Integrative Theory Of Cross-cultural Adaptation Research Articles

Adaptive Personality, Communication Competence and Psychological Health

Expatriate adjustment has gained wide attention because of its relevance to expatriates’ successful performance. This study examined the adaptation experience of Korean expatriates in India. Y.Y. Kim’s Integrative Theory of Cross-Cultural Adaptation offers a multidimensional system to explain the link between adaptive personality, communication and psychological health. Our analysis uses a self-reported questionnaire collected from 78 Korean expatriates. Results show positive correlation between theoretical constructs, suggesting expatriates’ personality, ability to communicate and ability to participate in the host country's social processes facilitate successful cross-cultural adjustment overseas.

A Cross-national Study of International Students' experiences

This study examined cross-cultural adaptation experiences of international students from non-English speaking countries studying in English-taught programs in Europe and the United States. Based on the integrative theory of cross-cultural adaptation (Kim, 1988, 2001, 2005), this study examined the positive impact of communication engagement, interaction and general adjustment, and psychological well-being on general satisfaction. We conducted a survey of international students studying in ten universities in Poland, Denmark, Germany, France, Finland and the U.S. A total of 916 international students were selected as the sample for this analysis. This study found that social interaction with local peers in the host culture is a driver for international students to adapt as they are facing a high level of challenges and stress. The research findings contribute to the contradictory viewpoints on the role of communication with co-ethnics in the host cultural environment, finding a significant positive impact of host interpersonal communication, rather than ethnic interpersonal communication, on general satisfaction. Additionally, the results support studies on the multidimensional construct of adjustment by providing empirical evidence of international students, and testify the mediating role of interaction adjustment on student satisfaction. This study has several practical and policy implications to create a diverse and multicultural campus.

Intercultural Adaptation and Acculturation Strategies of Overseas Chinese Teachers — A Survey Study on Volunteer CPKI Chinese Teachers of 2019-2020 Term in South Korea

With the increasing demand for native Chinese teachers from all over the world, more and more Chinese teachers are going abroad. As the intercultural adaptation and adaptation strategies of these teachers directly impact the promotion of overseas Chinese education, this survey study explored the intercultural adaptation and adaptation strategies of a sample of 170 CPIK (Chinese Program In Korea) volunteer Chinese teachers of 2019-2020 term in South Korea by the approaches of interview, questionnaire and statistical analysis.<BR> Drawing upon the Integrative Theory of Cross-cultural Adaptation (Kim, 2005) and the Theory of Acculturation Strategies （Berry, 1992), this paper developed 3 questionnaires and initiated an online automatic assessment system to implement the investigation. By applying statistical software such as SPSS23.0 and AMOS 24.0, quantitative analyses were explored and findings revealed that the overall intercultural adaptation of CPIK Chinese teachers was pretty good and the group with male gender, higher education background and higher Korean proficiency evidently achieved better intercultural adaptation. Among the 7 scopes of intercultural adaptation, the Chinese teachers generally performed best in the scope of Ethic Social Communication, while performing worst in the scope of Host Social Communication. The levels of Host Social Communication and Teaching Adaptation were positively related to the status of intercultural adaptation，and the Predisposition could predict whether or not the Intercultural Transformation could be achieved. The Chinese teachers showed an evident preference to integration strategy followed by separation strategy, and those who had integration strategy preference performed best in intercultural adaptation. The findings can not only provide empirical evidence for how to improve CPIK Chinese teachers’ cross-cultural adaptability, but also offer the potential professional value for helping to train overseas Chinese teachers conveniently on a large-scale service by the online automatic assessment system developed by this research.

Аналитическая модель факторов адаптации и интеграции мигрантов в регионах России

Based on the integrative theory of cross-cultural adaptation by Yu. Kim the authors developed a theoretical model of internal and external factors affecting the process and results of socio-cultural adaptation. The study revealed the main factors of socio-cultural adaptation of migrants in Russia, their positive and negative impact on the integration into the social life of the host society in the surveyed regions.

Finding a “home” beyond culture: The emergence of intercultural personhood in the globalizing world

This theoretical essay presents intercultural identity development and the emerging intercultural personhood as an adaptive response to the increasing interface of differing cultural traditions. Based on the integrative theory of cross-cultural adaptation (Kim, 1988, 2001, 2005), extensive and prolonged intercultural communication experiences are explained to render a gradual psychological evolution from a largely mono-cultural to an increasingly “intercultural” way of relating to oneself and others. Underpinning this internal transformation are two interrelated processes of individuation and universalization in identity orientation, by which conventional, ascription-based cultural identity plays a diminishing role in a person's daily existence. Samples of direct and indirect research evidence supporting the present theoretical claim are provided from studies of immigrants and sojourners, along with three individuals’ personal narratives offering a concrete insight into the reality explained by the theory. The essay ends with an examination of intercultural personhood as a constructive way of engaging oneself in the globalizing world and as ultimately a matter of choice for those intercultural communicators who are open to the possibility of being changed by the experiences of new cultural learning.

Social engagement and cross-cultural adaptation: An examination of direct- and mediated interpersonal communication activities of educated non-natives in the United States

This study explores whether or not technology-mediated interpersonal communication activities with co-ethnics weakens the vital role that direct social engagements with members of the host society play in the cross-cultural adaptation process. Grounded in Kim's integrative theory of cross-cultural adaptation, this study addresses this question through a detailed examination of the extent to which non-natives participate in face-to-face and mediated “host interpersonal communication” and “ethnic interpersonal communication” through dyadic relationships and organizational affiliations. The analysis utilizes portions of the quantitative and qualitative data obtained from in-depth interviews with 51 relatively well-educated foreign-born residents in the United States. The results indicate that: (1) technology-mediated forms of communication such as email and the Internet serve as the primary means for maintaining contacts with family and friends who remain in the country of origin; (2) non-natives are engaged predominantly in activities of host interpersonal communication rather than ethnic interpersonal communication; and (3) non-natives’ involvements in direct host interpersonal communication, but not their ethnic interpersonal communication, are significantly correlated with their functional and psychological well-being. These and related findings suggest the continuing primacy of non-natives’ direct social engagement with members of the host society in the cross-cultural adaptation process.

Intercultural personhood: Globalization and a way of being

Abstract This theoretical essay makes a case for “intercultural personhood” as a viable model for human development in today's increasingly integrated world. Critiquing the largely static, monolithic, and value-laden perspective on cultural identity prevalent in social science literature, the author emphasizes the complex and evolving nature of identity. The term, intercultural identity, is employed as a counterpoint to, and as an extension of, cultural identity, and as a concept that represents the phenomenon of identity adaptation and transformation beyond the perimeters of the conventional, categorical conception of cultural identity. The stress–adaptation–growth dynamic in the author's integrative theory of cross-cultural adaptation provides a systemic account for the identity development process as the interplay of acculturation and deculturation. The author argues that, through prolonged and cumulative intercultural communication experiences, individuals around the world can, and do, undergo a gradual process of intercultural evolution. The emerging intercultural personhood is characterized by two interrelated key patterns in self-other orientation: individuation and universalization. Empirical evidence for this theoretical argument is offered through some of the pertinent research findings as well as case illustrations based on publicly available personal testimonials and biographic narratives.