Mutual Intercultural Relations among University Students in Canada

Abstract

Over 304,000 international students studied in Canadian universities in 2013 (CIC, 2014). In addition to their academic success, one important feature of their stay in Canada is the quality of the intercultural relations, and the adaptations they make during their stay. The present study sought to understand the intercultural relations, acculturation and adaptation of both international students and Canadian students. Fifty-seven international (all from China) and 68 domestic students were drawn from several Canadian universities. Cluster analysis generated two clusters for international students (integration and diffuse) and two for Canadian students (multiculturalism and melting pot). International students in the integration cluster were more tolerant and better adapted than those in the diffuse cluster. Similarly, Canadian students in the multiculturalism cluster were also more tolerant and better adapted than those in the melting pot cluster. Implications of these findings for preparing international and Canadian students for their intercultural encounters were discussed.

Acculturation of Erasmus students: Using the multidimensional individual difference acculturation model framework

“…Research has shown that international students, including Erasmus students, experience acculturation stress (Ward, Okura, Kennedy, & Kojima, ) and challenges, including language barriers, cultural differences, loneliness and academic and financial strain (Gui, Safdar, & Berry, ; Scott, Safdar, Desai Trilokekar, & El Masri, ). Adapting to a new academic and sociocultural environment depends on students' ability to successfully meet the challenges in that environment.…”

Multiculturalism and Integration: Challenges, Strategies and Prospects of Students Integration in Educational Environment and Society

“…Moreover, students' participation in the educational process can help them to initiate and maintain a sense of affiliation with the host students, and provide further opportunities for education can lead them to understand and cope with the cultural differences (Tiemann;2004;Zentrum für Türkeistudien;. Therefore, education is not only a tool for integration but it created a multicultural environment within educational institutions in countries like Australia, Canada, America, England and the other may pose certain conditions in the multicultural atmosphere that may promote or hinder integration of the students (Gui, Safdar, & Berry, 2016;Schachner, He, Heizmann, & Van de Vijver, 2017).…”

“…The primary goals of Australia and Canada, the earliest supporters of multiculturalism, is to provide opportunities to the immigrants of the national language(s) learning, engage them in the society equally, and identify them with the host society (Huddleston, 2011;Gui, Safdar, & Berry, 2016;Schachner, He, Heizmann, & Van de Vijver, 2017). At the same time, people are allowed to express their cultural heritage and language according to their desires.…”

Longing for Independence, Yet Depending on Family Support: A Qualitative Analysis of Psychosocial Adaptation of Iranian International Students in Hungary

“…In cross-cultural literature, the investigation of acculturation and its outcome, cross-cultural adaptation, has been the center of interest for many researchers (e.g., Brisset, Safdar, Lewis, & Sabatier, 2010;Gui, Safdar, & Berry, 2016). Acculturation occurs when groups of people with different cultures come into ongoing direct contact with each other that results in the cultural and psychological changes of either or both groups (Berry, 1997).…”