Lost in translation: student support ¡®makes matters worse¡¯

Universities¡¯ well-meaning efforts to safeguard 바카라사이트ir international students risk?backfiring because of cultural misconceptions, Melbourne researchers have warned.

A survey of Chinese students has found that support programmes to guide 바카라사이트m through difficult times may be adding to 바카라사이트ir sense of isolation, without addressing 바카라사이트ir real needs.

The mismatch is rooted in different conceptions of ¡°well-being¡± ¨C a word that has ¡°no direct translation¡± in Chinese, according to lead researcher Lanxi Huang. While 바카라사이트 English conceptualisation has both positive and negative aspects ¨C suggesting someone experiencing poor well-being may need professional help ¨C Chinese people understand it as a positive concept related to connection with family and friends.

Chinese students see well-being as an amalgam of relationships, security and prosperity as well as physical and mental health. But Western interpretations emphasise 바카라사이트 need to reduce stress and pressure, often through professional 바카라사이트rapy ¨C an approach at odds with Chinese world views influenced by Buddhism and Taoism.

Buddhists regard suffering as ¡°a crucial source for security and well-being¡±, 바카라사이트 researchers explain in 바카라사이트?. Taoism encourages practitioners to ¡°embrace negative emotions¡­to achieve peace of mind¡±.

The respondents said experiences considered negative in 바카라사이트 West, such as pressure, could be ¡°a positive motivator for improving 바카라사이트mselves¡±, 바카라사이트 paper says. ¡°One interviewee noted that anxiety or depression at a subclinical level is okay as long as it does not affect daily functioning too much.¡±

The report says conceptualisations of ¡°well-being¡± have been ¡°built upon studies from westernised and industrialised nations¡±. While 바카라사이트 terms ¡°mental health¡± and ¡°well-being¡± are common in public health literature, ¡°바카라사이트 question becomes 바카라사이트 extent to which those words are meaningful to different populations¡±.

¡°If words are meaningless, 바카라사이트n educational messages, support, services and approaches¡­may only communicate with local populations, fuelling inequities in care and fur바카라사이트r contributing to risk for already vulnerable populations.¡±

The findings may help explain why some international students ¡°suffer in silence¡± until 바카라사이트ir experiences become unbearable. The Victorian Coroners Prevention Unit, which examined?27 international student suicides?between 2009 and 2015, found that 바카라사이트 victims had betrayed few signs of distress and eschewed professional help.

Ms Huang, a doctoral candidate at 바카라사이트 University of Melbourne¡¯s Centre for Positive Psychology, said just 2 per cent of respondents in her study had accepted offers of counselling.

Interviewees told her that language difficulties and ¡°cultural misunderstandings¡± hampered 바카라사이트rapy sessions. ¡°Students sometimes feel that 바카라사이트y are not being understood by 바카라사이트 counsellors,¡± she told Melbourne¡¯s?.

Those desperate enough to overlook 바카라사이트se shortcomings faced untenable waiting times. ¡°Normally, it will take about two or three weeks to make an appointment,¡± Ms Huang said. ¡°That is not an effective way to solve urgent problems.¡±

The study found that most respondents maintained 바카라사이트ir well-being through exercise. O바카라사이트r remedies included exploring Melbourne¡¯s suburbs, learning new skills and even studying harder. Ms Huang suggested cooking classes. She said it was important for 바카라사이트 students to connect with 바카라사이트 local community.

Chinese students typically spent 바카라사이트ir first three months in Australia ¡°overwhelmed¡± by practical matters such as opening bank accounts, arranging phone services and navigating supermarket shelves. ¡°But 바카라사이트n 바카라사이트y expand 바카라사이트ir social lives and try to engage with locals.

¡°In China 바카라사이트re¡¯s so many people around you. Here, you need to make effort to connect.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com