scholarly journals Vulnerability and Resilience in a Mobile World

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. ix-xi
Author(s):  
Helen Forbes-Mewett
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Food Security ◽  
International Students ◽  
International Education ◽  
International Student ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Close Family Member ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Uk

Diverse groups of people experience vulnerability in an increasingly mobile world. Populations relocate to other countries for many and varied reasons including economic, environmental, personal safety and/or educational considerations - generally for a better life.International students form a large and important component of this phenomenon. For international students, education is key to their success. International students are currently facing new challenges, particularly those from China who have been impacted by the Coronavirus situation and the resulting travel restrictions, study implications, visa concerns, and general community ignorance giving rise to xenophobia – all contributing further stresses. These challenges are in addition to long-held pressures including being away from traditional family supports, adapting to a different culture, study pressures and loneliness.   For more than 16 years my work has focussed on the safety and security needs of international students. While the vulnerability of international students has been consistently brought to the fore in my research, so too has their resilience. The vulnerability experienced by international students relates to risk and opportunity (Forbes-Mewett, 2020). These dimensions are factored into the decision to leave one’s home country and the security of family and traditional support networks for the opportunity of an international education. Such decisions demonstrate an undeniable aspect of bravery.   In a 2015 study, I interviewed 150 key informers including international student support staff and international students across the US, the UK and Australia in relation to the issue of safety from crime (Forbes-Mewett et al., 2015). Importantly, the study acknowledges that most international students do not become victims of crime (Forbes-Mewett et al., 2015, p. 1). The interviewees paint a vivid and nuanced picture of international student vulnerability among many examples of resilience. Their poignant narratives help our understanding of how challenges are overcome and why international education is a crucial part of the contemporary mobile world. More recent work explored international students’ vulnerability in relation to food security, housing and campus security in Australia, the US and the UK (Forbes-Mewett, 2019). Once again, it was shown the difficulties international students face and how they navigate and develop coping mechanisms that present examples of great resilience. In relation to food security, the 2019 study presents a case of a student who communicated regularly with her mother at meal times via mobile phone text message to ask and receive cooking instructions. For this student, who had no experience in preparing her own meals, not only did the strategy provide cooking instruction and ways to enjoy culturally appropriate food but it also ensured comforting communication with a close family member at mealtime.   The above dimensions, among others, continue to contribute to international student vulnerability and at the same time present challenges to be faced and overcome – in many cases they are. Of recent times, the long existing issue of the psychological well-being/mental health of international students is gaining traction (Forbes-Mewett 2019). This attention is long overdue and crucial for helping international students manage their mental health to enable the successful completion of their studies. The mental health of Singaporean students was explored to find that this group, over a period of time, shifted from perceiving mental health issues as a taboo subject to a level of acceptance that they are a part of everyday life for many people (Gan and Forbes-Mewett, 2019a). Further, the practice of seeking help was found to be desirable, notwithstanding acknowledgement that the help on offer seemed to mismatch what was expected (Gan and Forbes-Mewett, 2019a). This work was extended to show that intercultural adjustment tends to be a stressful process for international studentsand as a consequence it was contributing to a higher risk of vulnerable mental and emotional states (Gan and Forbes-Mewett, 2019b).   In summary, the vulnerability of international students is a topic of ongoing concern with many and varied contributing factors such as outlined above. However, the resilience of international students in the face of such vulnerability is to be applauded. Given nations benefit so greatly from international education we all must take responsibility to address the vulnerability of international students and ensure that they are well-supported in their educational pursuits and desires for a better life. To this end, my work relating to international students continues unabated.

scholarly journals International Students’ Perceptions and Experiences of British Drinking Cultures

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 572-588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Thurnell-Read ◽  
Lorraine Brown ◽  
Philip Long
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
International Student ◽  
Social Space ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Heavy Drinking ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Drinking Habits ◽  
Public House ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

