Psychophysiological aspects of adaptation in foreign students with weakened health

Background: About 40% of foreign students from 150 countries of the world study at the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. Unusual environment, other sociocultural traditions, climatic and geographic factors, time-related changes make special demands on the adaptation of foreign students. It is especially difficult for students with health status deviations. Aim: The article aims to assess the psychophysiological parameters of adaptation in foreign students with impaired health status. Materials and methods: The study was conducted on the basis of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. Male students aged from 18 to 19 years participated in the study. All students belong to a special medical group for health reasons and are divided into two groups: the control (Russian students, n = 28) and experimental (foreign students, n = 35) groups. To assess the psychophysiological features of adaptation, the indicators of response to light and sound stimuli were used, as well as the test of maximum oxygen consumption, the duration of individual minutes, and the orthostatic test conducted with the help of Sports psychophysiologist hardware and software complex (no. 2010617789). The obtained data were subjected to variational and statistical analysis using the Microsoft Excel 2010 and SPSS (version 19.0 for Windows) software. The survey was conducted with the written consent of the students. Results: Significant differences in simple sensorimotor response to light and sound stimuli were revealed in foreign students compared to Russian students (P ≤ 0.05). Also, more than half of the students from both groups had a low level of physical performance. However, males from the experimental group were characterized by lower values. The duration of the individual minute in foreign students with health status deviations is much shorter than in students from the control group. There were no significant differences in the data obtained in the orthostatic test. Conclusion: In males of both groups, pathological processes are characterized by a decrease in the functional capacities. However, most psychophysiological parameters are worse in foreign students. This indicates a decrease in the adaptive capacity of students from the experimental group and indirectly indicates the imbalance in the psychophysiological status.