scholarly journals The Effects of Cross-Cultural Competence and Social Support on International Students’ Psychological Adjustment: Autonomy and Environmental Mastery

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 901-924 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norah Fahad Aldawsari ◽  
Katharine S. Adams ◽  
Lee Edmondson Grimes ◽  
Steven Kohn
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
International Students ◽  
Cultural Competence ◽  
Psychological Adjustment ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Environmental Mastery

This study investigated relationships between cross-cultural competence, social support, and international students’ psychological adjustment. Participants included 94 international students studying in the United States. The researchers conducted a series of standard multiple regression analysis to predict autonomy and environmental mastery as measured by the Ryff Scales of Psychological Well-Being (Ryff & Keyes, 1995). They found significant positive relationships between autonomy and cross-cultural competence as measured by the Intercultural Competence Scale (ICCS; Fantini & Tirmizi, 2006), and environmental mastery and social support as measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS; Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet, & Farely, 1988). A significant negative  relationship was also found between length of residency in the host country, autonomy, and environmental mastery.

Aspiring to Do All Things Through Him Who Strengthens? Quixotic Hope, Religiosity, and Mental Health in Emerging Adulthood

2021 ◽  
pp. 215686932110085
Author(s):  
Laura Upenieks
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Educational Expectations ◽  
Religious Practice ◽  
The United States ◽  
Religious Attendance ◽  
National Study ◽  
Health Consequences

Beliefs about the probability of educational success tend to be very optimistic in the United States. However, scholars are beginning to uncover mental health consequences associated with quixotic hope—the unrealistic outstripping of expectation by aspiration. Using longitudinal data from Waves 1 and 3 of the National Study of Youth and Religion, this study asks, (1) does religiosity promote or diminish the likelihood of quixotic hope? and (2) does religious attendance and closeness to God mitigate long-term mental health consequences of quixotic hope? Results show that weekly religious attendance had a modest negative relationship with the likelihood of experiencing quixotic hope, while increasing religious attendance over time attenuated the negative mental health consequences of quixotic hope on increases in depression. Closeness to God neither predicted quixotic hope nor played a moderating role for depression. As educational expectations rise, regular religious practice may help protect the emotional well-being of youth.

Suicidal Ideation Among International Students: The Role of Cultural, Academic, and Interpersonal Factors

2021 ◽  
pp. 001100002110024
Author(s):  
Andrés E. Pérez Rojas ◽  
Na-Yeun Choi ◽  
Minji Yang ◽  
Theodore T. Bartholomew ◽  
Giovanna M. Pérez
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Thwarted Belongingness ◽  
Perceived Burdensomeness ◽  
Using Data

We examined two structural equation models of international students’ suicidal ideation using data from 595 international students in two public universities in the United States. The models represented competing hypotheses about the relationships among discrimination, cross-cultural loss, academic distress, thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and suicidal ideation. The findings indicated there were direct, positive links between discrimination, cross-cultural loss, and academic distress to perceived burdensomeness; a direct, positive link between perceived burdensomeness and suicidal ideation; and indirect, positive links between discrimination, cross-cultural loss, and academic distress to suicidal ideation via perceived burdensomeness. The only predictors that related to thwarted belongingness were cross-cultural loss and academic distress, and there were no indirect links to suicidal ideation via thwarted belongingness. In fact, with all other variables in the model, thwarted belongingness was unrelated to suicidal ideation. Finally, academic distress was directly related to suicidal ideation. We discuss implications of the findings.

scholarly journals Behavioral Health Risk and Resilience among International Students in the United States: A Study of Socio-demographic Differences

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 282-305
Author(s):  
Youn Kyoung Kim ◽  
Arati Maleku ◽  
Catherine M Lemieux ◽  
Xi Du ◽  
Zibei Chen
Keyword(s):  
Academic Success ◽  
International Students ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Behavioral Health ◽  
Acculturative Stress ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Risk And Resilience ◽  
Cross Sectional

Using a resilience framework, the current cross-sectional study examined indicators of behavioral health risk and resilience among U.S. international students (N=322) across key socio-demographic characteristics. A multimethod approach was used to collect data with both an online platform and paper-based survey instrument. Results showed that higher levels of acculturative stress were reported by older students, females, undergraduates, students who lived with their families, and those who had resided in the US longer than 2 years. Findings underscore the importance of culturally-relevant screening and prevention strategies that target resilience and other protective factors to reduce health risk and encourage well-being and academic success among international students.

scholarly journals Developing Intercultural Competence Through Design Thinking

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (15) ◽  
pp. 9-21
Author(s):  
Tetiana Hantsiuk ◽  
Khrystyna Vintoniv ◽  
Nataliia Opar ◽  
Bohdan Hryvnak
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Competence ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Research Problem ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cross Cultural Communication ◽  
Intercultural Skills ◽  
Intercultural Interactions ◽  
Development Of Students ◽  
Cultural Interactions

