The influence of host cultures on the role of personality in the acculturation of exchange students

For a limited period of time, exchange students study abroad in a host culture they may know little about, leaving behind their culture, social networks and institutions. In the current study, students going to collectivist countries and students going to individualist countries were investigated, to test if the different characteristics of the host cultures would produce different patterns of acculturation. For the individualist-bound students, there was evidence to suggest that personality is an important factor in determining their acculturation, while for collectivist-bound students, there was evidence to suggest that adherence to cultural norms and values is an important factor in determining acculturation. Implications for exchange students were discussed.