Navigating Emerging Adulthood Away from Home: A Structural Equation Modeling Study of Psychological, Sociocultural, and Academic Adaptation among International Students in Hungary

The present study examines emerging adulthood (Arnett, 2000) in the context of acculturation among international higher education students in Hungary. Specifically, the aim was to test an integrated structural model examining how developmental, contextual, acculturation-related, and individual factors relate to the psychological, sociocultural, and academic adaptation of international students. Data were collected via an online questionnaire. A total of 859 participants (M age = 23.84, SD = 2.32) were included in the structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis. The final SEM demonstrated good global and local fit to the data (RMSEA =.052, SRMR =.037, CFI =.977, TLI =.950). The results suggest that, of all the variables studied, instability during emerging adulthood and perception of an international student-friendly university environment were the most important factors in psychological, academic, and sociocultural adaptation. Among the adaptation outcomes, academic adaptation emerged as the most reliably predicted variable, showing the strongest association with perceived university supportiveness. These results indicate that emerging adulthood is, in many respects, a sensitive time window and not merely a transitional stage of life, but also a complex psychosocial period shaped by cultural, social, and institutional factors. For students studying abroad, acculturation and the developmental transitions of young adulthood appear to interact dynamically. Overall, the study highlights the importance of developmentally and culturally sensitive mental health support for international students during this transitional life stage.