Fear of the unknown: a pre-departure qualitative study of Turkish international students

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Brown L., AKTAŞ G.

BRITISH JOURNAL OF GUIDANCE & COUNSELLING, cilt.39, sa.4, ss.339-355, 2011 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 39 Sayı: 4
  • Basım Tarihi: 2011
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1080/03069885.2011.576314
  • Dergi Adı: BRITISH JOURNAL OF GUIDANCE & COUNSELLING
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.339-355
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Turkish exchange students, travel, Western country, Islam, fear, COLLECTIVE SELF-ESTEEM, MENTAL-HEALTH, POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS, ADJUSTMENT, COMMUNICATION, DESTINATION, UNCERTAINTY, UNIVERSITY, CONTACT, ANXIETY
  • Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

This paper presents findings from 11 in-depth interviews with Turkish undergraduate students, who were, by the time of data collection, about to spend a semester at a European university under the Erasmus exchange scheme. The students all agreed to be interviewed about their feelings about studying in a foreign culture, and were found to be anxious prior to departure about the quality of accommodation in the new destination, their language ability and the opportunity to form friendships. Fears were expressed about possible misconceptions over Turkey as a Muslim and a developing country. Suggestions are made for HEI interventions to allay student travellers' concerns.