A Study on the Cross-Cultural Adaptation of International Chinese Teachers at Confucius Institutes in South Korea

International Chinese teachers are one of the determinants of the quality development of Confucius Institutes,and their cross-cultural sociocultural adaption,psychological adaption,and job adaption are in need of in-depth investigation and research.Based on previous research,this paper analyzed the cross-cultural adaptation of international Chinese teachers at Confucius Institutes in South Korea during 2022-2023 through surveys and personal interviews.The study found that the teachers’adaptation was best in terms of work,followed by sociocultural adaptation,and weakest in terms of psychological adaptation.In terms of work adaptation,attention should be focused on adapting to teaching language and teaching methods.In terms of sociocultural adaptation,the focus should be on adapting to personal communication.In terms of psychological adaptation,attention should be paid to feelings of loneliness and anxiety.The study also focused on the internal and external factors influencing their cross-cultural adaptation,as well as the true inner feelings of international Chinese teachers.The study found that factors such as English proficiency,gender,education,professional background,and overseas experience had little impact on teachers’cross-cultural adaptation,while factors such as Korean proficiency,participation in cross-cultural training before going to South Korea,understanding of Korean culture before going to South Korea,and length of time spent in working in South Korea had a greater impact on the cross-cultural adaptation of the research subjects.This study provides reliable reference materials for international Chinese teachers going to South Korea to improve their cross-cultural adaptation abilities and promote the reform and innovation of international Chinese education.

A Study of Intercultural Adaptation of Foreign Teachers in Pingdingshan Colleges and Universities

Along with the advance of cross-culture communication, intercultural adaption arouses a heated discussion in the branch of social science, which is mainly dealing with maladjustment within a host culture. As the matter of fact, in the process of education internationalization, increasing amount of foreign experts and teachers come to China and play an important role in Chinese higher education. While bringing in advanced teaching ideas to local colleges and enjoying exotic Chinese culture, they are also suffering culture shock of different degrees. The thesis is trying to find out: 1) What are the intercultural adaptation levels of foreign teachers in Pingdingshan colleges and universities? 2) What factors may affect their adaptation? 3) What should we do to improve their adaptation levels? In order to solve those problems, a practical study is conducted based on Taylor's transformative learning model theory.

A Brief Introduction of Kim's Theory of Communication and Cross-Cultural Adaptation

This paper introduces Kim's integrative theory of communication and cross-cultural adaptation. Building on a broad range of existing concepts, models, and research data across disciplines, Kim's theory addresses two central questions: (a) What is the essential nature of the adaptation process? and (b) why are some strangers more successful than others in the adaptation process? The first question is addressed in the form of a process model. The second question is addressed in the form of a structural model. It is by far the most broad-based theoretical account of cross-cultural adaptation.

On the Understanding of Cross-cultural Adaptation

This paper puts its emphasis on the process of cross-cultural adaptation from a theoretical perspective.First,the term cross-cultural adaptation will be interpreted.Second,the process of cross-cultural adaptation during which enculturation,acculturation,assimilation and deculturation may occur,is going to be discussed.Finally,some possible strategies for effective cross-cultural adaptation will be probed in the hope of making intercultural communication a less stressful and more positive and enjoyable experience.

Cross-cultural adaptation of the Management of Aggression and Violence Attitude Scale for nurse in emergency department

Objective: To follow the guidelines of intercultural adaptation provided by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons’(AAOS) Evidence-Based Medicine Committee, translating the original scale and evaluating the reliability and validity, and then to compile the Chinese version of the Management of Aggression and Violence Attitude Scale (MAVAS) for nurses in emergency room in the mainland of China. Methods: This study consists of two phases of testing:(1) translation: forward translation, synthesis, back translation, expert committee review, and pretesting;(2) psychometric properties: content and construct validity, internal consistency, and test–retest reliability. Results: The Chinese version of MAVAS and the original version showed excellent similarities and equivalence. The average Scalelevel Content Validity Index was 0.904, and the Item-level Content Validity Index ranged from 0.80 to 1.00. The construct validity was tested using confirmatory factor analysis by LISREL 8.7;χ2/df of the scale was 4.781<5, NFI, NNFI, CFI, IFI>0.90, indicating that the scale’s factor structure model fitted better. The internal consistency was satisfactory (scale, Cronbach’s α=0.94;subscales, Cronbach’s α=0.74–0.90), and the test–retest reliability over 2 weeks was good (scale, Pearson’s coefficient=0.996;subscales, Pearson’s coefficient=0.801–0.963). Conclusions: The Chinese version of MAVAS had an excellent feasibility. It was found to be a valid and reliable tool to assess nurses’ attitude toward patients’ violence in emergency department.

