ANALYSIS OF STUDENTS’ OPINION ON THE ROLE OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY IN A GLOBALISED SOCIETY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15547/tjs.2026.2.007Keywords:
intercultural tolerance, cultural awareness, academic adaptation, medical educationAbstract
The study examines the attitudes, perceptions, and behavioural manifestations related to cultural awareness, intercultural tolerance, and academic adaptation among medical students at the Medical University of Pleven. The theoretical framework emphasises tolerance as a necessary virtue in the context of cultural diversity and a globalising society. Between March and May 2025, the Department of Social Medicine and Health Management conducted an online, anonymous survey among 119 Bulgarian medical students from 2nd and 6th year. All respondents participated in the study voluntarily. The survey was approved by a decision of the Ethics Committee, Proceedings Form № 82. Based on empirical data showed a high degree of intercultural sensitivity and a positive attitude towards cultural diversity, regardless of the academic level, is established. The analysis revealed that students at an advanced stage of their studies more often reported difficulties in adaptation, which probably reflects the accumulated academic workload. Participants perceived intercultural communication as a valuable experience, and intercultural initiatives enjoyed wider support, despite the low levels of active engagement. The results underscore the importance of targeted educational policies in fostering intercultural competence in medical education.
References
Walzer, M., On Toleration. New York, United States of America: Yale Universi-ty. Retrieved from https://books.google.bg, 1997.
Ivanova, V., Boykova, K., & Sharkova, D., Intercultural differences in foreign language teaching. Scientific conference "Innovative software tools and technolo-gies with applications in scientific re-search in mathematics, informatics, and pedagogy of learning" (pp. 183-190). Pamporovo. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/, 2017.
Georgieva, S., Global Health – Facts and Perspectives. Publishing Center MU–Pleven, 201 p. ISBN 978-954-756-338-4, 2024.
Lee K., Globalisation: what is it and how does it affect health?. The Medical Jour-nal of Australia, 180(4), 156–158. Avail-able at: https://doi.org/10.5694/j.1326-5377.2004.tb05855.x , 2004.
Schrecker, T., Labonté, R., & De Vogli, R., Globalisation and health: the need for a global vision. Lancet (London, Eng-land), 372(9650), 1670–1676. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61691-8, 2008.
Zarkova, P., Developing skills for partic-ipation in intercultural dialogue through Bulgarian language teaching. Siela., 2019.
Ganeva, Z., Main stages in the develop-ment of intercultural sensitivity. Bulgari-an Journal of Education, 1, 7-69. Avail-able at: https://www.researchgate.net/, 2015.
Vertovec, S., & Wessendorf, S. (Eds)., The Multicultural Backlash: European Discourses, Policies and Practices, Lon-don Routledge, 224 pp., ISBN 1004-15 55-6481, 2010.
Barrett, M., Byram, M., Lázár, I., Mompoint-Gaillard, P., & Philippou, S. Developing Intercultural Competence through Education. Publisher: Council of Europe Publishing, 128 pp, ISBN 978‐92‐871‐7745‐2. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/, 2014.
Council of Europe. Commission for Personal Data Protection (CPDP). Avail-able at: https://cpdp.bg/
Council of Europe White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue., Strasbourg, France: Committee of Ministers, Council of Europe. Available at: https://www.coe.int/t/dg4/intercultural/sour-ce/white%20paper_final_revised_en.pdf , 2008.
Verkuyten, M., Yogeeswaran, K., & Adelman, L., Intergroup Toleration and Its Implications for Culturally Diverse Societies: Intergroup Toleration. Social Issues and Policy Review, 1-30. doi:10.1111/sipr.12051, 2018.
Declaration of Principles on Toler-ance Proclaimed and signed by the Member States of UNESCO on 16 No-vember 1995. Available at: https://www.oas.org/
United Nations Year for Tolerance: resolution / adopted by the General As-sembly. Available at: https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/180203/files/A_RES_48_126-EN.pdf
Verkuyten, M., & Kollar, R., Toler-ance and intolerance: Cultural meanings and discursive usage. Culture & Psy-chology, 27(1), 172-186, DOI: 10.1177/1354067X20984356, 2021.
Yerastova-Mykhalus, I., & Savytska, A. Intercultural Tolerance Formation at Higher EducationInstitutions. Revista Romaneasca pentru Educatie Multidi-mensionala,13(1Sup1), 315-335. https://doi.org/10.18662/rrem/13.1Sup1/398, 2021.
Ling, H. Intercultural Tolerance and Conflict Competence through Trans-formative Learning. doi:10.13140/RG.2.2.32141.76002, 2024.
Periklieva, Violeta & Markov, Ivay-lo, ‘We Should Bring Some Changes‘. Socio-Cultural Adaptation of the British Medical Students in Bulgaria. 169-182. Abailable at: https://www.researchgate.net/ , 2021.
King, R. and Findlay, A., Student Migration. In: M. Martiniello and J. Rath (eds). An Introduction to International Migration Studies. Amsterdam: Amster-dam University Press, pp. 259-280, 2012.
King, R. and Raghuram, P., Interna-tional Student Migration: Mapping the Field and New Research Agendas. Popu-lation, Space and Place 19 (2): 127 – 137, 2013.
Migration Data Portal, Accessed in November 2025, Available at: https://www.migrationdataportal.org/themes/international-students-trends, 2024.
Bhandari, R. and Blumenthal, P., Global Student Mobility and the Twenty-First Cen tury Silk Road: National Trends and New Directions. In: R. Bhandari and P. Blumenthal (eds). International Stu-dents and Global Mobility in Higher Ed-ucation. New York: Pal grave Macmillan, pp. 1-23, 2011.
Foreign students in Bulgaria – where they come from and what they study, Accessed in November 2025, Availabe at: https://osis.bg/?p=4947&lang=en, 2024.
Record number of higher education students highlights global need for recog-nition of qualifications, Accessed in No-vember 2025, Available at: https://www.unesco.org/, 2025.
Musurlieva, N., & Stoykova, M. Study of the tolerance and attitude of the society towards international students of various cultural backgrounds in Bulgaria. Trakia Journal of Sciences, 16(1), 42-45. doi:10.15547/tjs.2018.s.01.008, 2018.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
