The Crucible of First Term: Understanding and Helping So It is not the Last
The First Term cross-cultural worker has multiple adjustments to make, amidst transition and stress. In that process, emotional baggage can surface, adding to the confusion. Understanding what happens psychologically and spiritually during the First Term experience can help First Termers themselves, as well as those of us who prepare them for the field, those who receive them, or those called in to help when life gets tough. This webinar will explain 7 skills First Term workers can learn so that their First Term is not their last. In fact, if the 7 skills are not mastered during the first term, they often need to be learned later on in the worker’s life. We will also cover how sending agencies, on-field, and member care personnel can help First Term and veteran workers by facilitating growth in the 7 skills described, helping them become, and remain, resilient and effective.
About the Speaker:
Connie Befus, Ph.D., is a psychologist with 35+ years of experience in providing training and psychological and spiritual care to international workers. She grew up in Africa, the daughter of international worker parents and has served with her husband in Latin America for 17 years. She has worked in private practice, as a psychological consultant for six sending agencies, and as Director of Member Care for two sending agencies. She has two adult Third Culture Kids. Her doctoral research explored effective helps for people in the midst of cross cultural adjustment. She is the author of Sojourner’s Workbook: A Guide to Thriving Cross-culturally, and The Sacred Mundane: Living All of Life as Worship.