First Survey:

1. Personal questions:
a. Students’ personal history:
 How old are you (years)?
 Please indicate your gender
o Female
o Male
o Prefer not to answer.
 Specify your nationality.
 Specify your program degree.
 How long have you been in Italy?
 Compared to other families, you think that your family economic wellbeing is:
o Below average
o Average
o Above average
 2. current challenges: The Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale-21 (DASS) (Lovibond & Lovibond,
1995)
The responses are scored on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (“did not apply to me at all”) to 3 (“applied to
me all the time”). A handful of items were given accompanying explanations in parentheses to minimise
misunderstanding of items.
A handful of items were given accompanying explanations in parentheses to minimise misunderstanding of
items. For example, “I found it hard to wind down” was explained “I found it hard to relax and slow down.”
The DASS consists of sub-scales measuring current symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. The scale has
good internal consistency (Cronbach α = .91), and discriminant validity with the Frost’s Multidimensional
Perfectionism Scale (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995).
I found it hard to wind down I was aware of dryness of my mouth 0 1 2 3
I couldn't seem to experience any positive feeling at all 0 1 2 3
I experienced breathing difficulty (eg, excessively rapid breathing,
0 1 2 3
breathlessness in the absence of physical exertion)
I found it difficult to work up the initiative to do things 0 1 2 3
I tended to over-react to situations 0 1 2 3
I experienced trembling (eg, in the hands) 0 1 2 3
I felt that I was using a lot of nervous energy 0 1 2 3
I was worried about situations in which I might panic and make a fool of
0 1 2 3
myself
I felt that I had nothing to look forward to 0 1 2 3
I found myself getting agitated 0 1 2 3
I found it difficult to relax 0 1 2 3
I felt downhearted and blue 0 1 2 3
I was intolerant of anything that kept me from getting on with what I was doing 0 1 2 3
I felt I was close to panic 0 1 2 3
I was unable to become enthusiastic about anything 0 1 2 3
I felt I wasn't worth much as a person 0 1 2 3
I felt that I was rather touchy 0 1 2 3
I was aware of the action of my heart in the absence of physical exertion (eg,
0 1 2 3
sense of heart rate increase, heart missing a beat)
I felt scared without any good reason 0 1 2 3
I felt that life was meaningless 0 1 2 3
3. The Coping and Self-Efficacy Scale (Chesney, et al., 2006)
This is a 26-item scale measuring the participant’s belief that they can cope when faced with difficulties.
Participants report how confident they feel utilizing an array of different coping strategies. Each item was
summed with a higher score indicating greater coping self-efficacy. A few items that contained slang or
wording that international students may misinterpret were given explanations in parentheses. For example, the
item “keep from getting down in the dumps” was explained “keep from getting sad”.
Factor analysis has revealed three sub-scales: Problem Focused Coping, Stopping Unpleasant Emotions and
Thoughts, and Obtaining Friends and Family. The three sub-scales have good internal reliability of Cronbach
alpha’s = .91, .91, and .80 respectively (Chesney, et al., 2006). Validity studies have shown that the three
factors are predictive of less psychological distress over time (Chesney, et al., 2006).

For each of the following items, write a number from 0 - 10, using the scale above. When things aren’t going
well for you, how confident are you that you can:
1) Keep from getting down in the dumps;
2) Talk positively to yourself;
3) Sort out what can be changed, and what can not be changed;
4) Get emotional support from friends and family;
5) Find solutions to your most difficult problems;
6) Break an upsetting problem down into smaller parts;
7) Leave options open when things get stressful;
8) Make a plan of action and follow it when confronted with a problem;
9) Develop new hobbies or recreations;
10) Take your mind off unpleasant thoughts;
11) Look for something good in a negative situation;
12) Keep from feeling sad;
13) See things from the other person’s point of view during a heated argument;
14) Try other solutions to your problems if your first solutions don’t work;
15) Stop yourself from being upset by unpleasant thoughts;
16) Make new friends;
17) Get friends to help you with the things you need;
18) Do something positive for yourself when you are feeling discouraged;
19) Make unpleasant thoughts go away;
20) Think about one part of the problem at a time;
21) Visualize a pleasant activity or place;
22) Keep yourself from feeling lonely;
23) Pray or meditate;
24) Get emotional support from community organizations or resources;
25) Stand your ground and fight for what you want;
26) Resist the impulse to act hastily when under pressure.
Credits to: Chesney, M.A., Neilands, T.B., Chambers, D.B., Taylor, J.M. and Folkman, S.A. (2006) Validity
and Reliability Study of the Coping Self-Efficacy Scale. British Journal of Health Psychology, 11, 421-437
4. The Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF)
The MCH-SF measures three sources of wellbeing, i.e., social (social integration and contribution), emotional
(positive emotion and satisfaction with life), psychological (autonomy and personal growth). The 14-item scale
has been validated across many cultural contexts (Joshanloo et al. 2013; Khumalo et al. 2012) and has good
test–retest reliability over 3 months (Lamers et al. 2012). Diagnoses range from flourishing mental health
(upper limits), languishing (lower limits), and moderate mental health for those who are neither flourishing nor
languishing. Recently, the MCH-SF was tested in student samples from 38 different countries (N = 8066;
Zemojtel-Piotrowska et al. 2018). Zemojtel-Piotrowska and colleagues recommended the use of an overall
mental health score—that is, treating scores from the MCH-SF as a single dimension—given that differentiation
between the subscales was not strongly pronounced, particularly in more collectivistic countries. Thus in the
current study, we calculated only an overall score of mental health. Cronbach’s alphas in the current study
were .85, .89, .87.

