Intercultural psychological adaptation of Japanese expatriates living in Thailand.

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated the relationships between their psychological adaptation to the local cultures of Japanese expatriates living in Thailand and other three variables: their self-perceived social support, personal resources, and stress coping strategies. Methods: Eighty Japanese language instructors of native speakers living and teaching in Thailand completed a questionnaire, measuring various aspects of their intercultural psychological adaptation: self-perceived adaptation, stressors evaluation, local cultural understanding, self-perceived loneliness, and physical and mental health. The questionnaire also measured the other three variables and demographic variables. Results: Through principal component analysis, three factors of intercultural psychological adaptation were extracted. Three factors of stress coping strategies were also identified. Multiple regression analyses indicated all the three variables examined in this study were significant predictors of at least one of the three factors of intercultural psychological adaptation. Consultation support, leisure support, percentage of satisfied members, and previous teaching period were significant for the general adaptation factor. Thai language proficiency, previous teaching experience outside Japan and replacement coping strategies were significant for the intercultural adaptation factor. Conclusions: The findings suggest that intercultural psychological adaptation is likely to be facilitated by effective social support, relevant personal resources, and appropriate stress coping strategies.