A Phenomenological Study on the Positive and Negative Experiences of Chinese International University Students From Hong Kong Studying in the U.K. and U.S. in the Early Stage of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused distress in students globally. The mental health of international students studying abroad has been neglected during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially Chinese students who have been unfairly targeted.Objective: To explore and document the positive and negative experiences of a group of Hong Kong Chinese international students studying in the U.K. and U.S. from an insider perspective in the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: The qualitative study used four 1.5-h online focus group interviews of 20 Chinese international students from Hong Kong aged 18 or older studying in universities in the United Kingdom or the United States, from 3 May to 12 May 2020. A framework approach with a semi-structured interview guide was used to reflect students' stressors, cognitive appraisals, coping, and outcomes (negative impacts and positive gains), in the early stages of COVID-19. Different strategies were used to ensure the credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability of the study. Transcripts were analyzed using qualitative thematic content analysis.Results: Twenty full-time international University students (60% female, 90% aged 18–25 years and 65% undergraduates) were recruited. Students reported (i) stress from personal (e.g., worries about health and academic attainment), interpersonal (e.g., perceived prejudice and lack of social support), and environmental factors (e.g., uncertainties about academic programme and unclear COVID-19-related information); (ii) significant differences in culture and cognitive appraisal in the levels of perceived susceptibility and severity; (iii) positive thinking and using alternative measures in meeting challenges, which included effective emotion and problem coping strategies, and the importance of support from family, friends and schools; and (iv) negative psychological impact (e.g., worries and stress) and positive personal growth in crisis management and gains in family relationships.Conclusions: With the rise in sinophobia and uncertain developments of the pandemic, proactive support from government and academic institutions are urgently needed to reduce stress and promote the well-being of international students, especially Chinese students in the U.K. and U.S. Clear information, public education and policies related to the pandemic, appropriate academic arrangements from universities and strong support systems play important roles in maintaining students' psychological health.Clinical Trial Registration: The study was registered with the National Institutes of Health (https://clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier: NCT04365361).

Tracing Chinese international students’ psychological and academic adjustments in uncertain times: An exploratory case study in the United Kingdom

“…Such support from the host culture enables international students to acquire a sense of social connectedness and satisfaction (Zhu, 2016;Yu et al, 2019). In addition, this study aligns with the research conducted by Lai et al (2021) on social support for international students in times of pandemic, yet there is a slight difference because Lai and her colleagues regard family and friend contact as the major source of such social support, whereas this article underlines the vital role that higher education institutions play in enabling and sustaining international students' intercultural adjustments amid COVID-19.…”

“…This finding is consistent with the study of Spencer-Oatey and Xiong (2006) who highlight that the Chinese international students in the United Kingdom featured in their study appeared to feel less acceptable about the noise and the mess associated with foreign roommates with different cultural preferences. In the case of Participant 6, such cultural differences may be embodied in their differing cognitive appraisals of the pandemic severity, which is compatible with the caution of Lai et al (2021) . Also, echoing another relevant study conducted in the inception of COVID-19 ( Xu et al, 2021 ), it further corroborates that safety concerns or the threat of infection, has been the overarching issue that imposes constant pressure on these Chinese students studying abroad.…”

“…Similarly, as indicated in other studies concentrating on Chinese international students (Lai et al, 2021;Ma and Miller, 2021;Xu et al, 2021;Lin et al, 2022), most of them were dissatisfied with the host government's pandemiccurbing actions, condemning the government for the excessive focus on protecting the economy instead of the health and safety of individuals. In the United Kingdom, the rampant spread of COVID-19 mutant strain and the ongoing lockdown in 2021 suggested that the government failed to mount an adequate response, with all British residents still facing the threat of the global pandemic.…”

“…The impact of previous experiences on psychological adjustments reported here is essentially aligned with the prior literature that emphasizes the positive influence of past intercultural experiences on successful subsequent intercultural adaptation ( Yu et al, 2019 ). In relation to the significance of personal resilience, it has been confirmed to be strongly associated with the cultivation of self-efficacy and personal growth which combine to enable international students to maximize the benefits of the internal university learning environment and acquire greater overall satisfaction with their lives overseas either in the pre-pandemic studies ( Mak and Kim, 2011 ; Arambewela and Hall, 2013 ) or in the research conducted at the early stage of the pandemic ( Lai et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Seeking to expose the real-life experiences of Chinese international students in the United States, Xu et al (2021) leverage a descriptive phenomenological method to interview 14 target participants, and their findings reveal four transformed meaning units, of which safety concerns and unanticipated support stand out in the phenomenal experiences of these international students. Following up on their preceding quantitative statistical analysis ( Lai et al, 2020 ), Lai et al (2021) further group-interviewed 20 Hong Kong Chinese international students in western contexts and underlined the central role that cultural differences and cognitive appraisal played in shaping international students’ perceived severity and vulnerability in the COVID lockdown.…”