With increasing globalization of the world, more and more German and Chinese students are studying abroad. Cross-cultural living is full of challenges. Aiming to support the process of cross-cultural adjustment, this study looks closely at the cross-cultural living of German and Chinese exchange students, examines cultural differences between Germany and China, and develops a complete understanding of the impact of cultural environment, situational contexts, and individual behaviors on the process of cross-cultural communication. Built upon a psychological model of cross-cultural adjustment and the examination of the specific problems and needs of the German and Chinese exchange students, the study provides a target group-oriented intercultural training program dealing with knowledge and learning, motivation, and behavioral features to improve the cross-cultural communication and the effective coping with adjustment difficulties of the exchange students.

Autorentext

Jie Song, born in China, received the B.A. (1996) degree inEnglish and Business in China, and M.A. (2006) and Ph.D. (2009)in psychology from the University Freiburg in Germany. She iscurrently coordinator of projects with Asian countries at theMedical Center, University of Freiburg.