Universal:
1. Superstitions: For example breaking a mirror, a black cat etc... I was at home and I opened my umbrella and my mother told me that was for bad luck...
2. Study: In the most of the world people think that a good person or happy is who has a nice job or a good career... I think I don't need examples.

Personal:
1:External Control:When it's raining hard I stop in some place until it stops raining because I don't like to use umbrellas.
2:Informality: Since I got my first low haircut I can't keep it long because I feel like I'm disordered.

Cultural:
1:Language: When someone is mute they use signs language.. But even it's for mute people they're different in every country so a mute person can't talk to a foreigner... In my highschool there are four mute people.
2: ( ? ): I don't really have a name for this but it's when the education is different because of the country or better and harder or worse and easier... I was talking to a friend from Mexico and he told me that there since tenth you don't go to highschool they go to something called "preparatory" where just tenth and eleventh graders go and they don't celebrate anything like us with funny things in their last year.

Something that I observe, well not really observe but live is Saving face. When I make a bad joke and I'm with a friend or friends they sometimes laugh just because they don't want me to look like an idiot.( yes I know very sincerer)

Being someone important
Lots of Costa Ricans think that wearing with nice clothes, using brands, or the greatest one for me is when people criticize other to be more appreaciated by others or recognized.

I always listen people that I know criticizing their "friends" , they do that to say something like "hey man, look he's really bad at sth that I do with a hand" for example.
Bill: Hi Moe how's it going?
Moe: =(
Bill: what happened?
Moe: My girlfriend is dating with another guy!
Bill: oh man! you should do the same, what about going out tonight?
Moe: No thanks, I still love her I couldn't do that.

Bill:=O! did you notice??
Henry: what?
Bill: Moe's girlfriend is fooling around with another man haha!
Henry: really? thought she loved him!
Bill: Haha love? that doesn't exist, the poor didn't want to go out and meet the gals that I know... etc

Informality.
Well there are uncountables ways of being informal but I'll mention the informality in Costa Rica's highschools, boys use shirts that are supposed to be inside pants, girls the same but we can see even their belly bottom. But something really really informal is when girls use their pants like a streaptease star... I mean they are pants not jeans, they really look awful.

A. What advice would you give to a friend suffering from culture shock?
Tell him that being in another country is not an oportunity that many people have, so he better take advantage of it. For example going out and meeting people from that country so he will learn about the culture.
B. What personality traits do you think could help prevent culture shock?
The main trait that could help is being open minded in every aspect. From food to people habits. And learning about the culture of that country before going there.
C. What variables might make culture shock more or less severe?
Something that would really make culture shock less severe is keeping on contact with friends and family from your own culture and making it more severe is obviously doing the opposite.