The assumption of privilege? Expectations on emotions when growing up in the Norwegian Foreign Service

Abstract

Based on 42 autobiographies of former Norwegian Foreign Service children, this article aims to highlight how cultural narratives of global elite migration can intersect with local family emotion-regulation practices and enter into the body of a Third Culture Kid’s experience. It asks how a mismatch between emotions as culturally expected and emotions as experienced affected them. Narrative analysis showed how the children interpreted cultural symbols into feeling-rules that created an emotional estrangement towards their caregivers as well as within themselves.

Where I’m from? Third Culture Kids about their cultural identity shifts and belonging

“…Moreover, to put our sample size into perspective, we checked earlier published qualitative TCK-research. In the 19 empirical studies on TCKs from 2004 to 2020 which we were able to trace (Bikos et al, 2014;Bjørnsen, 2020;Désilets, 2016;Fanning & Burns, 2017;Gambhir & Rhein, 2019;Gilbert, 2008;Greenholtz & Kim, 2009;Kwon, 2019;Lijadi & Van Schalkwyk, 2014;Park, 2019;Moore & Barker, 2012;Murai, 2016;Poonoosamy, 2018;Purdon, 2018;Purnell & Hoban, 2014;Smith & Kearney, 2016;Walters & Auton-Cuff, 2009;Westropp, Cathro, & Everett, 2016) the following sample size information was found. Only five studies had sample sizes larger than 20 (27, 30, 42, 43 and 74), one study had a sample of 20 TCKs, and 14 studies had sample sizes which were smaller than 20.…”

Under the Radar – Expatriate Children and Integration in Finland

“…There is very little research on this topic in the Nordic context. A few studies have focused on children who leave their Nordic home countries to live elsewhere temporarily (for Finns, see Warinowski, 2012; for Norwegians, see Bjørnsen, 2021; for Swedes, see Suter, 2019; and for Danes, see Lauring & Selmer, 2009), but studies on skilled professionals' children who come to the Nordic countries from elsewhere are rare.…”