Egypt and USA - Notions of Time

• Polychronic• Circular• Past/Present

• Monochronic• Linear• Future

• Fate - “Insha Allah”• Time is unlimited • Flowing and fluid• Less precise

• Control over destiny• Time is limited • Scheduled and fixed• More precise

Egypt USA

Egypt USA

• “In every delay there is a blessing” “Good times can’t be relived”

• Relationship focused

• Spending time with someone is more important than being on time.

• Payment is based on the job or case

• “Time is money” “Don’t waste time”

• Task focused

• Being on time is a sign of respect for the other person.

•Payment is based on hourly wage

• People do not generally plan far ahead

• Last minute cancellations and waiting generally OK

• Higher tolerance for ambiguity (?)

• People plan very far ahead – days, weeks, months, years

• Last minute cancellations and waiting generally not OK

• Lower tolerance for ambiguity

Egypt USA

Why these differences?

• Widespread public transportation in Egypt• Family members or others available to transport

student• Shops etc. open longer hours• People understand traffic delays and nothing

can be done about them• Respect is shown through spending time with

others• Living in “the now” - don’t know what fate will

bring • Collectivism (see…)

Why these differences?

• No public transportation – need to schedule trips in advance to accommodate all family members

• Very busy schedules• Shops etc. close earlier • Respect is shown by accommodating other’s

schedule and being on time. • Individual vs. group focus• Planning for the future – always trying to “get

ahead” “beat the clock”• Individualism (see…)

Advice for Egyptian Host Families

• Be sensitive to the fact that your student may make plans with friends well in advance and will likely be frustrated if these are cancelled at the last minute.

• Explain to your student that last minute cancellations or changes in plan should not be taken as a sign of disrespect and friends will understand if they have to cancel due to family plans.

• Students may take advantage of “Egypt time” and think it is OK to be late for everything.If there is an event that requires the student to be punctual let him or her know.

Advice for US Host Families

• Explain that last minute cancellations are generally perceived as a sign of disrespect and they should notify someone as soon as possible if their plans change.

• Instruct the student to let the family know his or her transportation and other scheduling needs a week or more in advance so that the family members will be able to schedule these events in.

• If there is an event that requires the student to be punctual, remind him or her multiple times of the need to be on time (see Communication section re. “nagging” and Education section re. repetition.)

Free Time

• Spent more with family/in the home

• Generally unstructured• Very few extra-curricular

activities• Boys usually have less

restrictions re. where they can go, what they can do during free time, a later or no curfew

• Spent more with friends/outside home

• Generally structured• Many extra-curricular

activities• Girls and boys usually

have the same restrictions on their free time and the same curfew

Egypt USA

Advice for Egyptian Host Families

• Especially in the beginning, Egyptian families should help guide their student as to how to spend their free time. Show them what activities are available.

• Explain to girls the reasons why the expectations for how boys and girls spend time differ. That if she does stay out late, she will be the only girl, she will be perceived in a negative light and her safety may be at risk.

• From the start, limit the student’s internet access as they will be tempted to spend more time on the internet in the absence of other activities. This will likely hinder their integration into your family and the Egyptian culture.

Advice for US Host Families

• Especially in the beginning, US families should help student choose 1-2 extra-curricular activities so they are not overwhelmed by the choices that exist. Students from more rural areas may need more encouragement to participate in extracurricular activities than those from large cities. (See Parent-Child Relationships also…)

• Help the student arrange car-pooling and/or show them how to use public transportation if available so that they do not always rely on you to get them where they need to go.