International Student – Mobility stages and Information Behavior

Yoon and Chung (2017) define three stages during the International Student mobility experience. The first one refers to when the student is in the home country preparing to study abroad in another country, at the foreign university; the authors call it 1) Pre-arrival. The second stage is 2) Settlement; it is when the student arrives in the other country and is adapting to the new life. The last and third step is the 3) Current stage, when the international student feels that he/she has already adapted to the new environment and sees it as familiar.

4.2.1 Pre-arrival stage

Usually, the candidate to study abroad contacts the future university from his/her home country. This candidate may want to study in an undergraduate course or a graduate program.

From the moment that he/she contacts the university up to his/her approval and student visa acquisition, many specifics processes may occur, which will vary according to the foreign university and its country. Due to distance and facilitation of the information flow, the candidate and foreign university's consultation of information and communication is accomplished online (RIOGA, 2017).

These processes involve the candidate's documents, confirming his/her education and language background, personal data, other information - specific to each situation and field of study. For example, in the study developed by Yoon and Chung (2017), the authors described what the international students answered through an Interview Survey:

All participants, regardless of the type of information needed, used the Internet as their main source of information, and eight of them additionally reported receiving assistance from people in the U.S. (friends, family, relatives, and/or agents of related institutions). Whereas websites were not always useful sources of information, people in the U.S. were commonly appreciated as useful sources. Websites were especially useless when the participant did not know where to begin his/her search. (YOON, CHUNG, 2017, p. 6).

As other authors have mentioned, daily information needs are essential to the international students and are exemplified in Frame 3. For example, Yoon and Chung (2017) demonstrated through the answers of nine students the kind of information that these students looked for online in the Pre-arrival stage: housing; how to fill out documents to enter the U.S.;

how to obtain a drivers’ license and to buy a vehicle; school information for a child; academic-related information needs; information on the universities and programs that one could apply;

and courses that could be taken during the first semester.

Oh, and Butler (2019) developed a study with 149 first-year international graduate students and 57 follow-up interviewees from the University of Maryland – UMD - U.S.A. The authors categorized the students as an International-common group (students from China, India, and Korea – with many co-nationals), International-less-common group (students from other countries – with fewer local co-nationals), and Domestic-out-of-state group (students from other U.S. states).

When comparing International-common-group with International-less-common-group students, the authors highlighted a few points: International-common-group of students, before leaving their countries, would start forming online communities with co-national students already living in the U.S. Instead, most International-less-common did not experience the same contact with co-nationals before their arrival; the co-nationals that were already living in the U.S. included senior/existing and peer/new students; this interaction among co-nationals would be available online and, on their mobiles, allowing “networking and information practices in offline, online, and mobile settings.” (OH; BUTLER, 2019, p. 1068); these co-national communities would keep existing even after the newest students would arrive; at last, International-less-common-group “often without existing online co-national communities in their new local area, rarely engaged in co-national networking and information practices during

their adjustment as well as before their arrival in the new environment.” (OH; BUTLER, 2019, p. 1069).

According to Rioga (2017), information that the future international student obtains before leaving the home country is crucial to plan a smoother adaptation and easiness on the Settlement stage. On the other hand, not having the information may generate frustration and stress, as Yoon and Chung (2017, p. 7) explain:

Consequences of misinformation, although it is difficult to discern whether they were due to a lack of information, users’ lack of abilities to find information, or users’ misunderstandings, could be critical. The international student participants felt frustrated as they believed they were wasting time, money, and efforts in a new country.

4.2.2 Settlement stage

At the Settlement stage, the international students arrive in a different country. They tend to replace a familiar environment for the host country, introducing themselves to a new culture, university, people surrounding them, hence different information needs from a changing physical and social environment. In this process, they are challenged daily, once they go for academic goals such as socially, through a new education system, on the top of linguistic differences and cultural differences (HERTZUM; HYLDEGÅRD, 2019; HUGHES, 2005; SIN;

KIM, 2013).

About this process Sin et al. (2011, p. 1) explain that “acculturation is the process in which an individual learns about and adapts to the socio-cultural norms of the host country.

Therefore, successful acculturation can contribute toward the newcomer’s productivity and quality of life.” Nonetheless, information needs are considered more specific at this stage, and may affect the international students emotionally, as said by the study of Yoon and Chung, (2017, p. 7):

Two students reported academic-related information needs: information for completing coursework, including homework assignments, and preparation course work as a teaching fellow. Compared to the previous stage, information needs were more specific. Two students reported that they had emotionally difficult times at this stage. One participant directly connected their emotional difficulties with their information needs, and the other’s emotional difficulties were interwoven with academic information needs, feeling emotionally relieved when he stopped searching for information. However, both stated they could not find information they needed.

Daily information needs were considered dominant for the international students to settle down in the U.S., as stated by the same authors. Such as internet, electricity, and phone

connections; how to open a bank account, and to buy a vehicle, “neighborhood information for housing, local geographical information (street/community names), cooking information, medical information, and information regarding financial support.” (YOON; CHUNG, 2017, p.

7).

Worrall, Ballantyne, and Kendall (2019) published a study in which they conducted twenty interviews with international students from a Canadian university. Frame 4 summarizes settlement help and barriers identified on the data analyzed in the process of Information Sharing and technology use in the adjustment stage of these students. The authors went through the following factors: Culture, Information, Information behavior and practices, Students, Support structure, language, and Information and Communication technologies.

The culture was already discussed above, and the frame’s content corroborates its importance in the settlement process.

