and Nicolas Geeraert. 2015. “The Highs and Lows of a Cultural Transition: A Longitudinal Analysis of Sojourner Stress and Adaptation across 50 Countries.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 109 (2): 316–337. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000046.
Google Scholar

Grzymała-Moszczyńska, Halina, Joanna Grzymała-Moszczyńska, Joanna Durlik-Marcinowska, and Paulina Szydłowska-Klakla. 2015. (Nie)łatwe powroty do domu? Funkcjonowanie dzieci i młodzieży powracających z emigracji [(Un)easy Returns Home? The Functioning of Children and Young People Returning from Emigration]. Fundacja Centrum im. prof. Bronisława Geremka. http://geremek.pl/assets/files/Powroty/nielatwe_powroty_raport_koncowy.pdf.
Google Scholar

Grzymała-Moszczyńska, Joanna. 2014. “Psychologiczne aspekty powrotów z emigracji – przegląd teoretyczny [Psychological Aspects of Returns from Emigration: A Theoretical Review].” Studia Migracyjne – Przegląd Polonijny 40 (4 [154]): 51–74.
Google Scholar

Janusz-Lorkowska, Monika. 2018. “Badania czytelnictwa w Polsce w kontekście wybranych paradygmatów nauk społecznych [Reading Research in Poland in the Context of Selected Paradigms in the Social Sciences].” Folia Bibliologica 60: 15–36. https://doi.org/10.17951/fb.2018.60.15-36.
Google Scholar

Jurek, Anna. 2015. “Psychologiczne aspekty doświadczeń migracyjnych u dzieci i młodzieży [Psychological Aspects of Migration Experiences in Children and Adolescents].” In Migracja, tożsamość, dojrzewanie: Adaptacja kulturowa dzieci i młodzieży z doświadczeniem migracyjnym [Migration, Identity, and Growing Up: Cultural Adaptation of Children and Young People with Migration Experience], edited by Natalia Klorek and Katarzyna Kubin, 27–64. Fundacja na rzecz Różnorodności Społecznej.
Google Scholar

Kim, Young Yun. 1988. Communication and Cross-Cultural Adaptation: An Integrative Theory. Multilingual Matters.
Google Scholar

Lisowska, Kinga. 2025. “‘Z ziemi włoskiej do polskiej’ – powrotna akulturacja reemigranta w wieku późnej dorosłości [‘From Italian Soil to Polish Soil’: The Return Acculturation of a Re-emigrant in Late Adulthood].” Kultura i Edukacja 1 (147): 181–194. https://doi.org/10.15804/kie.2025.01.09.
Google Scholar

Łużniak, Magdalena, and Stanisław A. Witkowski. 2006. “Badania stylów radzenia sobie z szokiem kulturowym w organizacjach – problemy metodologiczne [Research on Styles of Coping with Culture Shock in Organizations: Methodological Problems].” Prace Naukowe Akademii Ekonomicznej we Wrocławiu 1130: 477–490.
Google Scholar

Marx, Elisabeth. 2000. Przełamywanie szoku kulturowego: Czego potrzebujesz, aby odnieść sukces w międzynarodowym biznesie: Emocje, myślenie, tożsamość i umiejętności socjalne [Breaking Through Culture Shock: What You Need to Succeed in International Business]. Agencja Wydawnicza PLACET.
Google Scholar

McGovern, Frieda, and Dympna Devine. 2016. “The Care Worlds of Migrant Children: Exploring Intergenerational Dynamics of Love, Care and Solidarity across Home and School.” Childhood 23 (1): 37–52. https://doi.org/10.1177/0907568215579734.
Google Scholar

Rubacha, Krzysztof. 2016. Metodologia badań nad edukacją [Research Methodology in Education]. Editions Spotkania.
Google Scholar

Schutz, Alfred. 1945. “The Homecomer.” American Journal of Sociology 50 (5): 369–376. https://doi.org/10.1086/219654.
Google Scholar

Sussman, Nan M. 2000. “The Dynamic Nature of Cultural Identity throughout Cultural Transitions: Why Home Is Not So Sweet.” Personality and Social Psychology Review 4 (4): 355–373. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327957PSPR0404_5.
Google Scholar

Szkudlarek, Betina. 2010. “Reentry: A Review of the Literature.” International Journal of Intercultural Relations 34 (1): 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2009.06.006.
Google Scholar

Szydłowska, Paulina, Joanna Durlik, and Joanna Grzymała-Moszczyńska. 2019. “Returning Children Migrants: Main Challenges in School Environment.” Studia Migracyjne – Przegląd Polonijny 45 (1 [171]): 171–192. https://doi.org/10.4467/25444972SMPP.19.008.10258.
Google Scholar

Tambyah, Siok Kuan, and Raymond Chng. 2006. “Revisiting the Cultural Identity Model: Sojourners’ Negotiations of Identity and Consumption Experiences.” Advances in Consumer Research 33 (1): 464–465.
Google Scholar

Titzmann, Peter F., and Richard M. Lee. 2018. “Adaptation of Young Immigrants: A Developmental Perspective on Acculturation Research.” European Psychologist 23 (1): 72–82. https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040/a000313.
Google Scholar

Ward, Colleen, and Nicolas Geeraert. 2016. “Advancing Acculturation Theory and Research: The Acculturation Process in Its Ecological Context.” Current Opinion in Psychology 8: 98–104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.09.021.
Google Scholar

Ward, Colleen, Stephen Bochner, and Adrian Furnham. 2001. The Psychology of Culture Shock. 2nd ed. Routledge.
Google Scholar

Zakrzewska, Kornelia. 2010. “Trudny powrót do domu – co przeżywają osoby doświadczające szoku powrotnego? [A Difficult Return Home: What Do People Experiencing Re-entry Shock Go Through?]” Psychiatria i Psychoterapia 6 (2): 44–50.
Google Scholar

Żaliński, Adam. 2022. “Akulturacja [Acculturation].” In Słowniki społeczne: Studia kulturowe [Social Dictionaries: Cultural Studies], edited by Leszek Korporowicz, Agnieszka Knap-Stefaniuk, and Łukasz Burkiewicz, 129–145. Wydawnictwo Naukowe Akademii Ignatianum w Krakowie. https://doi.org/10.35765/slowniki.245.
Google Scholar