Theoretical models of culture shock and adaptation in international students in higher education

Application of the acculturation model to international students
As we have seen, the affective, behavioural and cognitive aspects of adaptation are very much
interrelated, but they are explored in sequence below, with particular reference to the literature
on international students.
Social and behavioural adaptation
Bochner’s functional model of friendship networks (Bochner, McLeod, and Lin 1977; Ward,
Bochner, and Furnham 2001) is still influential in contemporary studies of intercultural contact
for student sojourners. Bochner suggests that such students tend to belong to three distinctive
social networks, and each serves a particular psychological function. Through connections with
their compatriots in the host country and, with increasing ease of long-distance communication,
those remaining in the home country, international students might maintain their original cultural
behaviour and values – this is the primary network. They also have interactions with host nation-
als, such as home-based students, teachers and counsellors, through which they might learn a
series of culturally relevant skills to facilitate their academic success. Thirdly, they might also
have friendships with other non-compatriot foreign students, from which they derive mutual
social support and enjoy some social recreational activities. These three are classified as mono-
cultural, bi-cultural and multi-cultural friendship networks (Furnham 2004).
Overseas students can benefit from interaction with host nationals socially, psychologically
and academically. For example, a greater amount of interaction with host nationals has been asso-
ciated with fewer academic problems (Pruitt 1978), fewer social difficulties (Ward and Kennedy
1993b), improved communication competency, and better general adaptation to life overseas
(Zimmerman 1995). Overseas students participating in structured peer-pairing programmes
(Westwood and Barker 1990; Abe, Talbot, and Geelhoed 1998), and spending more informal
leisure time with their local peers (Pruitt 1978), have been found to have better social adjustment
than those who did not. Additionally, contact and friendships with local students is associated
with emotional benefits such as sojourner satisfaction (Rohrlich and Martin 1991) and lower
levels of stress (Redmond and Bunyi 1993), and predicts better psychological adjustment (Searle
and Ward 1990).
Despite the benefits of host–sojourner interaction, the extent of this interaction is often limited
(e.g. Nowack and Weiland 1998). Overseas students are generally most likely to report that their
best friend is from the same culture (e.g. Bochner, McLeod, and Lin 1977). A number of research-
ers use the concept of cultural distance (e.g. Furnham and Alibhai 1985) to interpret weak host–
sojourner interaction. For example, Redmond and Bunyi’s (1993) study in a midwestern
American university found that, among 644 international students, British, European and South
American students were the best integrated, while Korean, Taiwanese and South-east Asian
students were the least integrated. Fortunately, positive outcomes also stem from compatriot rela-
tionships and links with non-compatriot foreign students. Greater co-national interaction is linked
with stronger cultural identity (e.g. Ward and Searle 1991), and quantity and quality of interaction
with non-compatriot foreign students is associated with perceived quality of social support
(Kennedy 1999).

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Studies in Higher Education
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Affective adaptation
Social support also impacts on affective outcomes, although research on friendship networks
places greater emphasis on the quantity and quality of actual support than the mere number of
networks. Social support from both host and co-nationals can contribute to enhancement of
student psychological well-being (e.g. Tanaka et al. 1997). Social support also alleviates ‘home-
sickness’ (Hannigan 1997). However, the relationship between psychological adjustment and
academic adaptation is not very clear. For example, how much do communication skills learned
in friendly interactions with host students contribute to effective formal communication with host
teachers, where patterns of affect might be quite different? Further research into how the
psychological well-being and sociocultural adaptation of international students impede or
enhance their academic success is needed.
Cognitive adaptation
The literature on cognitive aspects of acculturation in student sojourners has concentrated on
inter-group perceptions and relations. Many international students perceive prejudice and
discrimination during their interaction with host nationals (e.g. Sodowsky and Plake 1992). Some
studies have even indicated that increased contact can in some cases lead to a sharpening of nega-
tive inter-group stereotypes over time (e.g. Stroebe, Lenkert, and Jonas 1988). This is a reminder
that contact theory, which hypothesises that increased contact improves inter-group perceptions
and relations, might only work under certain circumstances.
Bond’s (1986) study of local Chinese and American exchange students in Hong Kong
revealed comparatively positive inter-group perceptions. His analysis included consideration of
auto-stereotypes (in-group perceptions), hetero-stereotypes (out-group perceptions) and reflected
stereotypes (how the out-group is perceived to view the in-group). Bond argued that the stereo-
types accurately reflected significant differences in the behavioural characteristics of the two
groups. Both Chinese and Americans perceived Chinese students as conservative and obedient,
while both also perceived American students as questioning and independent. Such stereotypes
might consistently influence interactions. Pratt (1991) commented that in America teachers are
regarded as facilitators who promote learner autonomy, while in China students see teachers as
authority figures, and are used to accepting academic assertions without questioning them. It
seems that cross-cultural stereotypes, that is, cognitive aspects of the acculturation process for
students, may have particularly important effects on the culture of learning, a concept proposed
by Cortazzi and Jin (1997). The concept includes cultural beliefs and values about teaching and
learning, and expectations about classroom behaviours. These ideas lead on to consideration of
issues specifically concerned with what is going on in intercultural educational settings, and
issues about student sojourners’ pedagogical adaptation.