Cultural Perspectives on Research Compliance: Exploring International Masters Students from Confucian-Heritage Cultures Conducting Research in the United States

Abstract

Now more than ever, we are becoming a globally internationalized society. Each year, many international students, particularly those from Confucian heritage countries such as China, Korea, and Taiwan, travel to the United States (U.S.) to pursue a graduate degree that requires research. These CHC sojourners face several challenges, as they must navigate new academic requirements for performing research and writing academic papers. Additionally, they have the challenge of learning and applying the specific rules and regulations that explicitly govern the use of live animals for research.

Currently, there is limited research addressing the adjustment of CHC international students in the U.S., and even less exploring those who perform graduate research with animals. The literature reviewed and data collected offer deeper insights into the intercultural experiences of CHC master’s students during their transition into animal research with non-USDA-covered animals while in the U.S. Five CHC sojourners were interviewed using a qualitative phenomenological approach. The data analysis revealed that CHC sojourners encounter multiple challenges while performing research in master’s programs in the U.S., including linguistic and cultural barriers; difficulty with research rules comprehension and training; and a lack of mentorship. This study can be useful across multiple disciplines in higher education, including education, research, and healthcare. This research topic is an important area of study as it identifies the gaps in the current literature and the findings may inform future practice, policy, and research regarding the experiences and needs of CHC graduate students and serve to promote recognition of the above challenges for not only the study participants (CHC students), but as well as Asian sojourners in general, while conducting any research.