The purpose of this study was to examine the resource management problems of a group of foreign students. The sample surveyed was 300 foreign students who attended Utah State University during fall quarter of 1984. A questionnaire was used to examine the students' degree of difficulty with resource management. The differences in the degree of difficulty with resource management and respondents' gender , academic level, marital status, length of stay in the U.S. and geographic origin were tested by Analysis of Variance. Significant differences were found in the degree of difficulty with resource management and the length of stay in the U.S. and geographical origin of respondents. The degree of difficulty with resource management was not significantly different by marital status, gender or academic level. Additionally, finances, language, and homesickness were found to be the most serious problem areas during the academic sojourn at USU. The respondents expressed interest in learning more about medical, banking, and auto repair services.

The study expands the conceptual and methodological precepts of social capital by examining how international students receive social capital from their friends and how students provide social capital to their friends in a North American university setting. The author examines the degree of emotional support that the participants provide ("Investing" social capital) and the support they receive from their friends ("Vesting" social capital), and the relationships between the two social capital variables. In addition, the study examines the influence of demographics and social interaction on social capital, and the influence of social capital on satisfaction. The study suggests that vesting and investing in social capital are correlated, and that giving and receiving social capital are influenced by social interactions with friends. However, social capital offered no significant contribution to satisfaction.

The purpose of this research was to examine the usefulness of David A. Kolb's Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) as a tool for categorization and analysis of systematic differences between American and International students. The research addressed five primary questions: 1. Are the learning styles of the International students tested different from those established by Kolb in previous studies of American students? 2. Do the learning styles of the International students tested differ among the various groups? 3. Are there differences among the groups of International students tested that can be related to gender? 4. Do the learning styles of the International students tested show any variation according to age? And if present, does that pattern differ in any way from patterns identified for American subjects tested? 5. Are the learning styles of the International students tested similar or dissimilar from the norms established by Kolb for American students in various fields of academic study?

This was an exploratory case study which focused on international students' experiences in higher education. In particular, this study investigated the efficacy of uncertainty reduction theory in communication classrooms. The research asked four exploratory questions: (a) What are the students’ perceptions of the teacher/student relationship? (b) Do international students experience uncertainty in communication classrooms? (c) If uncertainty is experienced, what is its source(s)? (d) If uncertainty is experienced, do students seek to reduce it, and if so, how? A phenomenological perspective was utilized in this study as the organizing, theoretical framework. Relevant literature on uncertainty reduction theory was reviewed as well as literature specific to international education, the communication classroom, the role of the teacher, and teacher self-disclosure. Focus group interviews, individual interviews, and member checks were conducted with international students who had taken communication classes at Portland State University in the 1998-1999 academic year. Using a set of analytic measures, 21 initial categories were identified and subsequently collapsed into 4 key categories: international education, teacher/student relationship, uncertainty in the communication classroom, and approaches to managing uncertainty. Based on analyses of the data, this study revealed findings significant to understandings of both international education and uncertainty reduction theory. First, a model of classes within international education was derived from the data and served to deepen understandings of international education, in particular the international students’ perceptions of classes across countries. Second, this research tested the extant claims of uncertainty reduction theory and raised questions regarding its conceptualization. The data revealed that the students' definitions of uncertainty and uncertainty reduction differed from those previously postulated, resulting in the formulation of new definitions. Also, context was found to strongly influence students' experiences of uncertainty; the context of the classroom not only determined the sources of uncertainty, but also influenced how uncertainties were coped with when they were not reduced. These alternative understandings of uncertainty reduction theory are significant as they could aid in further research that explores the theory’s extant claims.

This study investigated the host family experience, specifically examining the goals of host families and intercultural training of host families. It compares the the importance and accomplishment of goals between interculturally trained host families and untrained host families.The focus of the research addressed the following research questions: 1) Do host families who receive intercultural training rate their goals differently than families who do not receive intercultural training? 1a) Do host families who receive intercultural training rate differently the goals in which the student meets intra-family needs than families who do not receive intercultural training? 2) Do host families who receive intercultural training report the level of accomplishment of their goals differently than host families who do not receive intercultural training? 2a) Do host families who receive intercultural training report the level of accomplishment of goals regarding cultural awareness differently than families who do not receive intercultural training? 3) To what extent is there a relationship between trained host family ratings of importance and ratings of accomplishment of goals? 3a) To what extent is there a relationship between untrained host family ratings of importance and ratings of accomplishment of goals?

The purpose of the present study is to investigate students with a foreign background, and their experiences of inclusion, exclusion and social relations in connection with being integrated into an academic environment at Linnaeus University. The study was based on eight semi-structured interviews with students, leading to the identification of different themes that may have influenced the emotional experiences of integration: background, education, support in integration and personal identity. The results show that the theme of education and increased emotional support are key factors for the students in their integration process. Furthermore, the results show that challenges that students face in integration are language barriers and cultural differences. Students use different strategies to overcome these challenges; initiate contact with other students and seek emotional support from faculty and staff.

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In a society where second language learning becomes frequently considered as the norm in Swedish schools, it is to be considered of utmost importance to respect the term by truly comprehending the meaning of said terms. In this study, the term multilingualism and second language learning will be the center of attention. As we focus on teachers and how they present their collection of assignments to young second language learners. There are differences between young students living in their country of birth whilst learning their first foreign language (e.g. Swedish students learning English) - and students who immigrate to another country and trying to adapt their mother language while simultaneously trying to learn a new language (e.g. Arabic students learning Swedish). Foreign children in Sweden need to learn three languages simultaneously (mother language, Swedish and English), and have to accommodate to new life changing situations such as living in an unknown country. I have conducted qualitative interviews with teachers of two different schools and this data will be summarized in this study. The interviews will focus on teachers and their approach to students with Swedish as a second language, what they would like to improve, as well as describing their "ideal" if there were no restrictions (e.g. economy). I will then compare the results to see if the two different schools work differently towards their focus on students who are learning Swedish as a second language.

<p dir="ltr">Based on existing literature on social support, this research study examines the effects of having social support ties– instrumental, informational, emotional, and academic – on international students' sense of belonging and resilience. Additionally, the study explores the relationship between international students’ social support ties and their home and host connectedness as well as the extent to which they experience liminality. Drawing from the concept of acculturation (Berry et al., 1989; Berry, 2005), I establish liminality as a disorienting experience that involves international students existing in the “between and betwixt” or “limbo” space during acculturation to the host community and argue that having access to social support resources is crucial for the well-being of international students within an unfamiliar territory. I administer quantitative surveys and focus groups to examine these phenomena, inviting international undergraduate and graduate students to share personal social support-seeking, adaptation, and belongingness experiences within the college community. </p><p dir="ltr">Based on the findings published in the study, I conclude by presenting the implications for college counselors and organizations tasked with ensuring the overall well-being of international students, and making a case for an extensive acculturation model for international students which centers the role of the host society.</p>