The impact of acculturative stress and sociocultural adaptation on international student satisfaction and loyalty

This paper examines the interrelationship between experienced acculturative stress, sociocultural adaptation, satisfaction, and loyalty within the context of higher education and international students. It was hypothesized that acculturative stress negatively impacts sociocultural adaptation, satisfaction, and loyalty, whereas sociocultural adaptation positively influences satisfaction, and that satisfaction positively impacts loyalty. A sample of 426 international students from 56 countries was analyzed via PLS-SEM. This research is unique because it quantitatively demonstrates that acculturative stress has a significant negative impact on sociocultural adaptation, essentially hindering culturally appropriate behavior, and negatively impacts international student satisfaction, whereas sociocultural adaptation positively affects international student satisfaction. The construct of acculturative stress is slightly better explained by core culture shock items compared to interpersonal stress items. The primary factors contributing to core culture shock were students’ confusion about their identity in a receiving culture, encountering shocking and disgusting elements in a new environment, and feeling helpless when trying to cope with a new culture. The primary factor influencing the interpersonal stress among international students was their anxiety or discomfort when interacting with local individuals. The acquisition of culturally appropriate behavior in an academic setting contributed the most to the construct of sociocultural adaptation. Based on our insights, higher education institutions could optimize resource allocation by preparing students to handle acculturative stress and facilitating sociocultural adaptation. This is expected to enhance the satisfaction of international students and reduce recruitment costs through the positive word of mouth of loyal students. • Acculturative stress negatively impacts sociocultural adaptation, satisfaction, and loyalty. • Sociocultural adaptation positively influences satisfaction, and that satisfaction positively impacts loyalty. • The acculturative stress construct is slightly better explained by core culture shock items.