Interesting.....

Laila Plamondon, a TCK and student at Smith College, recently did a study of 309 TCKs looking to answer the question: What factors predict mental health in TCKs after repatriation? She measured general mental health, reacculturation and identity formation in all 309 participants and found that:

1- Suprisingly, the number of assignments abroad and the number of years spent abroad had NO EFFECT on successful reacculturaltion, a sense of adult identity, a sense of communal identity or mental health!

2- However, the more times a TCK repatriates (that is, re-enters their passport culture)the more difficult it is to solidify an adult identity and achieve a communal identity.

3- Bad experiences in the host country make reacculturation to the passport country more difficult.

* The average age of the participants was 20.89. It would be very interesting to reassess them in 5 years or so.