Cultural Distance Perceptions of International Students: Turkey and Their Home Countries

The cultural distance is the totality of the perceived similarities and differences between the target and the (source) cultures in contact. Cultural distance knowledge can facilitate adapting students from diverse cultural backgrounds to the target culture. This study aims to ascertain the cultural distance perceptions of international students who study Turkish as a second language in Turkey by the classification made by Karluk (2022) into high-cost, low-cost, and zero-cost categories. A case study method based on a qualitative research approach was implemented to reach that aim. Participants are determined by criterion sampling, one of the targeted sampling methods. The data collected from 15 international students through semi-structured interview forms were analyzed through content analysis. The study showed that the participants in the high-cost groups thought their culture was different from Turkish culture in terms of “daily life,” “physical, social, and economic conditions,” “interpersonal relations and social traditions,” and “values, attitudes, and beliefs.” Whereas the low-cost and zero-cost group participants thought their culture was similar to Turkish culture. Accordingly, it appears that the high-cost groups will have more difficulty in adapting. The outcomes were discussed in light of literature and the importance of creating a third space between the target and source cultures, giving students in-class and out-of-class experience-oriented tasks, organizing events introducing Turkish culture, and providing students with psychosocial support was emphasized.