An Exploratory Study Of Factorsaffecing Theacculturation Stress Of International Students In China

Nowadays, there are many international students studying in Chinese universities or colleges. These international students may be confronted with various problems such as linguistic, academic, interpersonal, financial, and intrapersonal problems. So it is critical to help international students reduce acculturation stress for better adaptation in China. This study has two research objectives. The first one is to evaluate the acculturation stress of international students in China. The second one is to investigate variables affecting the acculturation stress of these international students.The subjects in this study are 94 international students who are candidates for Bachelor degree, Master degree or Doctoral degree in Huazhong University of Science & Techonology and Central China Normal University. Based on Acculturation Stress Scale for International Students (designed by Sandhu & Asrabadi in 1994), the researcher designed a scale to test the acculturation level of these subjects. Based on Social Support Questionnaire designed by Sarason, Shearin, & Pierce, the researcher also designed a scale to check how the subjects are satisfied with the social support they have received. Another scale was designed based on the original model of Cross (1995) and the modified model of Seongjik (2008) to test Chinese language proficiency the subjects perceived. Five international students among the 94 subjects were randomly chosen to be interviewed about their Chinese language learning and practicing.Later, the researcher put all the raw data into SPSS 16.0. Factor analysis and reliability analysis are processed to test the construct validity and reliability of the questionnaire study. Pearson correlation analysis is processed to investigate the relationship between social support satisfaction, perceived Chinese skills and acculturation stress. One-way ANOVA and Independent-Sample T Test are performed to test whether there is significant difference in means of acculturation stress with respect to every demographic variable.The major research findings are as follows: 1) the level of acculturation stress among international students is relatively low, and low stress due to perceived discrimination and hatred is the major source of their acculturation stress; 2) social support satisfaction is negatively and significantly correlated to acculturation stress; 3) perceived Chinese skills are negatively but not significantly correlated to acculturation stress; 4) the length of stay in China and financial support can make significant difference of acculturation stress among international students in China, but other demographic variables such as age, gender, continents, marital status and degree seeking can not.The results of the research indicate that more intervention from university authority should be performed to help international student with their Chinese proficiency, to propel the socialization of international students with Chinese students.