Coping with culture shock: a study of stressors, adjustments and stereotypes among chinese students at bangkok university

Friendship with Thai and foreigners

Some respondents mentioned a stressor that they are weak in friendship with Thai and foreigners in both Bangkok University and outside. They felt that it is hard to build a close friendship with Thai and foreigners since their language is not good enough to talk about something deeply. Normally, they communicate with Thai and foreigner students for group projects or some surface things such as topics about China or Thailand. Mainly, they communicate for study purpose but not for close friendship. A Chinese respondent talk about his feeling as below:


Certainly, Thai classmates are friendly and kindly. They are willing to talk with me. Topics are mainly about China or Thailand, group projects, or my life in Bangkok such as Chinese news, Thai weather, Thai food, my apartment, my favorite restaurants, my travel plan, my projects or homework, or my group projects. Actually, I would like to build a close friendship with them and I can talk with them about more topics. But, I know that my Thai and English are not good enough to support doing so.
Therefore, I felt it is very hard to improve friendship with Thais and foreigners (Jialun Yang).

In addition, respondents hold a negative attitude toward to current life in Bangkok; thus, they would like to close up with Chinese students, but Thai or foreigners. An

Islamic Chinese student mentioned as below:


I am quite boring to living here. I am an Islamist. I can not eat meat; even I can not have meal in any restaurant where cook meat. There are many restaurants that I can not have meal in. Also, I don not have many friends, and majority of friends are Chinese. If I have some problem, there are only few Chinese friends that I can talk to. And, until now, I have withdrawn many courses in Bangkok University. I think those courses are very hard. I just want to graduate and go home as soon as possible; but, I do not know that could I graduate within 4 years.


However, majority of Chinese students are willing to communicate with Thai and foreign students. They try to talk with Thai and foreign students with more things. And, they would like to know more about Thai and foreign students; by the way, their English are improved via intercultural communication. Furthermore, they would like to know more about Thai and foreign culture and learn more in Thai and English. Also, they would like to work with Thai and foreign students for group projects. But, few Chinese students do not want to know more about Thai culture and language and they would like to go home.