Transformative Learning:Intercultural Adaptation of Chinese Teachers at the Confucius Institute in Spain

In recent years there has been a proliferation of studies demonstrating the value of teaching abroad as much for its benefits for the training and professional development of these teachers,as for its impact and beneficial effects on students.This article uses transformative learning as a theoretical framework to interpret the achievements associated with the experience of teaching abroad,and to identify and analyze different motivational factors,adjustments,changes,challenges,and perspectives of Chinese teachers linked to a Confucius Institute in Spain,through a qualitative analysis of narratives elicited through in-depth interviews and focus groups.It highlights the role and potential of the transnational,intercultural experience of these teachers as authentic actors in the part played by the Confucius Institutes in language teaching and the promotion of Chinese culture,indicating many issues including language difficulties,professional adjustment,ideas about education,beliefs of teachers and the management of the program.

An Empirical Study of Host Social Media on the Intercultural Adaptation of Preparatory International Students in China: A Case Study of Shandong University

This thesis probes into the current situation of host social media usage and intercultural adaptation of preparatory international students in China. Study covered 208 preparatory international students in total was conducted, with subject observation, structured interview, and questionnaire, in Shandong University, which is considered as one of the most representative institutions providing high-level preparatory education for international students in China. Field data collected were analyzed descriptively in the form of frequencies, tables, and percentages. Taken all that have been analyzed in this thesis, findings strongly suggest that the main factors influencing international students’ intercultural adaptability include host social media usage, intercultural experience, mandarin level, and cultural distance. Results also indicate significant correlation between host social media usage and intercultural adaptation: students who frequently use host social media to chat with Chinese perform better at intercultural adaptation;those who are more dependent and satisfied with host social media are more adaptive as well, the same goes to students who use host social media more frequently to get information or socialize. Consequently, this study suggests necessary promotion of host social media for international students in China.

A content analysis related to the cross-cultural/intercultural elements used in EFL coursebooks

This study aimed to examine some coursebooks of English as a Foreign Language （EFL） to see whether they involve any cross-cultural topics belonging to different cultures from different countries in the world. Assuming that EFL coursebooks written after the communicative movements in foreign language teaching and learning in the 1970s and the 1980s would have a plenty of cross-cultural elements, it was expected to see these coursebooks would also have a lot of cross-cultural elements, especially regarding their publication dates. This study aimed to investigate to what extent teaching materials used in EFL setting involve intercultural elements. Accordingly, 5 coursebooks were evaluated, and topics and number of cross-cultural elements were presented. The coursebooks used in the study were published in 1998, 1999, 1999, 2001 and 2006 namely. However, as the results displayed, the frequency of cross-cultural elements were not mutually related to their publication dates. The distribution and frequency of cross-cultural elements were not balanced with the dates chronologically.

Evaluation of the Translation,Cross-cultural Adaptation and Properties of Measurement of the FACT-BMT Questionnaire

Various questionnaires have been described which evaluate the quality of life in patients undergoing cancer treatment,but most were originally developed in English and have not been adequately validated for other languages.To evaluate the process of translation and cross-cultural adaptation and the measurement properties of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Bone Marrow Transplantation(FACT-BMT)questionnaire,a systematic review was conducted with two independent evaluators.The search for articles was carried out in four databases:MEDLINE,EMBASE,CINAHL and SCIELO,using the terms“questionnaire”,“quality of life”,“oncology”,and“valid”and their descriptors according to MeSH and DeCs.The searches yielded 6,877 studies,of which only three performed the stages of translation,cross-cultural adaptation,and evaluation of the measurement properties of the FACT-BMT questionnaire.The instruments in Arabic,Chinese,Korean and Portuguese showed and presented good methodological quality,but none of the four studies followed all the validation criteria for the questionnaire.The adapted versions of the FACT-BMT have methodological weaknesses in their process of translation and cross-cultural adaptation and evaluation of measurement properties,therefore the questionnaires possibly being used inadequately in other languages.

