Sociocultural Adaptation Scale

Sociocultural Adaptation Scale
Ward and Kennedy (1999)
Social Difficulty Scale; Adoption by Wang‚ Wei-hsuan. (2009)
 
1. Making friends with Americans.
2. Making friends with people from different cultural background (international friends‚ other than Americans).
3. Finding food that you enjoy.
4. Following rules and regulations in the American society.
5. Dealing with people in authority.
6. Taking an American perspective on the culture.
7. Using the transportation system.
8. Dealing with bureaucracy.
9. Understanding American value system.
10. Making yourself understood.
11. Seeing things from an American point of view.
12. Going shopping.
13. Understanding American jokes and humor.
14. Going to social gatherings of different cultures.
15. Communicating with people of a different ethnic group.
16. Understanding ethnic or cultural differences.
17. Making a phone call for customer service.
18. Attending religious activities.
19. Understanding the U.S. political system.
20. Dealing with the climate.
21. Understanding the American world view.
22. Getting adapted to the pace of life.
 
Internal reliability ranging from .84 to .91 (Ward & Kennedy‚ 1999).  The Cronbach alpha was α = .93 (Wang‚ 2009).
 
 
1 = no difficulty; 2 = slight difficulty; 3 = moderate difficulty; 4 = great difficulty; 5 = extreme difficulty

Ward‚ C.‚ & Kennedy‚ A. (1992). Locus of control‚ mood disturbance‚ and social difficulty during cross-cultural transitions. International Journal of Intercultural Relations‚ 16‚ 175-194.

Ward‚ C.‚ & Kennedy‚ A. (1999). The measurement of sociocultural adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations‚ 18‚ 329-343.

Wang‚ Wei-hsuan. (2009). Chinese international students’ cross-cultural adjustment in the U.S.: the roles of acculturation strategies‚ self-construals‚ perceived cultural distance‚ and English self-confidence. University of Texas at Austin. PhD Dissertation.

x