This study investigates the complex motivations driving Chinese students to pursue education abroad, emphasizing both micro and macro-social factors. It examines how these students seek to escape various pressures at home, including familial rejection of sexual orientation, resistance to parental career expectations, difficult social relationships, and other forms of social suffering. These experiences are further shaped by broader socio-cultural, political, and economic dynamics.

Utilizing clinical ethnography and ethnopsychiatry from the PASSI@Unito and PASSI@Polito projects — initiatives aimed at exploring migration experiences and mental health across diverse international student communities at the University of Turin and Polytechnic of Turin — this research contextualizes the students' experiences within the interplay of political, economic, and educational factors between China and Europe.

The study highlights the multifaceted meanings that studying abroad holds for Chinese students, focusing on how they navigate their educational journeys as a means of overcoming personal challenges and envisioning new possibilities for their futures. Ultimately, the findings aim to provide a nuanced understanding of the relationship between subjective challenges and broader socio-cultural factors, offering insights into strategies for better supporting students in building self-confidence, enhancing social relationships, and clarifying their future paths.

Authors:
Lei Huang, University of Turin, Italy
Ilaria Eloisa Lesmo, University of Turin, Italy
Simona Imazio, Polytechnic of Turin, Italy

About the Presenter(s)
Dr. Lei Huang is currently a Researcher and Intercultural Mediator at the University of Turin, Italy.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

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