Meaning making as a moderator in international students' acculturative experience

Abstract

Abstract International students (IS) face unique challenges when attending higher education institutions in the United States that derive from acculturative stress and contribute to feelings of loneliness and depressive symptoms. This study examined the sense of meaning as a moderator in the relationship between acculturative stress, loneliness, and depressive symptoms in IS. A quantitative research design using a linear multiple regression model was employed to investigate the interplay between the variables. The findings of 80 participants indicated that there is a significant relationship between acculturative stress, loneliness, and depressive symptoms. The results also indicate that a sense of meaning moderated the relationship between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms. These results may assist counselor educators, mental health clinicians, and higher education administrators to better serve the IS population.

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