Intercultural Friendship And Adjustment

The remove of the ban on Chinese learning in Indonesia since1998and the enhancement of trade links between China and Indonesia lead to the increasing number of Indonesian students coming to China for Chinese learning. Living in an unfamiliar environment with Chinese culture, Indonesian students may face with intercultural friendship and adaptation problems. To explore the intercultural interpersonal adaptation process and the problems existing in education and management of Indonesian international students in China, this qualitative study was carried out on the formation of intercultural friendship and adjustment experiences of five Chinese Indonesian international students who had been in China for less than a year and were pursuing their undergraduate or postgraduate studies at Guangxi Normal University. Data for this study were collected through a demographic survey questionnaire, three follow up interviews, participant observation and informal conversation from February,2013to November,2013. Based on the related theories of intercultural friendship and adjustment and cultural difference between China and Indonesia, the data were analyzed through a constant comparative method to identify the categories and themes.The participants reported that continual contact, emotional connection, emotional and behavioral support was the prerequisite for close friendship. Three crucial elements in the formation of friendships were frequent contact, individual similarity and self-disclosure. As an inevitable and regrettable consequence of transition, the participants’conational friendship networks were established within days at their arrivals with surprising speed due to the linguistic ease, mutual understanding and practical support. But it was extremely difficult for the participants to establish friendships with Chinese people because of their poor command of Chinese language, lack of sharing networks and contacts, and different communication styles, which hindered their adjustment process and made them less satisfied with their study and life in China. The common bond created by being a sojourner in China facilitated the participants to form friendships with other Asian international students. Through contacting with Chinese, the participants made identity adjustment and communication shifts by changing their reserved, shy, gentle communication style to a more assertive, tolerant, and active communication style.