Journey to the west: The experience of Chinese International Students´ Sociocultural, Academic and Psychological Adaptations in Spain

• Autores: Chang Tan
• Directores de la Tesis: Héctor Grad (dir. tes.)
• Lectura: En la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid ( España ) en 2018
• Idioma: inglés
• Número de páginas: 201
• Tribunal Calificador de la Tesis: Joaquín Beltrán Antolín (presid.), Gladys Nieto (secret.), Qiuyang Li (voc.)
• Programa de doctorado: Programa de Doctorado en Ciencias Humanas: Geografía, Antropología y Estudios de África y Asia por la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
• Materias:
  • Antropología
    • Antropología social
• Enlaces
  • Tesis en acceso abierto en: Biblos-e Archivo
• Resumen

  • International students from China have reached unprecedented levels in recent decade. New destinations like Spain and Italy were increasing in popularity among Chinese international students. Despite an increasing amount of Chinese international students in Spain, little research was available on their across-cultural lives. As such, this study focused on uncovering the rich and dynamic experiences of Chinese international students in Spain as well as the complex meanings of their life stories. It would demonstrate that the experience of Chinese international students in Spain is much more than a footnote to the story of the Chinese overseas study. This research employed quantitative and qualitative methodology to investigate the transnational experience of Chinese students’ sociocultural, academic and psychological adaptation to Spain. In the quantitative research, a total of 259 Chinese international students studying in 8 Spanish regions participated in a web survey. Data was collected by a 63-item online questionnaire which asked for demographic background information, and self-rating of sociocultural, academic, and psychological adaptation. The quantitative approach allowed studying the relationship between the adaptations and other variables like age, length of stay, type of pair engagement and social networks. Furthermore, ethnographic field research comprising in-depth semi-structured interviews of 10 Chinese international students and two periods of participant observation following a group of Chinese students of the UAM in different life contexts during two months illuminated the cross-cultural experience in Spain from their own perspectives, reflecting the flesh and blood of the students’ oversea lives. For Chinese international students, study in Spain was not only a physical journey, but also implied a cultural and psychological journey including changes to their ways of feeling, thinking and behaving. Through participating in their daily life, their classes in the university, and as well as their social life in the free time, a deeper understanding of what they have undergone was progressing. Some hidden facts may be uncovered. 25 Generally speaking, Chinese international students neither met great problem with their sociocultural and academic adaption, nor feel depression. They were satisfied with their stay in Spain. In spite that more than half (60%) of them still choose to go back to China at the end of their overseas studies in Spain, those with higher scores in sociocultural and academic adaptation scales would prefer to stay in Spain or continue to study in other countries after graduation, and specifically to study again in Spain if given another chance. The quantitative research found that Chinese international students had a lower degree of difficulty in adjusting than did females in terms of sociocultural and academic adaptations. Older students had better academic and psychological adaptation. The longer Chinese international students stayed in Spain, the better adaptation they felt in sociocultural and academic adaptation. With regard to the relation between the type of residence and sociocultural, academic and psychological adaptations, Chinese international students who lived with non-Chinese had less difficulties than those who lived with Chinese in both sociocultural and academic adaptations. The participants whose circle of friends was dominated by cultural outgroups (Spaniards or other nationalities) felt better in sociocultural and academic adaptations than those whose social network was dominated by Chinese friends. As for the type of pair engagement, single Chinese international students had more difficulties than those who had boyfriends or girlfriends in sociocultural and academic adaptations. However, contrary to the hypothesis of the research, there was no significant difference between the Only Child and their sociocultural, academic and psychological adaptations. Interviews and participant observation found that studying abroad was not only a way of boosting CVs of Chinese international students, but also a maturing process and a personal expansion. For them, culture shock was inevitable. Major problems and issues faced by Chinese international students with their endeavor to adapt to the Spanish society and academic system were: language barrier; difficulty to build a deep friendship with Spaniards; academic challenge which was viewed as the most serious problem; and the loneliness and pressure on dating and marriage. Most Chinese students agreed that good communication skills were absolutely necessary, but few took enough time and effort to optimize their Spanish abilities. What’s more, the relations between Chinese 26 younger siblings and their elders formed a network of the Chinese students’ ethnic community, for example, the Chinese Students Associationes in Spanish universities. For Chinese international students, students association has played an important role in like instructor of the academic adaptation, promoter of the social adaptation, and defender of student rights. However, a delicate balance between the community of co-nations and larger institution should be kept. The social media WeChat impacted the ways that Chinese international students communicate and made Chinese international students concentrate in large community, even though they were geographically dispersed across their campus. Chinese international students used WeChat to make friends with their co-nations in Spain; WeChat also served as a method of addressing issues like that Chinese international students may feel disconnected from their family member while abroad in Spain; Chinese international students used WeChat to gather academic information and to complete their class assignments; and invisible restaurants and part-time job as Dai Gou were done in virtue of WeChat. In the end, this research has improved the understanding of the background, life experience, and acculturation processes of Chinese students in Spain. This knowledge was useful to advance design principles for culturally appropriate programs and services for this population in Chinese and Spanish educational institutions. The implications of this research along with suggestions for future research were discussed. Key words：Chinese international students, acculturation, cross-cultural adaptation, sociocultural adaptation, academic adaptation, psychological adaptation, Spanish university