The progression of globalization has facilitated foreign travel; therefore, increasingly more students are choosing to study abroad. In addition, the modernization of the Internet and information technology has simplified the exchange of information, thereby increasing their use. Nation-states worldwide have sought to capitalize on this opportunity by attracting a quota of international students to increase their foreign capital. However, they have not addressed the possibility that these students may experience various symptoms of culture shock. This study examines culture shock among international students in Taiwan to determine the viability of using online support groups (OSGs) to ameliorate culture shock symptoms, such as depression and alienation. OSGs are similar to traditional face-to-face support groups, which draw people who share similar problems, with the objective of helping one another to address and manage related challenges. However, OSGs offer considerable advantages because they grant access to members irrespective of time and place. Furthermore, they are easily searchable and provide extensive accounts from previous posts that new users can explore. Members may also participate in OSGs without fearing the judgment of others. We conducted a survey on 200 international students in Taiwan to measure the gravity of this problem in this population group. Our results indicate that the international students were satisfied with life in Taiwan, experienced low levels of acculturative stress, and were socioculturally adjusted. Informational social support significantly predicted the levels of sociocultural adjustment and acculturative stress, and affected life satisfaction. The degree of informational support available and the levels of perceived discrimination, homesickness experienced, and sociocultural adaptation significantly predicted life satisfaction. The findings revealed that information support had a substantial impact on life satisfaction. However, websites in Taiwan offer insufficient information and support for international students. Our research methodology can act as a suitable reference for replicating this study in other countries and future studies.

The progression of globalization has facilitated foreign travel; therefore, increasingly more students are choosing to study abroad. In addition, the modernization of the Internet and information technology has simplified the exchange of information, thereby increasing their use. Nation-states worldwide have sought to capitalize on this opportunity by attracting a quota of international students to increase their foreign capital. However, they have not addressed the possibility that these students may experience various symptoms of culture shock. This study examines culture shock among international students in Taiwan to determine the viability of using online support groups (OSGs) to ameliorate culture shock symptoms, such as depression and alienation. OSGs are similar to traditional face-to-face support groups, which draw people who share similar problems, with the objective of helping one another to address and manage related challenges. However, OSGs offer considerable advantages because they grant access to members irrespective of time and place. Furthermore, they are easily searchable and provide extensive accounts from previous posts that new users can explore. Members may also participate in OSGs without fearing the judgment of others. We conducted a survey on 200 international students in Taiwan to measure the gravity of this problem in this population group. Our results indicate that the international students were satisfied with life in Taiwan, experienced low levels of acculturative stress, and were socioculturally adjusted. Informational social support significantly predicted the levels of sociocultural adjustment and acculturative stress, and affected life satisfaction. The degree of informational support available and the levels of perceived discrimination, homesickness experienced, and sociocultural adaptation significantly predicted life satisfaction. The findings revealed that information support had a substantial impact on life satisfaction. However, websites in Taiwan offer insufficient information and support for international students. Our research methodology can act as a suitable reference for replicating this study in other countries and future studies.

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