Smartphone Addiction And Loneliness Among International Students In Dalian

For several years,China has been one of the largest exporters of international students.However,due to rapid economic growth,recently it has also proved itself one of the most popular study destinations.Although there is a large pool of literature on Chinese students abroad,little is yet known about the experience of foreign students in China.This study explores smartphone use among international students in order to uncover the connections between smartphone addiction and loneliness,student's culture,social ties.The research employs mixed methods.Quantitative data were gathered by online survey,which were spread among international students from five main universities in a coastal city in North China.438 responses were confirmed as valid.Besides,12 in-depth interviews were carried out.The study found that 45.4% students scored higher the normal range on loneliness index,which means that they are likely to suffer from a situational loneliness.Moreover,loneliness scores of 5.3% respondents were extremely high,which indicates severe loneliness.The results show that students from collectivistic countries were more likely to feel lonely.In addition,Ph.D.students and students at the beginning language proficiency had a higher likelihood to be lonely.Furthermore,the factors that affected smartphone addiction were loneliness and communicating with a boyfriend/girlfriend.Results also showed that loneliness was significantly correlated with smartphone use and smartphone addiction and also mediated their relationship.Finally,we proposed strategies to help students cope with loneliness and prevent smartphone addiction.