Acculturation Strategies AdoptedChinese International Students and Scholars in the United States25

1、acculturation strategies adopted by chinese international students and scholars in the united statesabstract(1) as a major research topic in the field of cross-cultural studies, the study of acculturation and acculturation strategies has excited great interests in the present context of unavoidable

2、globalization. (2) the present study aims to find out the most preferable acculturation strategy adopted by the chinese international students and scholars in the united states of america, and to identify the relationship between each acculturation strategy and different factors. (3) two questionnai

3、res are designed and used for the present study. (4) subjects are 55 chinese international students and scholars in america, most of whom （93%）are non-english majors. (5) results of the study show that integration is the most preferable acculturation strategy adopted by the chinese international stu

4、dents and scholars, which is consistent with previous studies. (6) strong correlations are found between the acculturation strategies and five factors: language preference, sociocultural adaptation, social affiliation, ethnic identity, and perceived unacceptance or discrimination. (7) the results im

5、plicate that more attention should be paid to promote cross-cultural issues in classroom teaching for non-english majors, and to strengthen the speaking and listening practices in course design for college english teaching in china.key words: acculturation, acculturation strategies, chinese internat

6、ional students and scholars, college english teaching提 要作為跨文化研究領(lǐng)域的主要課題之一，有關(guān)文化適應及文化適應策略的研究在當前不可避免的全球一體化發(fā)展趨勢下受到廣泛的關(guān)注。本文對最受在美中國國際學生及學者歡迎的文化適應策略進行調(diào)查，并且試圖找出影響實驗對象選擇不同文化適應策略的因素。研究采用了兩套問卷進行實驗。實驗對象包括55名正在美國學習或居留的中國國際學生及學者。大部分實驗對象（93%）為非英語專業(yè)背景。研究結(jié)果與以往的研究成果相一致：融合是最受中國國際學生及學者歡迎的策略。與此相關(guān)的因素包括語言偏好，社會文化適應，社會交際，社會種

7、族認定，以及所受歧視。研究結(jié)果對我國大學英語教育的啟示是：首先，在非英語專業(yè)學生的課堂教學中應注意跨文化課題的教育，并灌輸給學生文化融合的觀念。其次，在課程設(shè)置中應加強對非英語專業(yè)學生聽力和口語的訓練，同時改進與之配套的大學英語評價系統(tǒng)。關(guān)鍵詞: 文化適應 文化適應策略 中國國際學生及學者 大學英語教育關(guān)于提要部分：一篇論文的提要（也稱摘要）部分是針對整篇論文內(nèi)容的濃縮總結(jié)。提要應該簡短扼要地完整描述本次研究的內(nèi)容，包括簡述研究背景、研究目的、研究對象、研究方法、研究結(jié)果及其意義。論文的提要應該在完成論文后撰寫。在本例中，提要以介紹研究背景開始，sentence (2) 闡明研究課題及目的，s

8、entences (3) and (4) 接著指出本次研究的方法及對象。 然后sentences (5) and (6) 說明本次研究的主要結(jié)果。 提要最后以sentence (7) 闡述本次研究的應用意義作結(jié)。table of contentsabstract in english.iabstract in chineseiichapter oneintroduction.1chapter twoliterature review.32.1 introduction.32.2 the acculturation hypothesis in second language acquisitio

9、n.32.3 the acculturation strategies.42.4 previous studies52.5 summary.6chapter threemethodology.73.1 introduction.73.2 research questions.73.3 subjects.73.4 procedures.83.5 instruments83.6 summary.9chapter fourresult and analysis.104.1 introduction.104.2 preference of the acculturation strategies.10

10、4.3 language preference and the preference of acculturation strategies.114.4 correlation analysis of the questionnaire study124.5 summary.14chapter fivediscussion.155.1 introduction.155.2 preference of acculturation strategy.155.3 acculturation strategies and the correlated factors.155.3.1 integrati

11、on and the correlated factors.155.3.2 assimilation and the correlated factors.165.3.3 separation and the correlated factors.175.3.4 marginalization and the correlated factors.175.4 summary.18chapter sixconclusion196.1 major findings of the current study.196.2 pedagogical implications196.2.1 promotin

12、g the awareness of culture integration.196.2.2 strengthening speaking and listening practices.196.3 limitations of the study.206.3.1 limited number of subjects206.3.2 limitation of research method206.4 suggestions for further research206.4.1 improving the methodology.206.4.2 carrying out longitudina

13、l study.21references.22appendix.24chapter oneintroductionthe concept of acculturation has a long history in the social and behavioral sciences. it had been used to better understand the modernization processes that various cultures and communities underwent during the 19th and early 20th centuries,

14、and has become an important concept in the studies of the varied experience of ethnic minorities as international migration and economic globalization support the creation of multicultural societies. as a construct in the social and behavioral sciences, acculturation was originally identified and co

15、nceptualized by the anthropologists. the concept now is included in the research agenda of psychologists, sociologists, social workers, and educators. in the field of second language acquisition (sla), the acculturation hypothesis was initially proposed by john schumann. schumann claimed that “secon

