Help-Seeking Attitudes in Chinese International Students in Community Colleges: A Study of the Impact of Acculturative Stress and Coping Strategies

Abstract

The primary purpose of this mixed methodology study is to explore the psychological help-seeking attitudes amongst the Chinese international students attending community colleges when facing acculturative stress. The social-behavioral model (Andersen & Newman, 1995) of help-seeking behaviors that included the variables of personal factors (e.g. age, gender), environmental factors (e.g. social support), and acculturation level were considered. A mixed-methods design was implemented using 39 Chinese international students and seven assessments. These assessments included the Attitudes toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale (ATSPPHS), a modified version of the Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation Scale (SL-ASIA), Acculturative Stress Scale for International Students (ASSIS), Asian Value Scale-Revised (AVS-R), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Brief Religious Coping (Brief RCOPE), and a demographic questionnaire. Additionally, two focus groups with students and four interviews with administrators were conducted to understand students’ acculturated challenges, their coping strategies, and their psychological help-seeking attitudes.