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Synergy of an Educational Ecosystem: A Study of Factors Affecting Wellness in International Undergraduate Students

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2020, Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, Educational Leadership.
Understanding factors affecting wellness may help promote effective wellness programs for students, particularly international students and prepare them for the challenges in their academic and personal lives in order to help them achieve optimal functioning. The purpose of this quantitative study is to examine how four self-reported factors (flourishing, academic impairment, anxiety, and depression) affect the wellness of international undergraduate students and to investigate gender differences among international and domestic students across these four factors affecting wellness at a four-year public university in the United States. For this purpose, the 2017 web-based Miami University Student Health Survey (SHS) data (a sample of 4172 full-time undergraduate students) is analyzed. Mann-Whitney U is performed in order to determine the group differences across the four factors affecting wellness. One-way ANOVA Kruskal-Wallis H test is used to determine if there were significant differences between gender groups. The group differences are analyzed across the four factors affecting wellness between: a) international men and domestic men, b) international women and domestic women, c) international men and domestic women, and d) international women and domestic men. Post-hoc analysis is performed using Bonferroni test for pairwise comparisons within each of these four groups. The results indicated statistically significant lower flourishing and anxiety in international students compared to their domestic peers. However, academic impairment and depression did not show statistically significant differences between the two groups. Analyses of the gender differences between international and domestic student groups and within the international student group across these four factors affecting wellness showed statistically significant differences between the four gender groups: International men, domestic men, international women, and domestic women. Within the international student group, flourishing and academic impairment are significantly greater for international men than for international women. Anxiety and depression are significantly greater for international women than for international men. The general findings of the study are that, while there is no significant difference in the identified wellness categories for international and domestic students, international women students reported higher levels of anxiety and depression than their male international peers. Findings of this study could provide some important cues for educators, counselors, and university administrators about relevant variables that may enhance international student wellness. Furthermore, these results might contribute to further studies that aim at developing targeted effective wellness programs, particularly for international students.
Kate Rousmaniere (Advisor)
Kathleen Knight Abowitz (Committee Member)
Joel Malin (Committee Member)
Rose Marie Ward (Committee Member)
129 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Paralkar, V. K. (2020). Synergy of an Educational Ecosystem: A Study of Factors Affecting Wellness in International Undergraduate Students [Doctoral dissertation, Miami University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1607174253214026

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Paralkar, Vijay. Synergy of an Educational Ecosystem: A Study of Factors Affecting Wellness in International Undergraduate Students. 2020. Miami University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1607174253214026.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Paralkar, Vijay. "Synergy of an Educational Ecosystem: A Study of Factors Affecting Wellness in International Undergraduate Students." Doctoral dissertation, Miami University, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1607174253214026

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)