Depression Prevalence between International and National Students due to Social Interactions and Ethnicity - Coursework Example

Depression Prevalence between International and National Students Due To Social Interactions and Ethnicity Name Institution Depression Prevalence between International and National Students due to Social Interactions and Ethnicity Introduction Depression has scathed colleges and institutions of higher learning over the years and is a growing epidemic that has dire consequences if left unchecked. The pressure to get good grades and financial strains have been the major causes but the increase in diversity among students has led to the social seclusion of certain minority groups and the rise in ethnicity across the institutions. This is of great concern to all regardless of race or ethnicity. Ethnic group membership is rife in learning institutions to avoid discrimination which often leads to depression. This has a negative effect on the campus climate due to the creation of an ethnic identity perception among students. Psychologically, socially and from a medical point of view, these negative influences have a detrimental effect on both the physical and mental well-being of individual students. Depression, in turn, develops as students seek to acquire an acceptable ethnic identity to cope with peer demand with little success (Thoits 2010). Campus internationalization has seen tremendous growth in recent years with the main goal being to attract more international students to enroll in these colleges and universities. This has inevitably led to the rise of divisions between international and national students. The assimilation process by international students differs among students, but the vast majority fail to establish lasting relations with national students due to social and ethnic roadblocks. The main purpose of this paper is to determine the effects of social segregation and ethnicity on international and national students. Social Interactions The minority stress factor Most learning institutions have increased their minority student enrollment quotas to give the perception that every student is welcome in the institution. However, these ethnic minority international students do not fully settle and have to cope with stress caused by discrimination. This is moreover challenging to international students who hail from areas where the ethnic community was largely dominant or schools where they were part of the majority. Such scenarios are numerous and a student may find themselves in situations whereby they are the ethnic minority in class leading to segregation. Minority stress is whereby students are subjected to stigmatization and prejudices to identification with a particular ethnic or social group (Meyer 2003). International students are adversely affected by ethnic differences and have problems while socially interacting with national students due to their minority status and contributes in the prevalence of depression in such cases. (Hurtado et al. 2008) through empirical studies noted that black students in white universities face minority stress compared to black students in a predominantly black university. International students experience depression in the form of minority stress which is brought about by negative experiences caused by differences in one’s social or cultural heritage (Phinney & Ong 2007). The social climate In an institution has varying impacts which mostly affect international students. This often leads to discrimination, inter group segregation and an unwelcoming social environment which causes depression in the long run due to the stigmatization of certain social groups especially those about international students. Intergroup depression can also arise in cases whereby negative relations exist among students due to differences in race and ethnicity. Discrimination based on an individual’s group memberships also occurs due to ethnicity experienced in learning institutions. (Umana-Taylor et al. 2011) noted that most international students embrace the ethnic identity as a psychological maneuver to counter minority stress. The emotional well-being of students is essential to maintain good performance and achieve academic excellence. International students have to relocate to new environments and acquire the necessary skills to cope with the change in the vicinity. This calls for the formation of new positive relationships that will help them overcome their daily challenges. On the other hand, national students will already have acquired an identity based on ethnic groups that are widely acceptable in their area. These students rarely face social interaction challenges having been incorporated in the vicinity earlier on. Most international students are ill-equipped in handling these challenges and have to face the reality of a new campus climate which can cause mental and physical strain which in turn lead to depression. Migration which by itself brings a certain level of stress to international students coupled with ethnic discrimination and curtailment of social interactions is not experienced by national students. Cultural stress Cultural stress arises as a result of the students’ cultural upbringing background, their communication skills in the new environment and level of one’s academic progress. This affects the social interactions and lifestyle of individual students. This challenge is faced students who travel to other countries with a culture different to their home country for education purposes. A positive adjustment to this new culture can help students become better while failure to overcome this challenges can negatively affect their physical and psychological status (Ward et al. 2001). International students may experience cultural shock as a result of the unfamiliarity of their new environment, with consequent depression development and employment of coping mechanism to deal with this depression. Dealing with culture shock calls for language proficiency and cross-culture awareness before the relocation which some students don’t possess. This, in turn, limits social interactions and networking which bring a certain level of discomfort that affects international students which cause depression. The need for social interaction among international students to develop friendships or romantic relationships is hindered by cultural, social and ethnic differences. Though linguistic and cultural barriers may hinder this growth, cross-ethic social interactions are to the prevalence of social and ethnic identities among students. International students have to acquire communication skills and demonstrate the cultural awareness for a smooth integration into the national students’ community. Most international campuses, however, offer little support to international students in this regard leading to the development of social barriers that discourage students from learning the rich variety of diversity which diminishes their ability to fully develop their capabilities. This often affects international students who have to learn a new culture and language in some instances to fit in with certain established ethnic identities and social status. Coupled with the high demand for academic excellence, depression is more likely to take root in international students, unlike national students who do not face these challenges. Establishing viable social interactions by international students in a new country is an uphill tasks due to the high level of adjustment and effort required. The level of social interactions experienced between international students and nationals is alarmingly low with most students wanting more local experiences and interactions with the hosts’ nationals (Li & Gasser 2005). Ethnicity Ethnicity has been reported to be a major cause for depression prevalence among minority students in learning institutions. A student with ethnic perceptions is bound to be depressed regardless of their nationalism due to the feeling of disengagement from their institution. Ethnic discrimination is stressor that almost all college students face be it from faculty, staff or other students. The eventual outcome is a significant depression trigger from those underrepresented in the institution. (Taylor & Turner 2002) noted that there are serious concerns about ethnic based depression among college students. Another major driver for stressors among students’ stereotype confirmation and the need to conform to one’s ethnic identity. International students experience significantly similar levels of depression related to ethnic differences as compared to their national counterparts who may also encounter this challenge at some point. The prevalence of depression varies greatly based on one's ethnicity though the type of depression may differ. An example is black students are more likely to experience dysthymic disorder while white students face major depressive disorder. International students with minimal education and no knowledge of the host nation’s language may also develop the dysthymic disorder (Smith & Silva 2011). Differences in ethnicity may also pose challenges to students seeking help leading to depression. Though most learning institutions have set aside resources to help in the recruitment of minority students, these resources are limited and inadequate at detecting stressors among students and handling depression cases. It is, however, noteworthy that stress levels do not differ significantly among students regardless of their ethnicity since most students arrive at campuses from different family backgrounds, have limited financial resources while most are first generation university students. The depression brought about by ethnicity and inhibition of social interaction among student is rampant in learning institutions worldwide. The vice has however drawn little recognition and is continually underrated. This has only helped foster more disparities among individual with international students being the most negatively affected. Ethnic minority groups rarely seek guidance and help with regards to mood disorder which breeds depression due to numerous factors such as lack of adequate financial resources to pay for the specialized health care required to overcome these negative effects. However, to comprehensively understand depression among college students brought about by diversity, it is paramount to differentiate the stress factors associated with minority group membership and other factors relating to college life such as finances and academic achievement and performance. Young adult life also has a tendency to cause depression in cases of failed social or romantic relationships. Conclusion Limited social interactions are the main factor that causes depression among international students while stress due to ethnic diversity affects all students regardless of one country of origin. A true student stress scale is difficult to establish due to the numerous challenges faced by all students that cause depression. Learning institutions should incorporate an assessment scale that gives the real racial climate of their institutions if universities and colleges are to succeed in supporting all students without any form of prejudice or discrimination. Cultural stress which mainly affects international students can be alleviated by learning about the new culture before one’s relocation. Sources HURTADO, S., GRIFFIN, K. A., ARELLANO, L., & CUELLAR, M. (2008). Assessing the value of climate assessments: Progress and future directions. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 1, 204–221. LI, A., & GASSER, M. B. (2005). Predicting Asian international students' sociocultural adjustment: A test of two mediation models. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 29, 561-576. MEYER, I. H. (2003). Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 674 – 697. PHINNEY, J. S., & ONG, A. D. (2007). Conceptualization and measurement of ethnic identity: Current status and future directions. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 54, 271–281. SMITH, T. B., & SILVA, L. (2011). Ethnic identity and personal well-being of people of color: A meta-analysis. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 58, 42–60. TAYLOR, J., & TURNER, R. J. (2002). Perceived discrimination, social stress, and depression in the transition to adulthood. Social Psychology Quarterly, 65, 213–225. THOITS, P. A. (2010). Stress and health: Major findings and policy implications. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 51(Suppl 1), S41–S53. UMAÑA-TAYLOR, A. J., UPDEGRAFF, K. A., & GONZALES-BACKEN, M. A. (2011). Mexican-origin adolescent mothers’ stressors and psychosocial functioning: Examining ethnic identity affirmation and familism as moderators. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. WARD, C., BOCHNER, S., & FURNHAM, A. (2001). The psychology of culture shock. London: Routledge. Read More

