Dual Citizenship

Abstract

This article by Sandy Turnbull, whose parents have been missionaries in Haiti for 20 years, is published because it offers an unusually perceptive firsthand account of the experience of dual cultural citizenship. The experience of moments of full integration in each of the cultures involved, alternating with times of conscious or unconscious alienation, seems to be typical of the life of missionary children who have genuinely participated in the life of the people among whom their parents work, as the editor can testify from personal experience. It is significant that Sandy does not mix his two worlds, but keeps them in distinct compartments of his psychological life. Of course, the experience of missionary children who live a life insulated from their field surroundings is quite different, though by no means free of problems which may be actually more serious than those faced by Sandy. It is hoped that the article will help missionaries understand the feelings of their own children. Missions executives will find here food for thought as they counsel missionary parents. And, of course, those interested in the effects on personality of the confrontation of two internalized cultures will also find here some significant insights.