Life Being An International Student In The United States: Acculturation, Culture Shock, And Identity Transformation, Lai Yan Vivyan Lam

Master's Theses

The population of international students at community colleges in the United States has increased significantly over the past decade. International students play a big role in building the cultural diversity on campus by bringing over different cultures and sharing their global perspective to the local community. However, they often face challenges adapting into American culture due to cultural differences in education system, language, lifestyle, etc. By looking into the acculturation process of international students to analyze the culture shock and cultural identity changes they experienced, this paper intends to seek ways to help this group of students to ease their …

Practical English For Chinese Newcomers: A Handbook For Teachers, Li Li

Master's Projects and Capstones

When new Chinese immigrants first arrive in the United States, they face challenges related to both language barriers and acculturative stress. Language barriers and acculturative stress mutually reinforce each other. Furthermore, they significantly inconvenience new Chinese immigrants in terms of living, working and studying. Incorporating cultural information into English as a second language (ESL) teaching is thus important from a sociocultural and intercultural perspective. Therefore, the underlying purposes of this project is to enhance English communicative competence and American cultural adaptation among new Chinese immigrants by immersing them in authentic, situational, and practical communication in the United States. The project …

A Case Study Comparison Of Self-Perception Of Latino First Year College Students And Latino Second Year College Students, Corinna Rene Cavanaugh

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the self-perceptions of Latino students at an institution of higher education in Eastern Pennsylvania. Specifically, first and second year Latino student’s self-perceptions of campus assimilation and involvement in campus activities were studied. Latino assimilation into Western culture has been tumultuous. Although statistics report Latino college enrollment to be the second highest in the nation, second only to Asian enrollment, degree completion rates continue to be the lowest in the nation. Subsequently, a rise in Latino population is dramatically influencing the higher education classroom, and educators are confronted with meeting the …

Past Peer Victimization Experiences And Current Psychological Well-Being And Ethnic Identity Among South Asian College Students, Rejitha Nair

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Very little is known about the peer victimization experiences of South Asian immigrant students and the factors involved in these experiences. The present study retrospectively investigated the peer victimization experiences of South Asian immigrant students in high school, the perceived reasons for victimization, and how these experiences relate to their psychological well-being and ethnic identity as college students. Two hundred and twenty college students, who were first or second generation immigrants from South Asia (e.g., India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal) and attended high school in the United States, participated in the study.

Overall, the results revealed that …

The Influence Of Socialization On The Acculturation Of Vietnamese American Adolescents, Nicole Citerella

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Acculturation is the process of cultural change (Berry, Phinney, Sam, & Vedder, 2010). The influence of socialization on acculturation using Berry’s (1980) theory of acculturation was examined. According to Berry’s (1980) theory the process of acculturation includes maintenance of the heritage culture and contact participation in the host culture. Information was collected from an examination of individual interviews of nine adolescent, first-, second-, or third-generation Vietnamese American participants, ages 12–14, from two public middle schools in the United States. An analysis of the data produced four themes under maintenance of the heritage culture: religious influence, cultural awareness, family experience, and …

A Global Experience: Teaching International Students In An International Setting, Dia Ruth Gary

Journal of Educational Research and Innovation

This study analyzed the four stages of acculturation and how an educator teaching abroad, instructing International Students, experienced the path of acculturation through the emotions of elation, resistance, transformation, and integration. Pedagogy is seen with new eyes, and a renewed passion is reignited through a global experience. A new understanding and empathy is developed for those living as an expat, far from their native country. Moreover, a limited view of the world changes from a view of egocentric selfishness to an appreciation of cultural diversity.

Chandra's Story: An Adult Education Student Journeys From Fear To Gratitude, Robin L. Danzak

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

This article presents the story of Chandra (her real name), a middle-aged, Guyanese-American woman attending an adult education center in the Northeast United States. Chandra grew up in extreme poverty in Guyana, and was taken out of school at age eight to help meet the family’s basic needs. At age 22, she immigrated to the United States in hopes of better opportunities. Through narrative methods, Chandra’s story is constructed from 34 narrative and expository written texts that she composed for a literacy tutoring program, as well as three in-depth oral interviews. The result is a moving account of Chandra’s childhood …

A Multiple Regression Analysis Of Factors Concerning Satisfaction,, Jim S. Knutson-Kolodzne

Culminating Projects in Higher Education Administration

This study investigated the patterns of student involvement, the level of satisfaction and acculturation of American Indian college students to determine if a relationship existed between these processes. This study gathered data from 139 students between the ages of 18-54 who self-identify as American Indian. This study included men and women. Four state colleges and universities participated in the study. Data was gathered in the spring semester 2016 using two instruments: the College Student Experience Questionnaire (CSEQ) and the Native American Acculturation scale (NAAS) that were combined on an on-line survey. The data analysis used descriptive statistics, with a T-Test …

Impact Of Migration And Resettlement On Attitudes And Perspectives On Breastfeeding Practices, Florence O. Orionzi Mrs

Culminating Projects in Child and Family Studies

Researchers have observed that people who are raising children in a culture that they were not born in, especially immigrants and refugees, will experience conflict due to acculturation (Harley, Stamm, & Eskenazi, 2007; Lowe, 2011). Whether or not there is a relationship between change in environment and breastfeeding practices is an important consideration when immigrant and refugees resettle in a new country.

In this study 10 immigrant and refugee mothers who have lived in the St. Cloud area for an average of 10 years were interviewed. The research design used in the study was qualitative using individual semi-structured interviews with …

Acculturation Process Of Bhutanese Students In American Classroom, Jigme Choden

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

International students have to adapt to a new learning environment when they move to a foreign land for higher studies. During the transition the international students face various challenges in a new learning environment starting from classroom environment to class participation. The Bhutanese students in a Southwestern University in this study shows the challenges they face as international students and the strategies they develop to acculturate in a new learning environment. The study examines the acculturation process of the Bhutanese students through the framework of acculturation.

Uncovering The Processes And Consequences Of Egyptian Immigrant Parental Involvement In Their Children’S Education: Bridging Cultural Differences, Hend Shalan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Abstract

For more than a decade, researchers have concluded that immigrant parents face several barriers to becoming involved in their children’s education. All studies agree that language and cultural differences are the most significant barriers to immigrants’ involvement in their children’s education, yet we know little about what these cultural differences are and how these cultural differences influence the school involvement of immigrant parents. This study integrates theories of cultural differences, acculturation, and culture shock and the corresponding literature to investigate the lesser involvement of immigrant parents in school-related activities.

A focused ethnographic design was employed and a thematic analysis …

Acculturation, Identity Formation, And Mental Health-Related Issues Among Young Adult Ethiopian Immigrants, Sam A. Wolde

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Immigration is a contributing factor to population growth in the United States. Ethiopian immigrants who are residing in the United States constitute the second-largest African immigrant group next to Nigeria. The effect of immigrants' identity formation and acculturation process on their social and emotional wellness has drawn behavioral and social scientists' attention. Still, limited research has been devoted to exploring Ethiopian immigrants' acculturation and identity formation processes and how these processes shape 1.5- and second-generation immigrants' perceptions of mental health-related issues. This phenomenological study explored identity formation, acculturation processes, and mental health beliefs in 1.5- and second-generation Ethiopian immigrants. Face-to-face …