International students experience depression in the form of minority stress which is brought about by negative experiences caused by differences in one’s social or cultural heritage (Phinney & Ong 2007). The social climate In an institution has varying impacts which mostly affect international students. This often leads to discrimination, inter group segregation and an unwelcoming social environment which causes depression in the long run due to the stigmatization of certain social groups especially those about international students.

Intergroup depression can also arise in cases whereby negative relations exist among students due to differences in race and ethnicity. Discrimination based on an individual’s group memberships also occurs due to ethnicity experienced in learning institutions. (Umana-Taylor et al. 2011) noted that most international students embrace the ethnic identity as a psychological maneuver to counter minority stress. The emotional well-being of students is essential to maintain good performance and achieve academic excellence.

International students have to relocate to new environments and acquire the necessary skills to cope with the change in the vicinity. This calls for the formation of new positive relationships that will help them overcome their daily challenges. On the other hand, national students will already have acquired an identity based on ethnic groups that are widely acceptable in their area. These students rarely face social interaction challenges having been incorporated in the vicinity earlier on. Most international students are ill-equipped in handling these challenges and have to face the reality of a new campus climate which can cause mental and physical strain which in turn lead to depression.

Migration which by itself brings a certain level of stress to international students coupled with ethnic discrimination and curtailment of social interactions is not experienced by national students. Cultural stress Cultural stress arises as a result of the students’ cultural upbringing background, their communication skills in the new environment and level of one’s academic progress. This affects the social interactions and lifestyle of individual students. This challenge is faced students who travel to other countries with a culture different to their home country for education purposes.

A positive adjustment to this new culture can help students become better while failure to overcome this challenges can negatively affect their physical and psychological status (Ward et al. 2001). International students may experience cultural shock as a result of the unfamiliarity of their new environment, with consequent depression development and employment of coping mechanism to deal with this depression. Dealing with culture shock calls for language proficiency and cross-culture awareness before the relocation which some students don’t possess.

This, in turn, limits social interactions and networking which bring a certain level of discomfort that affects international students which cause depression. The need for social interaction among international students to develop friendships or romantic relationships is hindered by cultural, social and ethnic differences. Though linguistic and cultural barriers may hinder this growth, cross-ethic social interactions are to the prevalence of social and ethnic identities among students. International students have to acquire communication skills and demonstrate the cultural awareness for a smooth integration into the national students’ community.

Most international campuses, however, offer little support to international students in this regard leading to the development of social barriers that discourage students from learning the rich variety of diversity which diminishes their ability to fully develop their capabilities. This often affects international students who have to learn a new culture and language in some instances to fit in with certain established ethnic identities and social status.

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