While the increased scale and importance of international students to the UK Higher Education sector is now well established, little is known about the ways in which students from non-UK countries experience and interact with the heavy drinking culture that predominates on and near many British universities. Drawing on qualitative interviews, this article analyses the perceptions, attitudes, and experiences of British drinking cultures held by international students studying on postgraduate courses at a UK university. Students report prior awareness of alcohol consumption being important to British culture and recount both positive and negative experiences of witnessing and, for many, participating in drinking alcohol. Students make ready comparisons with the drinking habits and attitudes of their own culture. Further still, many made a distinction between the public house, or ‘pub’, as a welcoming and friendly social space, and bars and nightclubs, where a far greater risk of exposure to violence and harassment was perceived. The article provides theoretical insights to support future and more wide-ranging research into mobile drinking cultures and also suggests practical implications to inform stakeholders with interests in the welfare of international students in the UK in relation to the provision of effective and proactive policies which address the impact of British drinking cultures on international student integration and well-being.

scholarly journals COVID-19, Inter-household Contact and Mental Well-Being Among Older Adults in the US and the UK

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Hu ◽  
Yue Qian
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Household Contact ◽  
Severe Illness ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Mental Well Being

Interacting with family members and friends from other households is a key part of everyday life and is crucial to people’s mental well-being. The COVID-19 pandemic severely curtailed face-to-face contact between households, particularly for older adults (aged 60 and above), due to their high risk of developing severe illness if infected by COVID-19. In-person contact, where possible, was largely replaced by virtual interaction during the pandemic. This article examines how inter-household contact in face-to-face and virtual forms, as well as combinations of the two forms of contact, related to older adults’ mental well-being during the pandemic. Data from two national longitudinal surveys, collected from the same respondents before (2018–2019) and during (June 2020) the pandemic, were comparatively analysed: the Health and Retirement Study in the US and Understanding Society in the UK. The findings showed a notable increase in loneliness in the US and a decline in general mental well-being in the UK following the outbreak of COVID-19. In both countries, more frequent inter-household face-to-face contact during the pandemic was associated with better general mental well-being, but inter-household virtual contact, via means such as telephone and digital media, was not associated with general mental well-being in either the US or the UK. In the US, older adults who engaged more frequently in virtual contact were more likely to feel lonely during the pandemic, particularly if their face-to-face contact was limited. In both countries, the increase in loneliness following the outbreak of the pandemic was greater for older adults who reported more virtual contact. The findings suggest that household-centred crisis management during the COVID-19 pandemic had unintended mental health implications in both the US and the UK, despite contextual differences between the two countries. Although face-to-face contact between households helped to sustain older adults’ mental well-being, virtual contact was not a qualitatively equivalent alternative. The findings also provide an important evidence base for informing policy developments and for supporting the mental health of older people during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the longer term.

scholarly journals Are International Students Cash Cows? Examining the Relationship Between New International Undergraduate Enrollments and Institutional Revenue at Public Colleges and Universities in the US

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 512-525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan Cantwell
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
International Education ◽  
International Student ◽  
The United States ◽  
Colleges And Universities ◽  
Public Colleges ◽  
Tuition Revenue ◽  
The Us ◽  
Regression Techniques ◽  
Public Colleges And Universities

There has been growing interest in the business of international education. It is often assumed that universities seek international students as a means of generating revenue. The broad purpose of this study was to understand the effects of increased international student enrollment on net tuition revenue. Informed by resource dependency and academic capitalism theory, this study used panel regression techniques to estimate the effect of enrolling an international undergraduate student on tuition revenue among public colleges and universities in the United States Findings show some but not all institutions are able to generate additional income by enrolling additional international students.

scholarly journals The neighbourhood context of crime against international students

2017 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 609-626
Author(s):  
Helen Forbes-Mewett ◽  
Rebecca Wickes
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Ethnic Diversity ◽  
Hate Crime ◽  
International Student ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Us ◽  
Student Safety ◽  
Nuanced Understanding ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Social Disorganisation

Stark differences exist between the support and accommodation provision for tertiary students across the UK, the US and Australia. Within this framework, this study provides insights into the neighbourhood contexts where offences against Indian international students took place in the western suburbs of Melbourne. Shaped by ideas associated with social disorganisation and resource threat theories, we suggest that the concentration of large numbers of international students without adequate supports in areas characterised by high levels of disadvantage, ethnic diversity and high levels of crime contributed to the victimisation of international students. The study aims to help better understand how the neighbourhood context influences hate crime more broadly and specifically examines the neighbourhood context of international student victimisation. The study is designed to provide a nuanced understanding of the circumstances leading to attacks against international students and contributes to the international student safety and hate crime victimisation literature.

