Psychological and sociocultural adaptation of university students in France: The case of Vietnamese international students

Moving from one academic environment to another and relocating to a new country to study is becoming an increasingly common occurrence. As well as providing cultural and intellectual enrichment, this experience also presents challenges and difficulties. With the increasing number of international students in France, an understanding of the psychological factors that facilitate adaptation is becoming ever more important. The aim of the present research was to consider elements facilitating or impeding Vietnamese international students’ adaptation to France. Two samples of students were compared: 112 Vietnamese international students in France and 101 French students, undergoing a first transition to university. The variables of trait-anxiety, attachment intimacy and attachment anxiety, psychological distress, satisfaction with social support, and (among the Vietnamese sample) cultural identification were measured. Attachment intimacy and trait-anxiety moderated by psychological distress were found to be relevant to the process of adaptation for both samples. Co-national identification was also relevant to adaptation for the Vietnamese sample. Other hypotheses were partially supported although, overall, attachment issues appeared to be of greater significance to the Vietnamese than to the French respondents.