Acculturation, attachment, and psychosocial adjustment of Chinese/Taiwanese international students.

Abstract

On the basis of a process model of acculturation (Berry, Kim, Minde, & Mok, 1987) and the concept of secure base for interpersonal exploration in adult attachment (Bowlby, 1988), this study hypothesized that sociocultural adjustment difficulties and psychological distress of Chinese international students (N ϭ 104) living in the United States would be positively associated with attachment avoidance and anxiety and negatively associated with both acculturation to the U.S. culture and identification with the home culture. Survey packets contained the Experiences in Close Relationships scale, the Acculturation Index, the Socio-Cultural Adaptation Scale, and the Brief Symptom Inventory-18. Results suggested that attachment anxiety was negatively associated with students' acculturation to U.S. culture, and that attachment avoidance, attachment anxiety, and acculturation to U.S. culture were significant predictors for students' psychosocial adjustment.

Functions of the common ingroup identity model and acculturation strategies in intercultural communication: American host nationals’ communication with Chinese international students

“…Overall, each scenario reflected two aspects of acculturation, psychological adjustment and sociocultural adaptation, suggested in recent years by Ward and Kennedy (1999) and Wang and Mallinckrodt (2006). Specifically, the scenarios described MeiLin/Chen's daily activity, social life, school life, linguistic adjustment, and identification with…”

“…Previous studies have illustrated that immigrants and sojourners commonly experience separation or marginalization (Suinn, 2010;Sumer et al, 2008;Wang & Mallinckrodt, 2006), pointing out the difficulty of achieving assimilation or integration. However, for some individuals, separation and marginalization are experienced only during a certain period of time (Hsu, 2010;Tsai et al, 2000).…”

“…Within new environments, "difference in climate, language, work habits, religion, and dress are examples of changes for the immigrant to which response is required" (Berry, 1992, p.272). In order to adapt to the new environment, acculturation scholars (Berry, 1997;Wang & Mallinckrodt, 2006;Ward & Kennedy, 1999) argued that immigrants and sojourners go through the processes of psychological adjustment (e.g., sense of well being and self-esteem) and sociocultural adaptation 29 (e.g., communication competence in the new environment, social networks, etc.). In the processes of cultural adaptation, immigrants and sojourners seek ways to balance their cognitive, behavioral, and affective ties with their home and host cultures.…”

“…Conventionally, influences of cultural adaptation have been examined for their psychological and behavioral consequences (Suinn, 2010;Sumer et al, 2008;Wang & Mallinckrodt, 2006). Previous studies discussed the critical role played by immigrants' and sojourners' communication experiences with host nationals and their psychological well-being (Lacina, 2002;Suinn, 2010), but without adequate suggestions for how to improve communication experiences.…”

The ‘Business Case’ for Internationalisation

“…As most of the contacts between these two groups of students happen in the classroom, managing a harmonious and mutual-beneficial relationship between international students and domestic students becomes an urgent mission for the teaching staff. Wang and Mallinckrodt (2006) argue that the level of anxiety and attachment deeply affects the international students' willingness to explore the new environment and their ability to engage themselves in this new environment.…”