ISANA

Shannon Weiley, Helen Bryce and Jason Sommers

Abstract: In response to globalisation, the number of students engaging in studies abroad and cross-cultural
living has significantly increased. This paper explores the extent to which social isolation and
loneliness is evident within international student’ cohorts, and further examines the advantages of
using technological communication to decrease the feeling of social isolation and loneliness within
international student groups. The advantages and disadvantages of applying different methods of
technological communication will be evaluated, whilst focussing on the effectiveness and efficiency of
the technology from a student and a staff perspective. The particular forms of technological
communication examined include: web-based newsletters and online discussion boards and
announcement pages.
Experiences gained by the International Student Support staff at one of the University of Newcastle’s
smaller campuses is triangulated with quantitative and qualitative data gathered from students across
the University.

Keywords: International students, social isolation, loneliness, technology, communication

Download Article