Facilitating Intercultural Development during Study Abroad: A Case Study of CIEE's Seminar on ...

325 Pages·2013·3.17 MB·English

by  Tara Harvey

Facilitating Intercultural Development during Study Abroad:
A Case Study of CIEE’s Seminar on Living and Learning Abroad

A DISSERTATION
SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF
THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
BY

Tara Alicia Harvey

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE DEGREE OF
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

R. Michael Paige, Adviser

June 2013
© Tara Alicia Harvey 2013
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This dissertation is a result of my own experiences living, learning, and teaching abroad;
advising international students at Texas A&M University and the University of Wisconsin-
Madison; studying in the Comparative and International Development Education (CIDE) program
and teaching intercultural courses at the University of Minnesota; and networking with amazing
colleagues through various professional organizations, especially the Summer Institute for
Intercultural Communication. I deeply appreciate all the people whose paths have crossed mine
throughout the journey, many of whom had more of an impact on me than they probably know.
During the process of pursuing my PhD, I have had two especially influential and
invaluable mentors. I enrolled at the University of Minnesota expressly to study under Dr. R.
Michael Paige, and the experience did not disappoint. I cannot thank him enough for the
wonderful opportunities he has given me, the countless hours he spent mentoring me through this
entire process, and his invaluable editing advice. I feel incredibly fortunate to be one of the last
people able to go through this experience with Dr. Paige before his retirement. As if that were
not privilege enough, I met Dr. Michael (Mick) Vande Berg when I interned for him at the
Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication in 2008. He too became a wonderful mentor
and eventually a friend. He has been generous beyond belief with me, and I thank him from the
bottom of my heart for all the doors he opened for me, the wisdom he imparted, and the laughs
we shared. Furthermore, I deeply appreciate the confidence he has always demonstrated in my
abilities and that he entrusted me to conduct outside research on something so near and dear to
him, the Seminar on Living and Learning Abroad. I truly feel that I hit the mentor jackpot with
these two men.
I also wish to express my gratitude to all of the amazing faculty members at the
University of Minnesota who have served on my committee throughout this process, including
Dr. Barbara Kappler, Dr. Jean King, Dr. Joan DeJaeghere, and Dr. Deanne Magnusson. I look up
to them all, not only because they are wonderful teachers, mentors, and scholars, but because they
are all of these things while also being committed mothers. There could be no better role models
for someone pursuing a PhD while also raising two young children.
Thank you also to all of the individuals who participated in this study. I deeply
appreciate their hospitality during my site visits and all that they shared with me about their
experiences. I hope they feel I have represented them fairly and accurately.
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Finally, although words cannot possibly express my gratitude to them, I would like to
thank my family. I could not have done this without them. Thank you to my parents for their
love, support, and babysitting services. Thank you to my amazing children, Emilia and Mateo,
who both came into this world while I was pursuing my PhD; their smiles and hugs kept me sane
even during the most challenging times. And to Agustín, the best partner in life a person could
ask for, thank you! When I had the will, you found the way. I cannot thank you enough for all
the sacrifices you have made and the heavy load you have carried. I only hope I can help you
follow your dreams one day as you have helped me follow mine.

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ABSTRACT
This study examines a relatively new phenomenon in study abroad: the practice of
intervening in students’ intercultural learning during their experience abroad. In this paper, I
refer to this type of intentional and focused action taken by educators to facilitate student learning
abroad as a ‘study abroad intervention.’ This study focuses specifically on a study abroad
intervention that is taught on-site while students are participating in a semester abroad. Created
and implemented by the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), the Seminar on
Living and Learning Abroad (‘the Seminar’) is a for-credit intercultural seminar that is offered at
numerous CIEE sites around the world. It is one of the largest, if not the largest, study abroad
interventions currently in existence.
This mixed-methods case study not only examines the outcomes of participation in the
Seminar on Living and Learning Abroad, but it also explores the process involved in facilitating
students’ intercultural development through such a course. The researcher visited two sites where
the Seminar was being taught—one in Western Europe and one in Africa— in fall 2010, where
she observed several sessions of the Seminar, interviewed the instructors multiple times, and
interviewed the participants. The primary data sources include these observations and interviews,
in addition to interviews with the Seminar administrators at CIEE’s headquarters and students’
pre-/post-test scores from the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI).
The findings demonstrate that the students participating in the Seminar on Living and
Learning Abroad at these two sites made significantly greater gains in their intercultural
sensitivity than would be expected if they were not participating in a study abroad intervention.
Furthermore, the findings illustrate that the process of facilitating students’ intercultural learning
during study abroad can be highly complex, and they highlight the importance of having skilled
facilitators teach such courses. This study also sheds light on the applicability of several
pedagogical theories—including the Intercultural Development Continuum (Hammer, 2009,
2012), the challenge/support hypothesis (Sanford, 1966), and Experiential Learning Theory
(Kolb, 1984)—to this process.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................... i
Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... iii
Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................... iv
List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ vi
List of Figures ............................................................................................................................. viii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 1
The Research Problem ............................................................................................................. 2
Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................................ 2
Proposed Research Questions .................................................................................................. 2
The Setting .............................................................................................................................. 3
Overview of Methods .............................................................................................................. 3
Definition of Terms ................................................................................................................. 4
Significance of Study .............................................................................................................. 5
Outline of Chapters.................................................................................................................. 6
CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE .......................................................... 7
Introduction to the Issue .......................................................................................................... 7
Theoretical Framework of Study ........................................................................................... 14
A Review of the Research ..................................................................................................... 33
The Role of the Facilitator ..................................................................................................... 50
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 55
CHAPTER III: RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY .............................................. 57
Background on the Seminar on Living and Learning Abroad ................................................ 57
Use of Mixed Methods .......................................................................................................... 63
Research Design and Instruments .......................................................................................... 65
Participants ............................................................................................................................ 69
Data Collection Procedures ................................................................................................... 71
Data Analysis ........................................................................................................................ 75
Researcher Background and Assumptions ............................................................................. 80
iv
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 82
CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS, PART 1 .......................................................................................... 84
Student IDI Scores ................................................................................................................. 84
Observation Findings ............................................................................................................. 93
Findings from the Student Interviews .................................................................................. 104
CHAPTER V: FINDINGS, PART 2 ......................................................................................... 177
Instructors’ IDI Scores......................................................................................................... 177
Findings from the Instructor Interviews............................................................................... 178
Findings from the Administrator Interviews ........................................................................ 230
CHAPTER VI: DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION .............................................................. 261
Summary of Findings .......................................................................................................... 261
Implications ......................................................................................................................... 273
Limitations of the Study ...................................................................................................... 280
Closing Statements .............................................................................................................. 281
References.................................................................................................................................. 282
Appendix 1. Training for Intercultural Development through Challenge/Support
According to IDC Worldview.............................................................................................. 293
Appendix 2. Interview Protocols ............................................................................................... 294
Appendix 3. Data Collection Timeline ...................................................................................... 299
Appendix 4. Consent Forms ...................................................................................................... 300
Appendix 5. Explanation of How Issues of Validity and Reliability were Addressed ............... 306
Appendix 6. Lead Instructors’ Approaches to Individual Students and Students’ IDI
Scores .................................................................................................................................. 307
Appendix 7. Thematic Analysis Comparison Chart .................................................................. 310

