HANDLING CULTURE SHOCK OF FOREIGN STUDENTS WHEN STUDYING ABROAD

Abstract

The paper will examine how foreign students deal with culture shock when studying abroad and how they handle unexpected situations or unfamiliar environments. A qualitative technique was used in order to achieve this purpose, and in-depth interviews with 10 foreign students—both Thai and foreign—who had personal experiences with studying abroad and culture shock—were conducted. The result demonstrates that the majority of them are able to cope with, accept, and stay together in a new culture. Although some of them felt uncomfortable, they could nevertheless adjust to a new environment and adopt a different culture. They are all therefore Ehnorelative for the DMIS model. The main factors that affect them are the language barrier, occasionally the food, and local people's habits. The difference between someone who prepared themselves and someone who was unprepared seemed to be slightly different. The person who prepared themselves would know what to do more than the person who did not prepare, yet even the prepared person experienced cultural shock. Any student or anyone who wants to study abroad and wants to know how to properly prepare themselves before traveling might benefit from the findings.