Intercultural communication problems of Nigerian students in the Portland Metropolitan Area : a comparative study of a review of literature and personal interviews

Abstract

,This study is an attempt to discover the intercultural communication problems and the methods of copin~~, ~r~~.,._cp~ the Nigerian students in the Portland metropolita extent to which these discovered problems and tried solutions compare with those of other international students that are commonly reported in the literature. These problems are discussed the sab·c:-a te-gor ies of foreign students' adjustment problems in the areas of cu.ltural, personal, social and educational adjustment. C~ral adjustment is used here in a limited way-to refer to both physical and world view. 'r-n the physical. aspect, foreign students in general are report~d having difficulty in adjusting to the American food, .. dres-s, transportation syst-em and weather." 'tJnancial difficulty makes adjustment gifffcult··-~.~r=-:9r_ some fs..~r;. studentsi The .;resul t--~f the 1 1nferviews. shows fhaT Niget'ians .in Portland report no serious problems in food·' ·transport and dress, but have _p.rp-b1erils with weather and f inance"s. Problemfr o-f · conceptual ·d±-ff.er.eri-8es-in. wo:r:ld~Afwi:ew-:w.e.rJ:;L.a1.sn-·ident·±~fi-ad.Personal adjustment discussed jointly with the above subcategory refers to the individual satisfaction, acceptancce, feeling of comfort and smooth integration into the American culture, which the literature reports requires a possession of a positive attitude. The literature review shows that foreign students with negative attitudes show severe pr-0blems in both short and long time adjustment in their ~-While a few cases of problems exist in this area, the majority of respondents indicated no problems.Social adjustment category is defined to mean the ability to form satisfactory relationships with the American host nationals. The educational experience of each foreign student could be impoverished to the extent that he or she fails to maintain good social contact with the host culture. Literature about foreign students generally reports a lack of a meaningful interpersonal contact between foreign students and the host nationals. A .. -5trong contrast was discussed during the interview schedule as this area seemed to present no problem to the Nigerian respondents in Portland. Because of the culturally conceptual differences in ~eaning regarding frlendship, misunderstanding usuall~ exists between the -~-~·'"·"' host and the f~students. · Surprisingly, over three-quarters of the respondents in Portland reported they have no problem of friendship with American students. This area needs further research for more confirmation. Problems of misinterpreting nonverbal behavior and assuming cultural similarity are also identified.Adjusting to-the educ~tiqnal _system of the United States is one other area that poses proglems for international studentsFor foreign students to experience a maximum educational benefit, they need to u'rlaer·stand the problem 0 f differences in language' examination format and grading systems. The problem of relationships to both school administrators and which these areas Nigerian students in Portlan...