MANY OF US HAVE ENCOUNTERED MISSIONARY KIDS & MILITARY KIDS WHO GREW UP in other parts of the world, even though their parents are Americans who grew up here. Usually the MK's also live in the USA during the periodic breaks from their military or missionary service; but their primary developmental years are in a different country often speaking in a different language, or bi-lingual. Missionary kids also especially develop a sense of being "special" because everytime they come back to America they are in the spotlight as the missionary goes from church-to-church in their denomination on different Sundays to try to raise money for their mission. So they will get the VIP treatment after the service and sometimes may even develop a disdain for their "fellow American" peers of the same age, thinking of them as stupid or provincial etc. The problem being that these MK's, although they do attend schools of course, in their foreign country; often they do not play sports in the same way, if at all. THey do not always experience the same "grind" that American kids do in terms of making their way in life and school. And so it is all the more awkward when after growing up in this other country(s) , they decide at the age of 20 or 25 they now want to settle into their "home country" (ie America) - but have no real peer relationships here. I could go on and on, but I will leave it at that for now. I've known a few of the MK's, including some cousins; and everything is awkward around them.
TCKs move between cultures before they have had the opportunity to fully develop their personal and cultural identity.[3] The first culture of such individuals refers to the culture of the country from which the parents originated, the second culture refers to the culture in which the family currently resides, and the third culture refers to the distinct cultural ties among all third culture individuals that share no connection to the first two cultures.[4][5][6].."
