Acculturative Stress, Social Support and Psychological Adaptation among Migrated Students

The aim of the study was to examine the association between acculturative stress, social support and psychological adaptation in migrated students in Gujranwala, Pakistan. The correlational research design was embraced, and 120 students at the university (70 females and 50 males) that live in the hostels were involved in the study as purposive sample. Such standardized tools as Culture Shock Questionnaire (Mumford, 1998), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Zimet et al., 1988), and Psychological Adaptation Scale were utilized (Franken et al., 2023). The findings showed that acculturative stress was significantly negatively related to both social support and psychological adaptation but positively related to social support. The variables of gender across the study variables were found to be statistically insignificant. The findings are indicative that increased social support is a key buffer to the negative psychological impact of acculturative stress that leads to smoother adaptation in migrated students. The study emphasizes the need to enhance social support systems within the academic institutions to improve the psychological well-being as well as adaptation of students who are culturally transitioning.