Cultural competence, as the ability to interact effectively with the culturally diverse others, is a key component to your success in the globalized world. Developing cultural competence gives us an insight how to benefit from the diversity within intercultural interactions. Everyone may misinterpret the cultural differences due to the low level of cultural competence. That can influence further cooperation with different cultures. Therefore, it is very important to foster students’ intercultural skills, in particular by using different learning techniques and implementing new ideas into the traditional teaching methods. One of them is design thinking as a practice that encourages collaboration and can help students to manage intercultural challenges. Hence, the research problem for this study is to reveal the correlation between the development of students’ intercultural competence and design thinking method application. The purpose of the study is to summarize and synthesize the research on cross-cultural interactions and design thinking to build a framework that shows how the implementation of the design thinking method into the learning process facilitates the development of students’ intercultural competence. The tasks of the research are:a) to review the main contributions to the field of design thinking by analysing multidisciplinary studies on how design thinking fosters development of variety competences including intercultural competence;b) to design the framework to reveal the correlation between the components of intercultural competence and the stages of design thinking process;c) to observe the changes in the students’ intercultural competence level by analysing learners’ responses to the case of intercultural misunderstanding at the beginning of studying the cross-cultural communication classes and after finishing the course.d) The study uses mixed approaches such as quantitative and qualitative methods, scientific literature studies, intercultural competence assessment, grouping, comparative analysis, synthesis, inductive and deductive methods.The key results are presented in the framework that demonstrates the ways how design thinking method supports the development of intercultural competence. This framework can be used by educators to teach intercultural competence and everyone involved in cross-cultural interactions, and who would like to benefit from the diversity.

Why Do Easterners Have Lower Well-Being Than Westerners? The Role of Others’ Approval Contingencies of Self-Worth in the Cross-Cultural Differences in Subjective Well-Being

2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheng-Hong Liu ◽  
Yi-Hsing Claire Chiu ◽  
Jen-Ho Chang
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Cross Cultural Differences ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Self Worth ◽  
The Cross

Previous studies have shown that Easterners generally perceive themselves as having lower subjective well-being compared with Westerners, and several mechanisms causing such differences have been identified. However, few studies have analyzed the causes of such differences from the perspective of the cross-cultural differences in the meanings of important life events such as whether people receive approval from others. Specifically, events regarding others’ approval might have different meanings to and influences on Easterners and Westerners. Thus, the degree of fluctuation of people’s views of self-worth in response to these events (i.e., others’ approval contingencies of self-worth [CSW]) probably differs between Easterners and Westerners. This may be a reason for cross-cultural differences in subjective well-being. We investigated two samples of undergraduate students from Taiwan and the United States to examine the mediating role of others’ approval CSW in forming cross-cultural differences in subjective well-being. The results revealed that Taiwanese participants exhibited lower subjective well-being and higher others’ approval CSW than American participants. In addition, others’ approval CSW partially mediated the cross-cultural differences in subjective well-being. Thus, one reason for lower subjective well-being among Easterners was likely that their self-esteem was more prone to larger fluctuations depending on whether they receive approval from others in everyday life.

Social policy: models, directions, and features of the implementation

2020 ◽  
pp. 34-39
Author(s):  
Svetlana Nikolaevna Ispulova
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Economically Disadvantaged ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Social State ◽  
The Social ◽  
Policy Models

The article is devoted to the main models and ways of forming social well-being as an indicator of the social state. The author draws attention to the ongoing measures of social support for economically disadvantaged citizens in Russia and the United States.

The Influence of Social Media on International Students' Global Life Satisfaction and Academic Performance

2018 ◽  
pp. 1255-1275
Author(s):  
Neete Saha ◽  
Aryn C. Karpinski
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Academic Performance ◽  
International Students ◽  
Satisfaction With Life ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
Global Satisfaction

Numerous studies have investigated the impact of socialization agents (social media) on domestic university students' academic performance and psychological well-being, while the influence of these agents on the increasing population of international students at universities in the United States (US) remains understudied. The current study examined international students' (N = 331) global satisfaction with life as a mediator in the relationship between general social media use (and Skype™ use) and academic performance. The results indicated that both mediation models were supported. Social media and Skype™ use were positively predictive of satisfaction with life, and there was a positive relationship between satisfaction with life and academic performance. These findings have implications for university staff and administrators who need to be aware of the positive influence social media use has on international students' perceptions of their experiences, which in turn can positively impact their academic performance.

Language and Interpersonal Resource Predictors of Psychological and Sociocultural Adaptation: International Students in Hong Kong

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (5) ◽  
pp. 572-588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baohua Yu ◽  
Peter Bodycott ◽  
Anita S. Mak
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
International Students ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Cultural Adaptation ◽  
Stress And Coping ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Sociocultural Adaptation ◽  
Cross Cultural Adaptation ◽  
And Coping

Hong Kong, along with other Asian societies with universities with top world rankings, has in recent years attracted an increasing number of international students, mainly from Asia. Previous research in English-speaking Western countries has indicated the importance of resources, including language proficiency, positive intergroup relations, and social support, in understanding international students’ stress and coping in cross-cultural adaptation. Guided by a similar acculturative stress and coping framework, we investigated predictors of psychological and sociocultural adaptation in a survey sample of 726 international students (62% female and 73% Asian-born) from Hong Kong public universities. We found that English language proficiency, social support, and a low level of perceived discrimination fostered both types of cross-cultural adaptation, while contact with local students and proficiency in the local dialect further enhanced sociocultural adaptation. Implications for future acculturation research and higher education internationalization policies and practices are discussed.

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