Review of Intercultural Service Encounters:Cross-cultural Interactions and Service Quality,Edited by Piyush Sharma,Switzerland,Springer,2019,pp.vii+101,€54,99(hbk),ISBN 978-3-319-91940-9;€46(ebk),ISBN 978-3-319-91941-6

Since the 1990s,globalization has aroused people’s attention constantly.Meanwhile,with more and more immigrants,migrant workers,international students,foreign tourists,and business people,cross-cultural interaction has increased dramatically.Consequently,the communication and interaction between service employees and customers from different cultural backgrounds is getting frequent.Services have gotten great profits from the phenomenon which is known as intercultural service encounters(ICSE).For one who has contributed a lot to ICSE,Piyush Sharma in his book Intercultural Service Encounters:Cross-cultural Interactions and Service Quality attempts to concentrate on some significant factors closely related to ICSE,from the perspective of service employees.Account for Piyush Sharma’s novel view on the relationship of employees and customers in the process of ICSE,here is a review of his work.For each part of Piyush Sharma’s volume,this review gives readers a brief and concise summary,which is followed by comprehensive comments of the reviewer.This review is a good guidance and introduction for those who are interested in ICSE and those who major in foreign languages and marketing management to have a good command of Piyush Sharma’s volume.

An Empirical Study on Intercultural Adaptation to Huxiang Culture among Intemational University Students in Hunan

This paper takes Changsha Medical University as an example and carries out an empirical investigation on the life, study and social networking of the international students from such countries as Pakistan, Zambia, Cameroon,Indonesia,Nepal. The survey results show that in the current Intemet Plus Era and Generalization Communication Era, students＇ cross-cultural adaptability of Huxiang Culture is related to their learning motivation, individual factors,social factors, and the management of their life and study in the university. The students＇ cross-cultural adaptability is,on the whole, strong.However, the differences between individuals are great with a trend of diversification and diversity, and students＇ interest in Huxiang regional culture and recognition is to be further strengthened in communication.

Cross-cultural Adaptation Analysis and Countermeasures of Overseas Chinese Students——Take University of Lincoln as an Example

This paper is an exploratory,empirical study of the Cross-Cultural Adaptation(CCA)issues of Overseas Chinese Stu⁃dents(OCS)studying at the University of Lincoln.The project identifies OCS own language proficiency,motivation of studying abroad and intercultural adaptation attitudes and strategies as the main influencing factors in students’CCA.Research methods in⁃clude Language class observation,a questionnaire survey and interviews.Additional data collection methods include using network communication tools to conduct interviews with OCS,such as Wechat,QQ,Skype and e-mail etc.Further analysis of its causes makes a meaningful contribution to practical strategies and suggestions on how to better develop and cultivate cross-cultural adapt⁃ability.

Problems and Strategies:A Study of Cross-Cultural Adaptation of Chinese Undergraduates in the Philippines

Investigating the intercultural adaptation of Chinese undergraduates in the Philippines provides an effective example of bridging the gap between theories of intercultural adaptation.A questionnaire and interviews were conducted to explore the problems and challenges faced by Chinese undergraduates in the Philippines,thereby providing some first-hand information for subsequent studies on cultural adaptation.Chinese undergraduates in the Philippines faced four main challenges,namely interpersonal communication,living environment,social services,and course study.As coping strategies,four suggestions are presented,including cultural integration,life experience,bridge building,and rational docking.

Cross-Cultural Adjustment and Coping:U.S.Students in Taiwan Residents Higher Education

The aim of this study was to investigate the adjustment problems of students from the United States enrolled in universities in the East,specifically in Taiwan,their problems related to cultural adaptation,and the process of adjustment to student life in Taiwan.Under investigation were cultural adjustment and coping skills as these students transitioned from West to East.Qualitative data were collected from interviews with participants and faculty members as well as participant observations.Results indicated that U.S.students found their own ways to acclimate to their new academic setting as well as to social relations,cross-cultural issues,and the linguistic environment in Taiwan to achieve effective adaptation.They made changes in themselves to cope with all situations they encountered.This study provides suggestions for international students abroad in Taiwan,for the Taiwan Residents government,and for universities or colleges in terms of what they should offer to current and future international students.

Intercultural Collaboration in Group Work at Chinese Universities

The empirical work on intercultural communication issues at university settings have mainly focused on the minority cul-tural groups and the majority groups are usually neglected.Most Chinese scholars are engaged in the development of cross-cultural communication competence of the Chinese EFL learners,the few researches on intercultural relations in Chinese universities are also on the international students.To compare the attitudes and motivations of both the International Students in China(ISCs)and the Chinese Home Students(CHSs)in intercultural collaboration(IC)in the group work,group discussion and questionnaire survey areemployed.Survey of the 445 CHSs and 87 ISCs show that the IC environment at Chinese universities is far from satisfactory.Those who have IC experiences find they have encountered difficulties in adapting to each other's language,race,religion,agenda,etc.Chinese students'language difficulty is regarded both groups as the first obstacle in their collaboration,but personality is the first concern in their choice of a workmate.Neither language proficiency nor IC courses are significant factor in their motivation for IC involvement.What they want most is the real collaboration opportunities and programs.The findings may provide some reference for Chinese universities in their construction of international and intercultural campus environment.

