scholarly journals Comparing International Student Friendship Networks in Buenos Aires: Direct Enrollment Program vs. Study Abroad Centers

2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blake Hendrickson

A robust pattern identified in the cross-cultural adaptation and international education literature shows that upon arrival in a new cultural environment international students tend to form new friendships with individuals from their own countries while failing to develop relationships with those from the host country. This is problematic considering that communication with host nationals lies at the heart of the cross-cultural adaptation process and host national friendship is associated with a diverse set of positive outcomes. A historical debate among university administrators, international educators, and scholars as to the most effective way to arrange study abroad initiatives pivots around the amount of interaction that students have with the local culture. In order to examine the impact that study abroad program models have on friendship networks this study employs a mixed-method, longitudinal strategy to compare the friendship networks of 105 international students enrolled in 10 different study abroad programs and universities in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Results show that students studying directly at Argentine Public and Private Universities have significantly more Argentine and other international student friends while students in US-based Island programs have significantly more friends form their own country. These findings reveal the central role that study abroad administration plays in the interpersonal interaction that international students have with individuals from the host country, provide several explanations for the current trends, and give implications for study abroad administration.

2021 ◽  
pp. 154134462110285
Author(s):  
Kelley M. King ◽  
Kathryn V. Dixon ◽  
Ricardo González-Carriedo ◽  
Lisbeth Dixon-Krauss

This case study addressed effects of international student teaching on U.S. teacher candidates’ cross-cultural adaptability and perspectives on language, culture, and schooling. Interviews and the Cross-Cultural Adaptability Inventory were collected from 18 participants before and after 4 weeks student teaching internationally. Interviews were coded using the Cross-Cultural Adaptability Inventory dimensions and interpreted using Mezirow’s transformational learning theory. Findings suggested that increased cross-cultural adaptation aligns with transformational learning. Transformational learning led participants to question assumptions and consider incorporating different perspectives in future teaching.


Author(s):  
Alessandra Schneider ◽  
Michelle Rodrigues ◽  
Olesya Falenchuk ◽  
Tiago N. Munhoz ◽  
Aluisio J. D. Barros ◽  
...  

Responsive caregiving is the dimension of parenting most consistently related to later child functioning in both developing and developed countries. There is a growing need for efficient, psychometrically sound and culturally appropriate measurement of this construct. This study describes the cross-cultural validation in Brazil of the Responsive Interactions for Learning (RIFL-P) measure, requiring only eight minutes for assessment and coding. The cross-cultural adaptation used a recognized seven-step procedure. The adapted version was applied to a stratified sample of 153 Brazilian mother–child (18 months) dyads. Videos of mother–child interaction were coded using the RIFL-P and a longer gold standard parenting assessment. Mothers completed a survey on child stimulation (18 months) and child outcomes were measured at 24 months. Internal consistency (α = 0.94), inter-rater reliability (r = 0.83), and intra-rater reliability (r = 0.94) were all satisfactory to high. RIFL-P scores were significantly correlated with another measurement of parenting (r’s ranged from 0.32 to 0.47, p < 0.001), stimulation markers (r = 0.34, p < 0.01), and children’s cognition (r = 0.29, p < 0.001), language (r = 0.28, p < 0.001), and positive behavior (r = 0.17, p < 0.05). The Brazilian Portuguese version is a valid and reliable instrument for a brief assessment of responsive caregiving.


2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-320
Author(s):  
Danúbia da Cunha Antunes SARAIVA ◽  
Wanélia Vieira AFONSO ◽  
Nivaldo Barroso de PINHO ◽  
Wilza Arantes Ferreira PERES ◽  
Patricia de Carvalho PADILHA

ABSTRACT Objective Cross-cultural adaptation and content validation of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Subjective Global Nutritional Assessment questionnaire (originally in English) for use in hospitalized children and adolescents being treated in a reference institute of oncology. Methods The cross-cultural adaptation process consisted of the following stages: conceptual, item, semantic, and operational equivalence. The conceptual equivalence and item was carried out through discussion with members of an expert committee. Semantic equivalence was evaluated through initial translation, synthesis of translations, back translation, discussions with experts, and pretest with 32 patients. During operational equivalence, the experts discussed about the format of questions and instructions, setting, target populations, and mode of administration to later propose a final version. Content validation was performed by the expert committee. Results Minor modifications were made in the instrument to facilitate its use in the Brazilian socio-cultural context. Pretest results showed that the instrument is easily understood by health care professionals and the target population. Conclusion The cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Subjective Global Nutritional Assessment allowed obtaining a Brazilian version equivalent to the original. The adapted instrument will be an important tool for the subjective assessment of the nutritional status of pediatric patients hospitalized with cancer.


2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (5) ◽  
pp. 572-588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baohua Yu ◽  
Peter Bodycott ◽  
Anita S. Mak

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.


Author(s):  
Atul Kumar Goyal ◽  
Jaimanti Bakshi ◽  
Naresh K Panda ◽  
Rakesh Kapoor ◽  
Dharam Vir ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Saud De Bortoli ◽  
Eufemia Jacob ◽  
Thaíla Corrêa Castral ◽  
Cláudia Benedita dos Santos ◽  
Ananda Maria Fernandes ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Objective: to describe the steps in the cross-cultural adaptation process of the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool, a pain assessment measure, for use with Brazilian children and adolescents with cancer. Method: a methodological and cross-sectional study was undertaken. The steps in the cross-cultural adaptation process of the tool that resulted in the semantic validation followed an adapted method, including: initial translation, consensus version of translations, evaluation by Expert Committee, back-translation, comparison with original tool and actual semantic validation. Results: the initial translation process of the tool until the final consensus was reached took approximately four months. In the evaluation by the Expert Committee, three health professionals participated in the study, who were knowledgeable on the theme and mastered the English language. In the semantic validation, 35 children and adolescents aged between eight and 18 unfinished years participated, who were patients at the institution where children and adolescents with cancer were treated and monitored. After concluding all steps, the researchers met to discuss the proposed changes. At the end of the cross-cultural adaptation process of the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool, all initially proposed 67 pain descriptors were maintained in their Portuguese version. Conclusion: the steps in the cross-cultural adaptation process of the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool were executed and described in detail, evidencing the rigorous development of the study.


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