Chinese international students’ cross-cultural adaptation, mental health and related coping strategies and help-seeking behaviours in the UK

Section A: A literature review providing an overview and critical evaluation of existing research on Chinese international students’ acculturation experiences, especially their psychological and sociocultural adaptation, and related coping strategies and help-seeking behaviours. The quality of the 10 identified papers is assessed and results are considered in relation to relevant psychological theories, and implications for clinical practice and research are then discussed.

Section B: An empirical study using interpretative phenomenology analysis (IPA) to explore how Chinese international students (CIS) make sense of their psychological wellbeing and related help-seeking in the UK. Eight students based in Southeast England attended semi-structured interviews. Three master themes emerged from the data: the jump from interdependence to independence, the importance of ‘zhong-yong’ when experiencing and expressing distress, and the perplexing nature of help seeking. Implications for clinical practices and research were discussed.