A positive psychology study and intervention on the well-being of French PhD students in biology

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Marais ◽  
Rebecca Shankland ◽  
Pascale Haag ◽  
Robin Fiault ◽  
Bridget Juniper
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Positive Psychology ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Reference Sample ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
Human Costs ◽  
The Uk ◽  
And Control ◽  
Health And Well Being

In France, little data are available on mental health and well-being in academia, and nothing has been published about PhD students. From studies abroad, we know that doing a PhD is a difficult experience resulting in high attrition rates with significant financial and human costs. Here we focused on PhD students in biology at university Lyon 1. A first study aimed at measuring the mental health and well-being of PhD students using several generalist and PhD-specific tools. Our results on 136 participants showed that a large fraction of the PhD students experience abnormal levels of stress, depression and anxiety, and their mean well-being score is significantly lower than that of a British reference sample. French PhD student well-being is specifically affected by career uncertainty, perceived lack of progress in the PhD and perceived lack of competence, which points towards possible cultural differences of experiencing a PhD in France and the UK. In a second study, we carried out a positive psychology intervention. Comparing the scores of the test and control groups showed a clear effect of the intervention on reducing anxiety. We discuss our results and the possible future steps to improve French PhD students’ well-being.

Leveraging Twitter Using Artificial Intelligence to Explore Mental Health Insights in the UK During the COVID-19 Pandemic (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Marshall ◽  
Kate Lanyi ◽  
Rhiannon Green ◽  
Georgie Wilkins ◽  
Fiona Pearson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Research Activity ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Key Topics ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND There is increasing need to explore the value of soft-intelligence, leveraged using the latest artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing (NLP) techniques, as a source of analysed evidence to support public health research activity and decision-making. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to further explore the value of soft-intelligence analysed using AI through a case study, which examined a large collection of UK tweets relating to mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS A search strategy comprising a list of terms related to mental health, COVID-19, and lockdown restrictions was developed to prospectively collate relevant tweets via Twitter’s advanced search application programming interface over a 24-week period. We deployed a specialist NLP platform to explore tweet frequency and sentiment across the UK and identify key topics of discussion. A series of keyword filters were used to clean the initial data retrieved and also set up to track specific mental health problems. Qualitative document analysis was carried out to further explore and expand upon the results generated by the NLP platform. All collated tweets were anonymised RESULTS We identified and analysed 286,902 tweets posted from UK user accounts from 23 July 2020 to 6 January 2021. The average sentiment score was 50%, suggesting overall neutral sentiment across all tweets over the study period. Major fluctuations in volume and sentiment appeared to coincide with key changes to any local and/or national social-distancing measures. Tweets around mental health were polarising, discussed with both positive and negative sentiment. Key topics of consistent discussion over the study period included the impact of the pandemic on people’s mental health (both positively and negatively), fear and anxiety over lockdowns, and anger and mistrust toward the government. CONCLUSIONS Through the primary use of an AI-based NLP platform, we were able to rapidly mine and analyse emerging health-related insights from UK tweets into how the pandemic may be impacting people’s mental health and well-being. This type of real-time analysed evidence could act as a useful intelligence source that agencies, local leaders, and health care decision makers can potentially draw from, particularly during a health crisis.

scholarly journals The role of international student interactions in English as a lingua franca in L2 acquisition, L2 motivational development and intercultural learning during study abroad

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 495-517
Author(s):  
Gianna Hessel
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
International Student ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Intercultural Learning ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Student Interactions ◽  
European Universities ◽  
Intercultural Interactions ◽  
The Uk

