Silent Protest

Autor(en)
Katharina Resch, Beate Hörr, Iris Thimm-Netenjakob, Vera Varhegy, Joana Martate, Anna Maria Migdal
Abstrakt

Despite having purposefully chosen a stay abroad, international students still face significant intercultural conflicts when studying abroad. Current studies on student diversity do not adequately cater to international students and their narratives are silent in diversity research. Campus climate and attitudes of peer students and staff are not always welcoming to international students, who report experiencing critical incidents when adapting to the new university, student, and learning culture. These complex cross-cultural adjustment processes are the topic of the present study, which addresses the most pressing areas of concern of international students. In total, n=35 participants took part in the qualitative study in five large universities in Europe applying the “Critical Incident Methodology”. Participants were asked to share a Critical Incident, antecedent information, and the outcomes of the incident. Participants were involved in initial coding of the material, and the researchers continued with focused coding. The findings suggest six areas of concern international students and staff encounter: (1) differences in communication, (2) concerns of belonging and identity, (3) differences in hierarchy, (4) culture and gender roles, (5) differences in time perception, and (6) effects of colonialism. The study reveals the narratives of international students and staff in these areas of concern, calls for more awareness and action, and shows implications for practice, especially for offering pre- and post-departure services for students in order to reflect and evaluate critical experiences for future learning.

Organisation(en)
Institut für Lehrer*innenbildung
Externe Organisation(en)
Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Universidade do Porto, Clark University, Unknown External Organisation Unbekannt/undefiniert
Journal
The International Journal of Diversity in Higher Education
Band
21
Seiten
119-132
Anzahl der Seiten
14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.18848/2327-0020/CGP/v21i01/119-132
Publikationsdatum
05-2021
Peer-reviewed
Ja
ÖFOS 2012
504005 Bildungssoziologie
Schlagwörter
ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete
Cultural Studies, Education
Link zum Portal
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/de/publications/251e94d9-a47a-4a39-b378-bc322ff05f63