Cross-Cultural Awareness and Teaching English as a Second Language in the Context of Globalization

The paper focuses on the inseparability of language and culture, highlighting the significant role of cross-culturalawareness and communicative competence in teaching English as a second language （TESL） in the context ofincreasingly internationalized global world. Cross-cultural awareness has always been important in modernlanguage studies, as preparing students for effective and competent intercultural communication requires not onlymere teaching of linguistic skills like phonology, morphology, lexicology, and syntax, but also the vital componentof cultural knowledge and awareness. Communication that lacks appropriate cultural content often results in anodd or humorous situation leading to misunderstanding and miscommunication. Therefore, the present paperclaims that in TESL it is necessary to incorporate and develop aspects of cross-cultural awareness as a part of thecourse curriculum to immerse students in effective intercultural communicative competence. It is strongly believedthat developing cross-cultural awareness through learning and practicing the patterns of the current lifestyle in thetarget culture will help the learners overcome both cultural shock and intercultural communicative barriers easier,compare the target culture with their own, and find the similarities and differences between them, thus coping withcross-cultural communication problems successfully. There are many challenges related to teaching English as alingua franka in a cross-cultural context of globalization--English, not being the native language of the learners,triggers a great number of problems connected with teaching and developing cross-cultural awareness. This paperoffers some strategies for coping with them.

Intercultural Education in a Technology-Enhanced Foreign Language Learning Environment Implementing the TPACK Approach:Challenges and Possibilities

In the plurilingual and multicultural contemporary international setting,the educational systems opt for successfully meeting as well as adapting to the rapid social,economic,and technological changes.Based on the premise that intercultural communicative competence holds a significant potential for foreign language instruction,focus should throw into combining teachers’intercultural knowledge with pedagogy and technology.The prospect of introducing intercultural material within the context of teaching scenarios in the curricula of a technology-enhanced foreign language learning environment where the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge(TPACK)approach is implemented,can positively contribute to the teaching process.Under this perspective,cultural and digitally competent teachers can create a framework which will enable learners to fully develop their interactive and linguistic skills and to effectively communicate in a foreign language promoting its social and multicultural dimension whatever the intercultural context.

Cultivation of Cross-cultural Competence of High-quality Foreign Language Talents

In today’s world,the competition of comprehensive national strength is becoming increasingly fierce,and the status and role of culture is becoming increasingly prominent.In the context of multicultural and civilized exchanges and mutual learning,it is becoming more and more important to strengthen cultural self-confidence and have good cross-cultural skills.This paper points out that the training model of cross-cultural competence should be constructed from the theoretical and practical levels,and the concept of cross-cultural competence should be redefined,that is,cross-cultural knowledge at the cognitive level,language integration at the functional level,creativity and initiative at the behavioral level,and sense of responsibility and speculative consciousness in cross-cultural communication.Expand students’international vision and knowledge structure,develop critical thinking,and effectively cultivate their awareness and ability of cross-cultural communication in real situations.

Exploring Cross-Cultural Components in International Teacher Education Programs to Build Competenc(ies)for Indonesia

This article reviews preservice teacher arts education university course work with the goal of informing cross-cultural competencies for Indonesian teacher education.The authors are mid-career education faculty,who visited six universities in three countries to observe cross-cultural contents in teacher preparation courses.Cross-cultural competence relies on theories of globalization,intercultural and multicultural education.Using a case study method,the authors gathered data through relevant literature,course descriptions,met with stakeholders,wrote and coded reflective and reflexive field notes,and identified trends.These trends included the infusion of Eastern content into Western course work,and the role of Western arts forms in Eastern settings.These findings support the development of“cross-cultural communication through the arts”or“komunikasi silang budaya melalui seni”as a way of approaching cross-cultural teaching in Indonesia.

Using Converging Strategies to Reduce Divergence in Intercultural User Interface Design

This chapter starts with an introduction illuminating the theoretical back-ground necessary for taking culture into account in HCI design. Definitions of concepts used are provided followed by a historical overview on taking culture into account in HCI design. Subsequently, a glimpse of the current state of research in culture-centered HCI design is derived from secondary literature providing the gist of the structures, processes, methods, models and theoretic approaches concerning the relationship between culture and HCI design (“converging” strategies). After presenting controversies and challenges, a short discussion of results from empirical studies and design recommendations for culture-centered HCI design lead to implications and trends in future intercultural user interface design research to close the knowledge gap (the “divergence”) regarding the relationship between culture and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), i.e. converging the divergence to reach the convergent divergence.