Crossing borders features prominently as a theme in study abroad, not only in terms of students’ physical border crossings but also in their intercultural interactions with second language (L2) speakers whose background (linguistic and otherwise) they may perceive as markedly different from their own. Researchers have had a long-standing interest in study abroad participants’ interactions with other L2 speakers abroad for their perceived potential to enhance L2 development, L2 motivation and intercultural learning processes. The focus of existing studies in this area has been on the interactions of study abroad participants with host national students, while their interactions with other international students who are also L2 users abroad have received far less attention, despite the ever-growing international student populations at European universities. This study examined students’ views regarding the role that lingua franca (LF) interactions with other international students played in their L2 acquisition, their L2 motivational development and their intercultural learning during study abroad. The data were derived from an empirical study that involved 81 German ERASMUS students who were studying in the UK for up to one academic year. The students’ views were elicited at the end of their stay with open-ended questionnaire items, and their verbal responses were analyzed using thematic content analysis. The analysis of the students’ reflections revealed a number of functions in each of the three areas, highlighting the potential of international student interactions as a viable source of L2 acquisition, L2 self-motivation, and intercultural learning during study abroad.

scholarly journals Use of online cultural content for mental health and well-being during COVID-19 restrictions: cross-sectional survey

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Rebecca J. Syed Sheriff ◽  
Helen Adams ◽  
Evgenia Riga ◽  
Andrew K. Przybylski ◽  
Laura Bonsaver ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Online Culture ◽  
Reported Data ◽  
June July ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Health And Well Being

Aims and method To gain a deeper understanding of the use of online culture and its potential benefits to mental health and well-being, sociodemographic characteristics and self-reported data on usage, perceived mental health benefits and health status were collected in an online cross-sectional survey during COVID-19 restrictions in the UK in June–July 2020. Results In total, 1056 people completed the survey. A high proportion of participants reported finding online culture helpful for mental health; all but one of the benefits were associated with regular use and some with age. Reported benefits were wide-ranging and interconnected. Those aged under 25 years were less likely to be regular users of online culture or to have increased their use during lockdown. Clinical implications There may be benefits in targeting cultural resources for mental health to vulnerable groups such as young adults.

scholarly journals Investigation of International Students’ Perception of ‘Community’ in a British Higher Education Institute

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathrine Angela Jackson ◽  
Fay Harris ◽  
Russell Crawford
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
International Students ◽  
International Student ◽  
Global Community ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Student Community ◽  
Research Students ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Future Work

This paper investigates the perceptions of members of our international student community by giving them a voice and a platform to explore their feelings as part of a Higher Education institute in the UK and whether they consider that the university is a global environment. Our data is based on a series of structured interviews with twelve students from twelve different countries, inclusive of four postgraduate research students. Our findings reveal that our international students commonly feel part of multiple smaller communities but interestingly, they were less sure of their part within an institute-wide community. The postgraduate students’ perceptions of community were quite divergent when compared to the undergraduate perceptions, which we will continue to explore in our future work. Our data supports the perception from international students that their university is a global community, but there were distinct differences in how individuals defined it and some limitations to consider. Some defined it as students and staff of different nationalities being present at a university whilst other definitions relied on cultural characteristics within the institution as a whole. We reflect upon the implications of our research as these perceptions shape international student opinion of Higher Education institutes and what is understood by the term ‘global community’.

scholarly journals Counsellor-in-Residence: Evaluation of a Residence-Based Initiative to Promote Student Mental Health

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiffany Anne Beks ◽  
Sharon L Cairns ◽  
Serena Smygwaty ◽  
Olga A.L. Miranda Osorio ◽  
Sheldon J Hill
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
International Students ◽  
Health Literacy ◽  
Mental Health Literacy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Domestic Students ◽  
Counselling Services ◽  
Resilience Scale ◽  
Health Programming ◽  
Target Male

Many universities have implemented campus-based initiatives addressing students’ mental health with the goal of promoting well-being. One such initiative is the newly developed Counsellor-in-Residence (CIR) program at the University of Calgary, which targets students’ mental health by providing residence-based counselling services and mental health programming. In this process evaluation, students completed three waves of data collection conducted over the academic year. Each wave measured students’ mental health literacy, using the Mental Health Literacy Scale (O’Connor & Casey, 2015), and resiliency, using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-25 (Connor & Davidson, 2003). Males reported lower mental health literacy than females (p < .001), and international students reported lower mental health literacy than domestic students (p < .001). No differences in resilience levels were found between groups. These findings suggest that male and international students experience additional barriers to accessing campus-based mental health services. Implications for residence-based mental health programming that target male and international students are discussed.  

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