Encountering non-Christian Chinese international students: cross-cultural adaptive practices of local Christian organisations in the UK

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the cross-cultural organisational adaptation of host religious organisations through their interaction with non-Christian Chinese international students in the UK. Grounded in Kim’s integrative adaptation theory, the research employed the methods of participant observation, interviews and document analysis to examine the interaction of international students with two specific churches (part of the Church of Scotland). The study found that in order to provide international engagement, the churches in question underwent cross-cultural organisational adaptation and transformation with a consideration of the cultural differences and the needs of Chinese students in intercultural communication, including in terms of multicultural team building, the improvement of intercultural competence and adaptive religious practices. These adaptive transformations or ‘customised services’ attracted and engaged large numbers of Chinese students in the intercultural interaction surrounding congregations. The cultural adaptation of host congregations contributes to the quality of social support for international students as well as the intercultural expansion of Christian values and beliefs throughout the trend of student mobility.

KEYWORDS:

• Cross-cultural organisational adaptation
• international students
• Scotland Christianity
• churches

Acknowledgments

We are particularly thankful to the late Professor Andy Furlong who shared a number of inspiring ideas for the whole research project at the University of Glasgow. Further, we are grateful to all research participants for their contributions. We also appreciated the detailed comments and suggestions from autonomous reviewers.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. All names have been changed to ensure anonymity.

Additional information

Funding

This paper is sponsored by the Peak Discipline Construction Project of Education at East China Normal University.

Notes on contributors

Yun Yu

Dr Yun Yu has specialised cross-cultural adaptation, international and religious education. In addition, her research interests range from intercultural communication, international students to multicultural education. She has published original academic articles about religious engagement and Chinese international students.

Gijsbert Stoet

Professor Gijsbert Stoet is a psychologist with experience in developmental and educational psychology. His research includes two main strands of research. On the one hand, he how people use their attention (e.g. to focus on specific tasks), and on the other hand he studies cognitive performance and attitudes in school children. These two types of research are partially overlapping (e.g. children’s school performance relates to their capacity to attend relevant school tasks).