The Condition Of Inter-Cultural Adaptation In Uk Among The Chinese Postgraduate Students

With the acceleration of the process of nationalization in higher education worldwide, more and more students rush into the developed countries to accept its advanced higher education. China, as the largest developing country in the world, its economy and the rapid development of science and technology urgently need high quality of higher education human resources as their intellectual support. At present, the Chinese student groups have occupied the largest part of the British overseas study groups. Behind this hot studying wave, the social and cultural adaptation problems in UK and their own situations were greatly neglected by the academia and society.For a better understanding of cross-cultural adaptation of the one year master’s Chinese students studying in the UK, researcher selected10Chinese students from University of East Anglia as research samples to do in-depth interviews and participant observation. At the meantime, five people, including the head of the department, lecturer, student services center and employment guidance center staff were also selected to conduct interviews. According to Ward’s cross-cultural adaptation process model, the main body is divided into three areas:psychological、social and academic adaptation. The specific detailed understandings contain studying motivation, psychological status, daily life, language skills, interpersonal, academic status to explore the impact factors and mechanisms behind during the process of cross-cultural adaptation.The study found that Chinese students’ psychological and academic adaptation is generally in a good condition. However, they felt they had great difficulties in social integration. This is mainly related to the length of studying time, language skills and huge academic pressure. In addition, the different values of the East and West, thinking set and unconscious ethnocentrism impede the communication.The study provides evidence that students tend to live in a self-created "Chinese communities". Psychological level of integration is positively correlated with academic issues, however, the relationship with social integration is not obvious. Chinese students are lack of active participation in a wider range of social activities and they take an evasive attitude towards most of the problems encountered in some activities. Nonetheless, students thought they have received a great deal of personal development and enrichment in the process of studying abroad.Policy proposals are made based on the experimental studies.In light of management and service of the students, the school should organize some activities about the understanding of the British cultural tradition courses and programmes, strengthening students’recognition and understanding of UK. Moreover, school should emphasize on diversification in the accommodation arrangements. Only by doing this, could Chinese students improve the opportunities to contact with other international students and local students. Secondly, students’ awareness of cross-cultural integration should be awakened, reducing it own thinking set and ethnocentric thinking to develop a concept of "cultural consciousness". Meanwhile, host country should take the initiative to understand the Chinese culture and Chinese students’characteristics, ultimately achieving "cultural integration". Finally, school should provide adequate language courses and academic guidance to allow international students to try to adapt to the requirements of the UK higher education as soon as possible.The researcher makes a further thinking about this research. Based on the further analysis of the characteristics of cross-cultural adaptation、inevitability and necessity of cross-culture and the process of cross-cultural integration, study highlights the importance of cultural consciousness.