Exploring Chinese International Students’ Understanding and Experiences of Loneliness, 2022

Liu, Xi and Cogan, Nicola and Tse, Dwight and Rasmussen, Susan and Kelly, Steve and Anderson, Tony (2023). Exploring Chinese International Students’ Understanding and Experiences of Loneliness, 2022. [Data Collection]. Colchester, Essex: UK Data Service. 10.5255/UKDA-SN-856157

This project aims to: 1. understand how Chinese International Students (CIS) experience and understand loneliness in UK universities; 2. explore how Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) can be culturally adapted to meet the needs of CIS.

Data description (abstract)

Although research suggests Chinese International Students (CIS) in UK universities are at higher risk of suffering from loneliness and social isolation, limited research has focused on understanding what loneliness means to CIS and how they experience this feeling. Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), as an intervention that addresses maladaptive social cognition, is effective in reducing loneliness in university students (Teoh et al., 2021; Zhang et al., 2018). However, whether or how well it works for CIS has not been studied. Using a Participatory Action Research(PAR) approach, we aim to : 1. understand how Chinese International Students experience and understand loneliness in UK universities; 2. explore how MBCT can be culturally adapted to meet the needs of CIS.

We interviewed 15 CIS (with optional use of images/photos) to explore their understanding and experiences of loneliness. The participants were then invited to attend a 2-hour MBCT workshop. Three focus groups (4-5 participants in each group) were conducted to explore the participants’ opinions on how to culturally adapt MBCT for CIS experiencing loneliness. Data were thematically analysed (Braun & Clarke, 2006, 2019)

Three themes emerged from the interview data: Navigating feelings of withdrawal, isolation and disconnection; The journey of adaptation and belongingness abroad; Withholding feelings and preference for self-reliant, problem-focused coping. The themes that emerged from the focus group data were: The need to focus on oneself and find “inner peace”; Unfamiliarity of MBCT, and reluctance towards help-seeking; Preference for an efficient, practical, and collaborative learning approach.

For university support services, it might be helpful to: Proactively support CIS’s adaptation; Provide high-quality, accessible self-help material, ideally in Chinese; Help CIS explore how to balance the needs of self and others; Provide support programmes that emphasise developing skills and facilitating personal growth (e.g., MBCT); Consider changing the term “therapy” in the title, when offering MBCT (e.g., just “Mindfulness for Life”); Offer shorter versions of MBCT (Halladay et al., 2019; Chiodelli et al., 2020); Develop mindfulness teachers’ cultural competence so that the interventions can be more culturally sensitive and appropriate (having Chinese-speaking teachers would be especially helpful).

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