Acculturation index for stress and subjective well-being : study of mainland chinese in Singapore.

Abstract

Acculturation is always discussed and researched upon as a stressful process. Also, within acculturation psychology there lacks standardized measurement methods available to measure various stages of acculturation. Furthermore the research has been heavily focused on acculturation in the United States. In the present study, the possibility of positive acculturation was explored, and two Acculturation Indices were established to measure respectively acculturative stress (accStress) and acculturation subjective well-being (accSWB). The sample consists of 91 Mainland Chinese undergraduates studying in Singapore. Results revealed that the sample population was faring the same as, if not better than, when in country of origin, in terms of accStress and accSWB. Participants with positive accSWB experienced significantly lower levels of accStress as those with negative accSWB, implying qualitatively different experience that warrants future investigation. In addition, using qualitative research method, the study has also identified that the common stressors faced by sample population in Singapore - socio-cultural adjustment and general living adjustment – were qualitatively different from the common stressors they faced in country of origin, namely academic achievement, interpersonal conflict and conflict from non-academic activities.