16、d language acquisition is just one aspect of acculturation and the degree to which a learner acculturates to the target language group will control the degree to which he acquires the second language” (schumann, 1978b: 34). however, many of the previous studies on acculturation have focused on the r

17、esearch of immigrants. less attention has been given to another special group of peoplethe international students and scholars. yet the international students and scholars, while studying or staying abroad, undergo major socialization and development changes that may influence the way in which they

18、respond to acculturation.the purpose of the present study is to find out the preference of acculturation strategies adopted by the chinese international students and scholars in the united states of america, as well as the relationship between acculturation strategies and different factors (language

19、 preference, sociocultural adaptation, social affiliation, ethnic identity and perceived unacceptance or discrimination). it is hoped that the results of the present study can provide insights and guidance for college english teaching in china.this dissertation consists of six chapters. chapter one

20、introduces the research topic. chapter two reviews the general theoretical framework of acculturation and acculturation strategies, the previous studies and the outcomes. chapter three then focuses on the methodology of the study and displays the research questions, subjects, procedures and instrume

21、nts. chapter four demonstrates the results of the analysis of collected data. chapter five further discusses in more depth the results presented in the preceding chapter. afterwards, in chapter six conclusions are made upon the major findings, the pedagogical implications, the limitations of the pre

22、sent study and the suggestions on further research. 關(guān)于引言部分：引言是論文正文的開始部分。引言與提要的不同在于：引言用相對簡單的語言表達簡述研究背景、研究目的及論文的整體結(jié)構(gòu)。這部分的作用在于給讀者勾勒出整篇論文的骨干，并且引出接下來的文獻綜述及論文的其他部分。而提要是整篇論文內(nèi)容的濃縮總結(jié)。提要除了包含引言所提到的內(nèi)容，還必須闡明本次研究的方法、對收集得到的材料進行的分析，研究得出的結(jié)果及其應用意義。chapter twoliterature review2.1introductionfor years language teachers

23、 and researchers have focused their attention on language acquisition processes, trying to figure out the various factors which exert great influences on second language acquisition. it is schumann (1978a, 1978b) who identifies the crucial role played by acculturation in second language acquisition.

24、 in this section, the author reviews the theoretical framework of acculturation and acculturation strategies as well as the previous studies done in this field.2.2 the acculturation hypothesis in second language acquisitionacculturation is defined by brown (2002: 169) as “the process of becoming ada

25、pted to a new culture”. it is seen as an important aspect of second language acquisition, because language is one of the most observable expressions of culture and because in second language settings the acquisition of a new language is seen as tied to the way in which the learners community and the

26、 target language community view each other (ellis 1986: 251). the acculturation hypothesis in sla initially proposed by schumann (1978a) was originated from a case study he conducted while he was in a research team investigating six english learners. the case study was about one of the adult learner

27、, a costa rican worker named alberto, who distinguished himself from the other learners by showing little development in english during a ten-month period. schumann claimed that alberto was socially and psychologically distant from the target language group, which could have contributed to his fossi

28、lization of english language. according to schumann, the factors that determine social distance include social equality between the second language group and the target language group, enclosure to the target language community environment, cohesiveness with the target language group, etc. the facto

29、rs that contribute to the degree of psychological distance include language shock, cultural shock, motivation, and ego boundaries. 2.3the acculturation strategiesberry (1980) has conceptualized a two dimensional model of acculturation for pluralistic societies with four different acculturation attit

30、udes, which were further extended as acculturation strategies in his later work (berry 1997). the four acculturation strategies proposed are based on two separate issues: whether the acculturating individual maintains or rejects the heritage culture, and whether the acculturating individual maintain

31、s or rejects the host culture. if the acculturating individual seeks for maintenance of both cultures, then he/she adopts the integration strategy. by contrast, if the acculturating individual rejects both cultures, he/she adopts the marginalization strategy. the assimilation strategy occurs when th

32、e acculturating individual tends to accept the host culture and rejects the heritage culture, while separation strategy refers to the situation when the acculturating individual maintains the heritage culture and rejects the host culture. the degree of maintenance or rejection of the two cultures de

33、cides the degree of acculturation. the definition of the four strategies can be summarized in figure 2.1 (berry 2008).figure 2.1 intercultural/acculturation strategies (berry 2008)2.4previous studiesthe results of a series of empirical studies conducted by berry and his associates to assess the accu

34、lturation strategies of various immigrant groups in north america (berry et al., 1989) show that integration is the most preferred acculturation strategy, followed either by assimilation or separation, while marginalization is the least preferred. furthermore, several studies of acculturative stress

35、 have focused on chinese sojourner students. chataway and berry (1989) conducted a study targeting three student groups in canadian universityhong kong chinese students, french-canadian students, and english-canadian students. hong kong chinese students reported greater perceived prejudice, more com

36、munication difficulties, and more problems with adaptation. the only indicator of lower acculturative stress is the perceived social support from friends. zheng and berry (1991) conducted another study on chinese sojourners in canada. psychological adaptation during acculturation was studied among c

