Chinese international students’ social connectedness, social and academic adaptation: the mediating role of global competence

Abstract

This study examined global competence of Chinese international students sojourning in a non-Anglophone European country as a mediator between foreign language proficiency (i.e., English and local language) and social and academic adaptation, and social connectedness in international community. A sample of 206 Chinese students in Belgium responded to a web-based survey. Results from structural equation modeling analysis indicated both English and local language proficiency were significant predictors of global competence and global competence, in turn, influenced significantly the participants’ social connectedness, social and academic adaptation. Specifically, English and local language proficiency taken together explained 32% of the variance in global competence, and global competence explained 55% of the variance in social adaptation and 38% of the variance in academic adaptation, respectively. In addition, English proficiency and global competence explained 33% of the variance in social connectedness in international community. Bootstrapping methods were employed to examine the mediating roles of global competence. The results revealed that global competence partially mediated the relationship between English proficiency and social connectedness and fully mediated the relationships between foreign language proficiency (i.e., both English and local language) and social and academic adaptation.