Health Promotion Behavior of Chinese International Students in Korea Including Acculturation Factors: A Structural Equation Model

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explain the health promotion behavior of Chinese international students in Korea using a structural equation model including acculturation factors. METHOD: A survey using self-administered questionnaires was employed. Data were collected from 272 Chinese students who have resided in Korea for longer than 6 months. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: The p value of final model is .31. The fitness parameters of the final model such as goodness of fit index, adjusted goodness of fit index, normed fit index, non-normed fit index, and comparative fit index were more than .95. Root mean square of residual and root mean square error of approximation also met the criteria. Self-esteem, perceived health status, acculturative stress and acculturation level had direct effects on health promotion behavior of the participants and the model explained 30.0% of variance. CONCLUSIONS: The Chinese students in Korea with higher self-esteem, perceived health status, acculturation level, and lower acculturative stress reported higher health promotion behavior. The findings can be applied to develop health promotion strategies for this population.