Acculturative stress, perfectionism, years in the United States, and depression among Chinese international students.

Abstract

The present study examined whether maladaptive perfectionism (i.e., discrepancy between expectations and performance) and length of time in the United States moderated the association between acculturative stress and depression. Data were collected through online surveys from 189 Chinese international students from China and Taiwan attending a midwestern university. Results from a hierarchical regression showed that there were significant main effects of acculturative stress and maladaptive perfectionism on depression, no significant two-way interactions, and a significant three-way interaction, indicating that acculturative stress, maladaptive perfectionism, and length of time in the United States interacted to predict depression. Low maladaptive perfectionism buffered the effect of acculturative stress on depression only for those who had been in the United States for a relatively longer period of time. Implications for counseling and future research directions are discussed.

Development and validation of the Acculturative Stress Scale for Chinese College Students in the United States (ASSCS).

“…Marginalization is the least favorable strategy and can lead to serious mental health problems for individuals. (Constantine et al, 2004;Kuo & Roysircar, 2004;Wei et al, 2007). Coping strategy is another important moderating factor.…”

“…Meanwhile, Chinese students are found to bear unrealistic expectations toward academic performance (Wang, Slaney, & Rice, 2007;Wei et al, 2007). In Chinese culture, academic achievement is one of the most important criteria of success.…”

“…With those social expectations, Chinese students usually have a greater fear of academic failure than students from other countries (Liu, 2009). Unfortunately, facing the new environment, many students find it difficult to maintain as good performance as they were accustomed to, and those students with maladaptive perfectionism tend to attribute the discrepancy to personal failure (Wei et al, 2007). The pressure to succeed and the collapse of perfectionism impose extra stress on Chinese students and make them vulnerable to many mental health problems.…”

“…In facing challenges and difficulties, Chinese people tend to keep all things to themselves. Especially for emotional disturbance or stress, Chinese people believe that they should use inner resources, such as willpower, to resolve problems (Wei et al, 2007). Yue (2001) framed this coping strategy as self-cultivation and self-transcendence.…”

“…They may find it challenging or frustrating to participate in a survey using a language they are not familiar with. Although Wei et al (2007) …”