Global family is a product of globalization in which everybody is defined to be a member of a same family. In this context, it is natural for Koreans to show great concern for foreigners and foreign countries and vice versa. As a consequence, the numb...
Global family is a product of globalization in which everybody is defined to be a member of a same family. In this context, it is natural for Koreans to show great concern for foreigners and foreign countries and vice versa. As a consequence, the number of foreign students, particularly from China, to study in Korea has increased drastically these days.
The present has an objective to work out measures to systematically assist Chinese students staying in Korea for study in their successful adaptation to Korean culture and to university life by examining the actual conditions and relationship in this regard.
With a view to reach the goal of this study, following queries were offered for solution:
1. What kind of difference is there in stresses of Chinese students in Korea in connection with their adaptation to Korean culture by demographic variants?
2. What difference is there in the extent of adaptation to university life of Chinese students in Korea by demographic variants?
3. What relationship exists between the stresses of Chinese students in Korea for cultural adaptation and their extent of adaptation to university life?
In order to verify the above issues, a survey was conducted to Chinese students enrolled in universities in Jeonbuk province. A total of 550 Chinese students were selected as subjects for this study, including undergraduates, graduate students and those studying at the language courses in Korea. Questionnaires were prepared and distributed to them to explore relationship between their stress in cultural adaptation and their adaptation to school life. To determine the stress in cultural adaptation, Seungjong Lee's stress scale in the course of cultural introduction (1995) was used upon modification of Accultrative Stress Scale for International Student developed by Sandhu & Asrabadi (1994). For measuring up the extent of adaptation to university life, Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire: SACQ was adopted which was developed by Baker & Siryk (1989) and applied to Korean environment by Jinwon Hyeon (1992). Excluding those replies that were deemed improper for statistical processing, 530 were put to statistical processing for this study.
Findings of the present study could be summed up as follows:
First, significant difference was revealed in the stress of cultural adaptation by age, staying period and proficiency of Korean. No significant difference in the stress was detected by gender but significant one was found by factors like perceived hostility (p<.001) and sense of guilty (p<.05).
Age yielded significant difference in such factors as homesickness, perceived hostility, fear, cultural shock and sense of guilty (p<.05). The older students got, the more stress they tended to feel, same result as the study by Yeongju Yun (2001) that showed that the older they are, the more fear it is felt.
With regard to the stress in connection with cultural adaptation by social position, there was no significant difference but perceived hostility and sense of guilty that featured statistically significant difference at the level of p<.05.
Depending on the length of stay in Korea, there was significant difference in the stress of cultural adaptation (p<.001) but none in the factor of cultural shock.
The grade of proficiency in the Korean language turned out to exercise influence upon the stress of cultural adaptation (p<.05).
Second, adaptation to university life was subject to age and social status with significant difference.
There was no significant difference by age. Male students, however, were found to have accustomed themselves better to Korean society than female students, an indication that male students adapted themselves more easily to university life including personal relationship and extracurricular activities than their counterparts.
Age showed overall significant difference (p<.05), particularly at the age of 24～26 when Chinese students were found to adapt to life in Korea with the best in terms of social and personal emotional adaptation as well as satisfaction with universities they belonged.
The analysis of adaptation to university life by social status featured significant difference by social status (p<.001). Except for factors of personal-emotional adaptation, Chinese students were found to have adapted to Korean life much better than those who came to Korea for marriage or employment as regards academic, social or individual adaptation, according to the survey.
The extent of learning Korean showed few significant difference as a whole but some in academic adaptation, though.
Third, the correlation analysis conducted to investigate the relationship between cultural stress and adaptation to university life resulted in negative correlation of r = -.514.
Based on the findings of this study, following suggestions could be offered for further studies that may follow:
First, it is requested to teach students about Korean culture and language before they come to Korea for study. Systematic programs for this purpose should be developed, used and operated actively;
Second, every institution that receives foreign students should run centers for international students to further studies on this issue;
Third, nationwide studies should be carried out on this subject further to the present study which places its focus on the region in Jeonbuk province;
Fourth, depth studies should also be performed on the students from every foreign country in an effort to determine their features, although Chinese students were exclusively targeted at this study;
Fifth, studies should be conducted in the manner dealing with various elements that are connected with the stress of foreign students in their cultural adaptation and adaptation to university life. Every effort should also be exerted in parallel to develop new tools modified to Korean culture to measure such factors.
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