37、hinese sojourners, chinese immigrants, chinese-canadian students, mainland chinese students and scholars,and non-chinese canadian students. a longitudinal study was conducted on one group of subjects. their adaptation process was assessed before departure from mainland china and a period after arriv

38、al in canada. acculturative stress increased from pre-departure up to 3-4 months post-arrival, then declined slowly for several years thereafter to the pre-departure baseline. research results show that chinese students studying in canadian universities encounter various difficulties in adapting to

39、the host culture with different orientation of values. fan (2004) in her ma dissertation conducted a research study on the acculturation strategies among 30 chinese overseas students in america. the results show that integration is most popular among the subjects, while marginalization is the least

40、preferred one. fan also found significant correlations between the choice of acculturation strategies and variables of intercultural contact (language proficiency, social interaction, ethnic identity and perceived discrimination) and psychosocial adjustment (social adaptation, self-esteem, mastery a

41、nd symptoms of outcome). in addition, the research results confirm that language proficiency is crucial in students acculturation. students inability to communicate in the target language inhibits their interaction with people in the host culture, thus hinders their acculturation process. 2.5summary

42、acculturation is undoubtedly a core construct in contemporary studies in different academic fields. however, opinions on how to conceptualize and measure it vary greatly among different scholars. by reviewing the literature and making explicit the definition of acculturation hypothesis and accultura

43、tion strategies, a clearer theoretical basis is set for the present study. 關(guān)于文獻綜述部分：文獻綜述的作用在于告知讀者在本次研究之前，與之相關(guān)的別人已經(jīng)做過的研究。在本例中，第2.1 節(jié)是文獻綜述部分的引言，簡單闡述了這一章節(jié)的主要內(nèi)容。第2.2節(jié)首先介紹了在二語習得領(lǐng)域中文化適應概念發(fā)展的背景。第2.3節(jié)接著對本次研究課題的關(guān)鍵概念文化適應策略進行陳述。第2.4節(jié)向讀者羅列了別人在文化適應策略方面已經(jīng)做過的研究和取得的成果。最后第2.5節(jié)對文獻綜述部分進行小結(jié)。需要注意的是：文獻綜述部分所提到的相關(guān)研究必須與作者所選

44、擇的研究課題緊密相連，且與研究課題的主題和涉及的關(guān)鍵詞條一致。chapter threemethodology3.1 introductionthe purpose of the study is to find out the preference of acculturation strategies and the relationship between acculturation strategies and different factors, using the methodology of quantitative study. two questionnaires are d

45、esigned to collect data. in this chapter, the author introduces the research questions, the subjects, the procedures and the instruments of the study.3.2 research questionsthis study has two research objectives. the first one is to find out the preference of acculturation strategies adopted by chine

46、se international students and scholars in the united states. the second one is to investigate the relationship between the choices of the acculturation strategies and five possible influencing factors.to achieve the research objectives, two research questions are put forward:1) what is the most pref

47、erable acculturation strategy adopted by chinese international students and scholars in the united states?2) what is the relationship between the acculturation strategies and the five proposed factors (language preference, sociocultural adaptation, social affiliation, ethnic identity and perceived u

48、nacceptance or discrimination)?3.3 subjectssubjects of this study are 55 chinese international students, visiting students and scholars who are currently studying or staying in the united states. their ages range from nineteen to forty-five. twenty-seven (49.1%) of them are female and twenty-eight (

49、50.9%) of them are male. the majority (93%) of the subjects are non-english majors.3.4 proceduresthe present study began as a pilot study done within 8 chinese international students. after the analysis of the pilot study, improper items were removed from the questionnaires. the revised version was

50、used for the present study. all subjects were provided with an option of the questionnaire language: english or chinese.the questionnaires were distributed through the following channels. first, the questionnaires were posted onto the bulletin board system (bbs) in different universities in america

51、to attract volunteer participants. another group of subjects were approached through the subscribed e-mail group in berkeley chinese scholars and students association (bcssa). a third group of subjects were contacted through e-mail by the friends of the author who were either exchange students or vi

52、siting scholars in the united states. in addition, as an exchange student in university of california, berkeley, the author personally approached chinese international students and scholars while attending big events on campus. finally, when all questionnaires were completed and sent back, the autho

53、r collected the data and conducted relevant analysis.3.5 instrumentsthere are two questionnaires in the current study. the first questionnaire- assessment of acculturation strategies-was modified with the approval of professor john w. berry at queens university in canada (personal communication by e

54、-mail, november 17, 2005). it was used to find out the most preferable acculturation strategies adopted by chinese international students and scholars. the second questionnaire, which was composed from three different scales (sociocultural adaptation scale, stephenson multigroup acculturation scale,

55、 and multigroup ethnic identity measure), was used to investigate the relationship between acculturation strategies and four different factors (sociocultural adaptation, social affiliation, ethnic identity and perceived unacceptance or discrimination). all items were answered on a 5-point likert-typ

56、e scale ranging from 1 “strongly disagree” to 5 “strongly agree”. 3.6 summaryin this chapter, the author reports the research methodology, including the research questions, subjects, procedures and instruments. all together 55 chinese scholars and students participated in the current study which consists of two questionnaires assessing