Acculturation and academic performance: The role of media use and interpersonal communication among international students

This study investigates mass media use and interpersonal communication among a sample of 171 international students in terms of their acculturation degree and academic performance. In addition to communication behaviors, their perceived host language ability, the length of stay in host country, previous experience staying in a foreign country, and demographic backgrounds were considered. Results suggest that perceived host language ability was strongly correlated with both perceived academic performance and the number of connections with host nationals. In terms of acculturation degree and performance, interpersonal communication with host nationals seems to be a powerful source for international students to become integrated into a host society both academically and socially. International students' mass media use was also correlated with their interpersonal communication behaviors. The interaction with host nationals was positively correlated with the consumption of host media in general and host news content in particular. The consumption of host news content positively contributed to acculturation degree.