Bringing Up
Baby, Bébé & Bebê
The Joys and Challenges of Raising Your Own Mini Globe-Hopper
P
TCK spends ‘a significant part of his or
her developmental years outside the
acking bags and moving country is
parents’ culture. Such a child frequently
something most GGIs relish and actively
builds relationships to all of the cultures,
seek. For GGIs with children, however,
while not having full ownership in any,’
the excitement that accompanies a move
and goes on to create his or her own
is tempered by concern for the effects of
unique, third, culture.
the move on the little people in her life.
In this feature, we explore some of the
challenges and rewards of raising global
nomads, including results from our latest
survey, and highlight the experiences of
three GGIs raising their children in different corners of the world.
Although parents have been moving
country with their children for thousands
of years – even Cleopatra took her son
Ceasarion when she had to go to Rome
back in 46 BC – it was not until the 1950s
that sociologists began to study the effects of international moves on children.
It was then that Dr. Ruth Hill Useem, an
American sociologist and anthropologist, coined the term ‘Third Culture Kids’
(TCK) to describe children of international families. According to Dr. Useem,
TCK refers ‘to children who accompany
their parents into another society.’ A
‘It is important to try
to give TCKs what they
might naturally have if they
did not move around: a
sense of community
and rituals that celebrate
life’s special moments.’
GirlGI polled GGIs to learn what they
find most challenging and rewarding
about raising TCKs. One of the biggest
concerns for any parent, but especially
for expat parents, is creating a sense of
belonging for their children: it can be
hard to foster a child’s sense of identity
when moving in and out of cultures and
countries. To counter this, respondents
in the GGI survey advised it was