Social and Psychological Factors Affecting Students' Participation in International Academic Exchange Programs

International exchange programs provide valuable opportunities for academic and personal growth for students. However, number of Chinese students participating in international exchange programs remains limited, and only few studies identified the reasons behinds student decision-making to join this activity. This research aims to describe and analyse factors influencing students' participation in international academic exchange programs from a social psychological perspective. Participants were 412 students, purposively sampling from the University of Science and Technology of China. The research instrument was an online questionnaire, dividing into 2 sections: 1) Basic information of the respondents, and 2) Opinion of students towards advantages, problems and obstacles of joining international exchange programs. Descriptive statistics were employed to analyse obtained data.

The study primarily focuses on identifying the reasons influencing students' choices of international exchange programs and identifying their concerns about participating in overseas exchange programs from a socio-psychological perspective. The research findings indicated that the majority of students were willing to participate in international exchange programs and placed high importance on the research quality of the host institution. Factors such as financial pressure, and the opportunities for further education provided by the program were all important influencing factors. These psychosocial factors collectively influence students' motivations to participate in international exchange programs. The finding of this research enhances our understanding on the potential motivations, challenges, and benefits, experienced by students participating in international exchange programs, providing richer insights into the promotion of international exchange projects in universities, and clarify potential areas for improvement in project design and support.