Specifics of adaptation of Chinese and Turkmen students in Russian universities

Abstract

In the current study we investigated socio-psychological adaptation of foreign students in Moscow universities. The study was conducted within first two months of education when students adapt to the new environment. Students from China and Turkmenistan participated in the study with Russian students as the control group (50 people per group). The Roger-Diamond’s methodology and Nutten’s Motivational Induction Method were applied. Turkmen students showed higher level of adaptation compared to Chinese students (according to the parameters "self-acceptance", "emotional comfort", "adaptation to social interaction"). This discrepancy was determined by different motivation for attending Russian universities: Turkmen students perceive Russian education as prestigious and prospective for integration, whereas for Chinese students it is only the first step in a long way towards career in the West. Integrative motivation was shown to facilitate adaptation while instrumental motivation made it more difficult. The proximity of the adaptation indicators in Chinese and Russian students points that eventually Chinese students successfully adapted.