In the factor Information the tool Information and Communication Technologies – ICTs are considered valuable to find academic and daily information. In contrast, not having information may become a barrier “when the students miss specific steps or information sources that would help, or lack access when available only via a specific ICT.” (WORRALL;

BALLANTYNE; KENDALL, 2019, p. 310). The researchers Oh and Butler (2019, p. 1069) agree with this point of view and highlights co-national interactions:

Although adjusting to new environments is a daunting process, co-national information grounds and information practices, through online, mobile, and offline interactions, allowed International common students to effectively acquire the rich, context specific local information needed for their transition to and decision-making in their new environments (OH; BUTLER, 2019, p.

1069).

Information behavior and practices, Students, and Support structure are interrelated by information sharing and having a person as a reference for giving information, like classmates and senior students, besides the fact that ICTs help communicates with other international students, co-nationals, friends, and family, as well. The type of information needs involved would be daily or academic-related. These connections would be fundamental in the settlement process and emotionally.

With these aspects, Yoon and Chung (2017, p. 8) mention that “as with the previous stage, people (family, relatives, professors, student center advisors, friends) and websites were main sources of information, and people was considered useful sources of information.” Oh (2018) expresses his point of view about the co-national context:

International students who had many co-nationals in their new environment tended to perceive co-nationals as their main information source. [...]

Effectively acquired local information through their local co-nationals in offline, online, and mobile settings, while international students from other less common countries did not engage in such local co-national interaction and social information practices (OH, 2018, p. 1-2).

According to Worrall, Ballantyne, and Kendall (2019), language was not seen as a barrier by participants. Although not knowing specific words and phrases can cause communication issues, culture shock. The researchers Yoon and Chung (2017) compared immigrants and international students and said that there are common characteristics between them except for language differences. “Although international students feel they are not confident with their English language skills, language was not a major information need or barrier when seeking information.” (YOON; CHUNG, 2017, p. 10).

The last factor is information and communication technologies, which act as a channel that makes connections possible between students, friends, and family from their home country.

Likewise, entertainment and academic study needs and desires. Yoon and Chung (2017) reported the prominence of information sources at all three stages of mobility, while people in organizations would be helpful, creating emotional support and satisfaction with the information search results:

Characteristics of information sources that are used at each stage of settlement process People (family, friends, relatives, and staff in international students’

offices) in the U.S. and the Internet were the main sources of information for international students at their pre-arrival and settlement stages. International offices and departments were also reported as sources of information, but whenever participants expressed satisfactory services or appreciations, they referred to a specific person in the organization. It seems that in addition to the information itself that they obtained, personal/emotional support made international students feel satisfied with their information search results. As they settled down, their sources of information became diverse, expanding to include social media and various online information resources, as well as friends (YOON; CHUNG, 2017, p. 9).

Frame 3 - Summary of Settlement Help and Barriers Identified

Factor As help As barrier

Culture

Learning more about new culture

ads to a stronger feeling of

“fitting in.”

Not knowing intricacies of new culture can lead to confusion in ICT use and information sharing.

Factor As help As barrier

Information

ICTs and those who provide them help find academic and everyday information useful for studies, settling in.

Can be difficult if international students miss specific steps or information sources that would help, or lack access when available only via a specific ICT.

Information behavior and practices

Sharing can help with

relaxation, emotional support;

information found can be crucial to settlement.

Not seen as a barrier by participants.

Students

Classmates and “senior”

students can help mentor, be a first source for information, especially of an academic nature.

Not seen as a barrier by participants.

Support structure

Connections with new friends (especially when from same / similar home culture) or local family / family friends, in person and via ICTs, a huge help for many international students.

Academic connections and information can help expose to new contacts and social ties.

If introverted, can be difficult to make new friends at first and feel sidelined from the

“majority.”

Language Not seen as a barrier by

participants.

Lacking knowledge of specific words and phrases can cause communication issues, culture shock.

Information and communication technologies

Technology supports informational and emotional connection to friends and family in home country, entertainment and academic study needs and desires.

Lack of use of specific ICTs not popular in one’s home country can cause informational barriers.

Source: Worrall, Ballantyne, and Kendall (2019, p. 310).

4.2.3 Current stage

After the international students settle down, they establish a routine and feel that their environment is more familiar than when they had arrived. However, Hertzum and Hyldegård (2019) point out the relevance of acculturation from Pre-arrival and continuing even after introductory activities have ended. Furthermore, the authors remember the role of the host universities in this context and the importance of studying international students’ information needs once they are settled.

Along with the acculturation process through each stage of mobility, the information needs are always present, but their focus changes. Yoon and Chung (2017) say that most

information needs were related to the daily context in the international students' Pre-arrival and Settlement stages compared to academic and campus life. In addition to having people based in the U.S. and the internet as their primary sources of information. At the Pre-arrival stage, the information needs of the international students were broader, and the level of satisfaction with internet search low. Oppositely, once they settled down in the U.S., their information needs were more precise, and they felt more confident with search experiences. Besides that, the internet and people continue to be the main sources of information for these students, although

[...] their information needs, and sources of information became diverse; the increased use of social media, was especially noticeable [...] Participants used a variety of social networking services, such as Craigslist, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc. Also, it was observed that international students were getting familiar with available information sources. (YOON; CHUNG, 2017, p. 8-11).

In the same study, Yoon and Chung (2017, p. 9) present the type of international students’ information needs on the three stages of mobility: Pre-arrival, Settlement stage, and Current stage.

At all three stages, information needs related to their daily lives were dominant. At the pre-arrival stage (before entering the U.S.), information needs were broad; at the settlement stage, time-sensitive and critical settlement-related information needs were dominant; and at the current stage, more diverse information needs were reported, and information needs became specific.