Challenges and Resilience of First-Year Chinese International Students on Academic Probation

A substantial percentage of international students are placed on academic probation each year. This study explored the challenges and resilience characteristics of Chinese international students placed on academic probation in their first year of college. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine probationary Chinese international students, and the data were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. The results indicated that challenges with daily routine, reduced adult supervision, inadequate academic preparation, and limited participation in the application process were the main factors that contributed to their academic probation. Proactivity, independence, and flexible thinking were important resilience characteristics that may have helped students cope positively with stresses relating to academic probation. Targeted institutional support could be strengthened. Implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research are also discussed

Gender Nonconformity During Adolescence: Links with Stigma, Sexual Minority Status, and Psychosocial Outcomes

Both gender nonconformity and sexual minority status during adolescence are associated with elevated levels of victimization and harassment, experiences that have serious consequences for adolescent psychosocial outcomes. While gender nonconformity and sexual minority status reflect separate constructs, they are associated because (1) sexual minority youth report higher levels of gender nonconformity and (2) gender nonconformity is frequently used to attribute sexual minority status by others. Following from classic stigma theory, the current chapter focuses on the role of gender nonconformity in explaining variation in social exclusion and victimization among both sexual minority and sexual majority youth. Of particular interest is the potential for gender nonconformity to mediate or moderate the association between sexual minority status and individual mental health and wellbeing outcomes. Gender differences will also be discussed, focusing on differences between girls and boys in the links between sexual minority status, gender nonconformity, experiences of victimization, and negative psychosocial outcomes. Additionally, the emerging literature on conceptualizing gender nonconformity among trans and non-binary youth will be addressed. Finally, the current chapter will finish with a discussion of how and why gender nonconformity must be taken into consideration in the development of programs aimed at reducing homophobia among adolescent populations

Immigrant Children's Educational Achievement in Western Countries: Origin, Destination, and Community Effects on Mathematical Performance

ICS Radboud University Nijmegen This article explores the extent to which macro-level characteristics of destination countries, origin countries, and immigrant communities help explain differences in immigrant children’s educational achievement. Using data from the 2003 PISA survey, we analyze the mathematical performance of 7,403 pupils from 35 different origin countries in 13 Western countries of destination. While compositional differences offer some explanatory power, they cannot fully explain cross-national and cross-group variance. Contextual attributes of host countries, origin countries, and communities are also meaningful. In this regard, strict immigration laws explain immigrant children’s better educational performance in traditional immigrant-receiving countries. Results further suggest that origin countries’ level of economic development can negatively affect immigrant children’s educational performance, and that immigrant children from more politically stable countries perform better at school. Finally, socioeconomic differences between immigrant communities and a native population, and relative community size, both shape immigrant children’s scholastic achievement.

“What I thought was so important isn't really that important”: international perspectives on making meaning during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

Background The global COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the physical and mental health of people everywhere. The aim of the study is to understand how people living in 15 countries around the globe experience an unexpected crisis which threatens their health and that of loved ones, and how they make meaning of this disruption in their narratives. Methods Data were collected through an anonymous online survey during May–September 2020, which was during or just after the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, depending on the country. The questionnaire included demographic and three open-ended questions as prompts for stories about experiences during the initial months of the pandemic. The text was analyzed through inductive thematic content analysis and quantified for full sample description, demographic and subsequently international comparisons. Results The final qualitative dataset included stories from n = 1685 respondents. The sample was 73.6% women and 26.4% men. The mean age of participants was 39.55 years (SD = 14.71). The identified four groups of overarching themes were: The presence and absence of others; Rediscovering oneself; The meaning of daily life; Rethinking societal and environmental values. We discuss the prevalence of each theme for the sample as a whole and differences by demographic groups. The most prevalent theme referred to disruptions in interpersonal contacts, made meaningful by the increased appreciation of the value of relationships, present in (45.6%) of stories. It was more prevalent in the stories of women compared to men (χ² = 24.88, p = .001). Conclusions The paper provides a detailed overview of the methodology, the main themes identified inductively in the stories and differences according to select demographic variables. We identify several major ways of making meaning of the pandemic. The pandemic has impacted many aspects of people’s lives which give it meaning, no matter where they live