Living Life in Two Worlds: Acculturative Stress among Asian International Graduate Student Parents and Spouses

This qualitative study examined the experiences of Asian international graduate students and spouses with children at a university in the U.S. Participants (n=31) from China, Korea, the Philippines, and Taiwan were interviewed regarding their stressors. Some stressors were identified in the answers of the group as a whole: (a) adjustment to a new culture; (b) feeling overwhelmed; (c) language difficulty; (d) feelings of isolation; (e) financial stress; and (f) marital stress. Stressors found only in the answers of the students were: (a) balancing multiple roles; (b) adjusting to the academic culture; (c) finding child care; and, among male students, d) worrying about the non-student spouse. Stressors unique to nonstudent spouses included: (a) loss of roles and status; (b) power imbalance in the couple relationships; and (c) feeling inadequate. Implications for research and practice with international graduate student parents/spouses are provided.