Table 1. The Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF).

Place a check mark in the box that best represents experiences and feelings during the past month.

NEVER ONCE ABOUT 2 OR 3 ALMOS EVER

During the past month, how often did OR ONCE TIMES T Y DAY
you TWIC A A EVERY
feel . . . E WEEK WEEK DAY

1. happy

2. interested in life

3. satisfied with life

4. that you had something important to

contribute to society

5. that you belonged to a community (like

a social group, school, neighborhood, etc.)

6. that our society is a good place, or is

becoming a better place, for all people

7. that people are basically good

8. that the way our society works made

sense to you

9. that you liked most parts of your

personality
10. good at managing the responsibilities
of your daily life

11. that you had warm and trusting

relationships with others

12. that you had experiences that

challenged you to grow and become a
better person

13. confident to think or express your own

ideas and opinions

14. that your life has a sense of direction or

meaning to it

(Use the following format if you are only interested in whether a participant is or is not flourishing)
Place a check mark in the box that best represents experiences and feelings.

Please indicate whether you have felt or thought the following EVERY
DAY or ALMOST EVERY DAY during the past 30 days YES NO

1. Happy

2. Interested in life

3. Satisfied with life

4. You were contributing something of worth to your community or society

5. You belonged to a community (like a social group, school, neighborhood,

etc.)

6. You felt that society is a good place, or is becoming a better place, for all
people

7. Did you feel that people are basically good every day or almost every day?
8. The way society works made sense to you

9. You liked most parts of your personality every day or almost every day?

10. You were good at managing the responsibilities of your daily life

11. You had warm and trusting relationships with others

12. You had experiences that challenged you to grow and become a better
person

13. You were confident to think or express your own ideas and opinions

14. Your life had a sense of direction or meaning to it every day or almost
every day
5. Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; Diener et al. 1985).
The 5-item SWLS assesses an individual’s overall judgment of satisfaction with their life as a whole versus
specific life domains (Pavot and Diener 2008). Items (e.g., “I am satisfied with my life”, “If I could live my life
over, I would change almost nothing”) are rated on a 7-point scale with end points of 1 = strongly disagree and
7 = strongly agree. Scores range from 5 to 35, with the neutral point at 20. The SWLS has been shown to have
high internal consistency (0.79 and higher), while test–retest reliability and convergent validity is also high
(Pavot and Diener 1993). The SWLS is a widely used wellbeing measure (Larsen and Eid 2008; Pavot and
Diener 2008). Cronbach’s alphas in the current study were .74, .76, .74.

Below are five statements with which you may agree or disagree. Using the 1-7 scale below, indicate your
agreement with each item by choosing the appropriate number for each item. Please be open and honest in your
responding. The 7-point scale is: 1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = slightly disagree, 4 = neither agree nor
disagree, 5 = slightly agree, 6 = agree, 7 = strongly agree.
Strongly disagree Slightly Neither agree Slightly agree Strongly
disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
In most ways my life is
close to my ideal.
The conditions of my life
are excellent.
I am satisfied with my
life.
So far, I have gotten the
important things I want in
life.
If I could live my life
over, I would change
almost nothing.
6. Flourishing Scale (FS)
The FS is an 8-item measure of social psychological prosperity. It includes the following: having a sense of
competence, feeling engaged and interested, reporting meaning and purpose, feeling a sense of optimism,
accepting the self, having supportive and rewarding relationships, contributing to the wellbeing of others, and
being respected by others. Items (e.g., “I am engaged and interested in my daily activities”, “I am optimistic
about my future”) are rated on a 7-point scale ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. The FS
has shown high reliability and validity in college student samples (Diener et al. 2010). The construct validity of
the FS was acceptable, based on its moderate to high correlations with scores on several other wellbeing
measures (rs = .78, 73). Cronbach’s alphas in the current study were .80, .84, .83.

Instructions: These questions are designed to measure your self-perceived success in important areas such as
relationships, self-esteem, purpose, and optimism. Below are 8 statements with which you may agree or
disagree. Using the scale below, indicate your agreement with each item.

Strongly Agree Slightly Mixed or Slightly Disagre Strongly

agree agree neither agree disagree e disagree
nor disagree
I lead a purposeful and 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
meaningful life.
My social relationships 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
are supportive and
rewarding
I am engaged and 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
interested in my daily
activities
I actively contribute to 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
the happiness and well-
being of others.
I am competent and 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
capable in the activities
that are important to me.
I am a good person and 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
live a good life.
I am optimistic about my 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
future
People respect me 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
The Inventory of International Student Psychological Adjustment (Crano & Crano, 1993; Sakurai, et al.,
2010) Sakurai et al. (2010)
adopted Crano and Crano’s (1993) 38-item scale to form a 12-item scale assessing psychological adjustment
(adaptation) in tertiary international students. Example items include: “I feel homesick”, “I feel that I should
never have come to Australia”, and “I feel satisfied with my life in Australia.” The responses are scored on a 7-
point scale ranging from 1 (“it does not describe me or it is not true of me”) to 7 (“it describes me or it is very
true of me”). A mean item response score was calculated for each participant, with a lower score indicating
better psychological adjustment. Sakurai et al. (2010) report that the 12-item scale has good internal reliability
(Cronbach’s α = .84). 13

Qualitative questionnaire post

A brief qualitative questionnaire consisting of five questions. The questions inquired about what the participants
liked and learnt from the intervention, along with their dislikes regarding the program and suggestions for
modifications and improvements. understand how students experienced the sessions, the extent to which they
practiced homework assignments, and the outcomes of the programme.