Foreign children living in Chinese mainland demonstrate better performance than the world average in multiple areas including openness to new experiences, multilingual communication and social group expansion, according to an international expat survey issued on May 23 by HSBC.

The survey, conducted over nine years, is the world's largest sustained investigation of its kind, inviting interviewees to share their experiences living overseas. It covered more than 26,000 expatriates from countries and regions including Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, France, the U.K., the U.S., Australia, India and Indonesia.

The survey showed that about 80 percent of foreign parents in China believe their children have become more open-minded since coming to Chinese mainland, 10 percent higher than the world average. Meanwhile, 80 percent of the foreign children living in Chinese mainland can communicate in the local language, far above the global average of 59 percent.

In addition, nearly 60 percent of foreign parents in China believe their children's social circles have been expanded by expatriation. Over half of them think their children have become more confident, and that their expat lives will benefit their overall development.

The survey also found that living in another country brings challenges for children, alongside the advantages. Nearly 50 percent of foreign parents in Chinese mainland consider adapting to new schools the biggest challenge for their kids, while homesickness and the language barrier ranked second and third.

More than half of foreign parents in Chinese mainland recognize the value of education at local schools, while nearly 80 percent judge the tuition for international schools to be expensive.