Date of Award

Spring 5-16-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Expressive Therapies

Major

Clinical Mental Health Counselling

First Advisor

Jason Butler

Abstract

Being an international student for 12 years in the United States, this research engages with personal reflection and literature around international student identity formation situated in the current social and political context of increasing visa and employment uncertainty. International students’ ongoing movement across cultural spaces, limited representation of cross-cultural narratives and supportive spaces in academic settings, can contribute to fragmentation in experiences and identity that are shaped by dominant narratives and social positioning, thus further leading to disconnection from self and surroundings.

Relational spirituality literature suggests that one’s relational experience with God can deeply impact their interpretation of experiences, social reality, and their relationships with self and others. This study chooses to focus on how connecting with God through expressive and drama therapy core processes may support a sense of belonging among Chinese diaspora international students within a Christian fellowship context. This community engagement project implemented a four-session online expressive and drama therapy–informed group intervention, Where Is Home? Dialogues With God, creating a structured and reflective communal space to explore themes of home, belonging, identity integration, and spiritual connection. Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted using the researcher’s observational and reflective data (Byrne, 2022).

Findings indicate participants’ definition of “home” moves from physical location to relational presence. Engaging with God as the relational center through expressive and drama therapy core processes opens space for vulnerability, enhancing group cohesion, fostering new insights and deepening belonging. While the online format presented challenges, it also created unique opportunities to deepen connection with each participant’s meaningful spaces.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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