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LIST OF TABLES
Table Page
1. Definition of Terms ........................................................................................................... 4
2. Scoring and Description of the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)
Orientations ..................................................................................................................... 66
3. Instructor Demographics as Reported on the IDI ............................................................ 69
4. Student Demographics as Reported on the IDI: Western Europe ................................... 70
5. Student Demographics as Reported on the IDI: Africa .................................................. 70
6. IDI Scores by Student ..................................................................................................... 85
7. Participants’ IDI Score Change Between and Within Worldviews ................................. 87
8. Analysis of Participants’ IDI Change Scores by Initial Development
Orientation (DO) ............................................................................................................. 90
9. Participants’ Movement Within and Between Intercultural Worldviews According
to Initial Developmental Orientation (DO)...................................................................... 91
10. IDI Percent Achievable Progress (AP) of Students who Gained ..................................... 92
11. IDI Percent Negative Progress (NP) of Students who Regressed .................................... 92
12. Student Interviews: Overarching Coding Structure ...................................................... 105
13. Student Interviews: Milieu Category ............................................................................ 106
14. Student Interviews: Curriculum Category .................................................................... 125
15. Student Interviews: Instructors and Instruction Category ............................................. 142
16. Student Interviews: Students Category......................................................................... 154
17. Student Interviews: Role of the Seminar in Student Learning Category ...................... 158
18. Instructor Interviews: Overarching Coding Structure ................................................... 179
19. Instructor Interviews: Milieu Category ........................................................................ 180
20. Instructor Interviews: Instructors and Instruction Category ......................................... 187
21. Instructor Interviews: Curriculum Category ................................................................. 211
22. Instructor Interviews: Students Category ..................................................................... 216
23. Instructor Interviews: Instructors’ Conclusions about the Seminar Category ............... 226
24. Administrator Interviews: Overarching Coding Structure ............................................ 231
25. Administrator Interviews: Seminar Background Category ........................................... 232
26. Administrator Interviews: Teaching the Seminar Category.......................................... 234
27. Administrator Interviews: Instructors Category ........................................................... 239
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Table Page
28. Administrator Interviews: Coaching Category ............................................................. 247
29. Administrator Interviews: Curriculum Category .......................................................... 254
30. Administrator Interviews: Administrators’ Conclusions about the Seminar
Category ........................................................................................................................ 256
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure Page
1. Schwab’s Four Commonplaces of Education Applied to CIEE’s Seminar on Living
and Learning Abroad....................................................................................................... 15
2. Vande Berg's Challenge/Support Representation ............................................................ 19
3. The Intercultural Development Continuum (IDC) .......................................................... 23
4. The Experiential Learning Cycle..................................................................................... 30
5. Distribution of IDI Scores at Time 1 and Time 2 ............................................................ 86
6. Distribution of Intercultural Worldviews at Time 1 and Time 2 ..................................... 87
7. Spread of Time 1 and Time 2 IDI Scores by Site ............................................................ 88
8. IDI Change Scores for All Students ................................................................................ 89
9. IDI Change Scores by Site .............................................................................................. 89
10. Adaptation of Schwab's Four Commonplaces of Education to CIEE's Seminar on
Living and Learning Abroad ......................................................................................... 274
11. Balancing Challenge and Support through a Study Abroad Intervention ...................... 276

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