Life, Learning, and Standing Alone: The Adaptation Process of Wives of South Korean Students to New Circumstances.

Adjustment experiences of South Korean graduate students' wives living in Georgia were examined from a feminist viewpoint. The adaptive process, its cultural meaning, and related social ramifications, was hypothesized to be an example of transformative learning. These two questions guided the study: (1) how did South Korean students' wives adapt to their new surroundings; and (2) what cultural meaning did they make of their experiences. Six college-educated women (who had resided in the United States for at least one year) who were full-time homemakers between the ages of 27 and 35 with at least one child were interviewed and observed. Their writing was analyzed and their husbands were interviewed (although the findings do not indicate the results of these interviews). The adaptation process was found to be three-staged: (1) identity crisis or culture shock; (2) overcoming through friendship formation and ESL classes; and (3) mental equilibrium through "thinking positively." The wives regarded their adaptive experiences as learning, something that went beyond the boundaries of formal education. Finally, the adaptation process changed the wives' world view by forcing them to become independent; they expressed this as "standing alone." Moving from such a passive stance to an active one conflicted with their upbringing in South Korea's patriarchal society; however, this was described as a welcome change. (The bibliography lists 11 references). (AJ)