Cross-Cultural Adjustments and International Collegiate Athletes

Abstract

Ridinger and Pastore (2000a) proposed a theoretical model to measure international student-athlete adjustment to college consisting of: (a) adjustment factors, (b) antecedent dimensions to those factors, and (c) outcomes. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the antecedent factors listed by Ridinger and Pastore were indeed the best indicators of successful adjustment to college for international migrant athletes and to determine if other antecedent factors were also relevant to adjustment. Multiple qualitative interviews with 13 international athletes from four NCAA Division I institutions were conducted. Data collected through those interviews supported all of the antecedent dimensions of the Ridinger and Pastore (2000a) model with the exception of the perception dimension subheading of faculty/staff. New dimension subheadings (a) sense of adventure, (b) previous international travel experience, and (c) family infuence emerged from the data and were added to a revised model of international athlete adjustment.