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More to the World: an Analysis of Study Abroad Programs MORE TO THE WORLD: AN ANALYSIS OF STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMS HONORS THESIS Presented to the Honors College of Texas State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for Graduation in the Honors College by Kindra Idunoba San Marcos, Texas May 2018 MORE TO THE WORLD: AN ANALYSIS OF STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMS by Kindra Idunoba Thesis Supervisor: ________________________________ Robert Konopaske, Ph.D. Department of Management Approved: ____________________________________ Heather C. Galloway, Ph.D. Dean, Honors College TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments………………………………………………….……...4 Abstract…………………………………………………………….……...5 Introduction……………………………………………………….…….....6 Literature review & conceptual framework……………………………….8 6D Model of National Culture………………………………….…8 Edward T. Hall & Mildred Reed Hall: Understanding Cultural Differences………………………………………………………..16 Leon Festinger: A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance……………………………………………..…………18 Cultural Distance………………………………………………….20 Method……………………………………………………….……….….. 21 Survey Questions………………………………………………….…...….21 Results……………………………………………………………..…...….22 Analysis………………………………………………………………....…25 Discussion…………………………………………………………………27 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………29 References……………………………………………………………….…31 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis wouldn’t exist without Dr. K for guiding me! You took a general crazy idea I had and helped me mold it to what it is. Thank you for everyone who took time out of their day to participate in my survey which included friends and strangers! Thank you to my friends and family who supported, encouraged, helped, and reminded me to work on my thesis. I hope I don’t disappoint. Thanks to Professor Tajalli and Professor Moriuchi (先生) for giving me the opportunity to experience the world! Lastly thanks to my friends from foreign cultures who taught me so much about my own culture and myself. 4 ABSTRACT It is widely agreed on that studying abroad greatly benefits students in their academics, personal life, and future careers; I argue that which country you visit also plays an important role. In this thesis, I review Texas State study abroad programs to analyze the cultural distances between host countries in relation to United States culture and how students will benefit more greatly by studying in countries with a greater cultural distance. To test this hypothesis, I interviewed Texas State students who’ve participated in Texas State faculty led study abroad programs to examine if their experiences which include: personal growth, language acquisition, cross-cultural competencies obtainment, academic commitment, and career growth positively differed by country of study. To conduct my research, I used multiple cultural frameworks, including monochronic vs. polychronic time, high vs. low context, power distance, masculinity vs. femininity, and individualism vs. collectivism. My findings were that country location does affect personal growth, academic commitment, and cross-cultural obtainment. While majority of students regardless of country location had the same takeaways which include: wanting to purse traveling and working abroad and finding out that people are the same regardless of location. 5 Introduction Studying abroad is the act of a student pursuing education in a foreign country at a foreign university while receiving academic credits at your home university. It’s no secret that studying abroad positively affects students in a variety of ways. Coursework on cultural diversity is being taught in school curriculum but learning in a classroom has its limits. Therefore, receiving firsthand experience in a foreign country has received well deserved attention as a method to help students develop their intercultural knowledge and adaptability. NAFSA: Association of International Educators reported that, “. .the number of U.S. students studying abroad for credit during the 2015-2016 academic year grew 3.8 percent from 313,415 students to 325,339 students” (NAFSA: Association of International Educators, n.d.). This represents just over 1.6% of all U.S. students enrolled at institutions of higher education in the United States (NAFSA: Association of International Educators, n.d.). The number of students participating in short term programs has grown rapidly and now represents 56% of the study abroad population, whereas only 4% are in the traditional year-long program (Mapp, 2013). Students chose these short-term programs because they appeal to students limited flexibility in their finances or academics. Research on studying abroad has documented its beneficial outcomes which include personal growth, cross-cultural awareness and interest, functional knowledge, increase intercultural communication, openness to diversity, and the reduced to ethnocentrism (Mapp, 2013). When roughly 95% of the world lives outside the United States its hard to dismiss this essential aspect of higher education. With an ever-growing globalized world, students can miss out on international business opportunities due to their lack of 6 international competency. The table below shows the percentage of U.S. study abroad students by host region. Host Region 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 Africa 4.5% 4.6% 4.4% 3.4% 3.9% Asia 12.4% 12.4% 11.9% 11.4% 11.1% Europe 53.3% 53.3% 53.3% 54.5% 54.4% Latin America 15.8% 15.7% 16.2% 16.0% 16.3% Middle East 2.5% 2.2% 2.1% 2.2% 1.9% North America 0.6% 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% Oceania 4.5% 4.0% 3.9% 4.0% 4.2% Multiple Regions 6.4% 7.3% 7.7% 7.9% 7.6% *Data from the Institute of International Education's Open Doors Report and the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics. An overwhelming number of U.S. students studied abroad in Europe from 2011 to 2016 and according to NAFSA 40% studied in just five countries: The United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, France, and Germany. According to psychologists, “. exposure to diverse normative views in groups or work teams consisting of culturally diverse members is positively related to the development of creative potential” (Leung and Chiu, 2010). This leads me to the proposal that students can gain more from their international experience if they study in countries not in Europe particularly Western Europe due to its limited cultural distance To compare and contracts other countries to the United States I will be using several cultural frameworks and literature review which include Geert Hofstede 6D model of national culture, Edward and Mildred Hall “Understanding Cultural Differences”, and Leon Festinger “A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance”. 7 Literature review & conceptual framework 6D Model of National Culture Geert Hofstede is a Dutch social psychologist and is known for pioneering research on cross-cultural groups and workplace organizations. The six dimensions of national culture are based on research done by Professor Geert Hofstede, Gert Jan Hofstede, Michael Minkov and their research teams (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). The dimensions of a countries’ culture are relative and isn’t accurate for every individual in said country. The six dimensions of national culture are: power distance, individualism vs. collectivism, masculinity vs. femininity, uncertainty avoidance, long term orientation vs. short term orientation, and indulgence vs. restraint. Power Distance Hofstede, G. (n.d.). Power Distance World map photograph. Licensed under Geerthofstede.com Power distance is the, “. degree to which the less powerful members of a society accept and expect that power is distributed unequally” (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). 8 Countries with a high to medium power distance index include: Russia, Eastern Europe, Kazakhstan, Southeast Asia, East Asia, India, Mexico, Central America, Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador and majority of Central Asia and Africa. The people in these countries accept that there is a hierarchical order, which could be order in the family or workplace, allowing everyone to have their place in society. Power and authority is an important part of life; people are not equal which is an accepted thought. This can be seen by these societies vertical arrangements where leaders are expected to make difficult decisions for the whole team while facing no opposition from subordinates. Subordinates simply do the job dictated to them. Low power distance countries include: Canada, the United States, the Nordic countries, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand. These low power distance countries strive to, “. .equalize the distribution of power and demand justification for inequalities of power” (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). These countries strive for equality in all sectors but does not mean they are equal. For example, the United States which has a low power distance displays a more unequal distribution of wealth when compared to Germany also a low power distance country. The low power distance is most noticeable in the workplace where employees are considered equal to the boss. Employees (subordinate wouldn’t be used in the workplace since it refers to inferiority) would be more readily and encouraged to approach and contradict their bosses. Leaders encourage independent thought and creative contributions to the team. Organizations (families, schools, workplaces) are looser and hierarchies are decentralized. Individualism vs. Collectivism 9 Individualism is defined as a, “. .loosely-knit social framework in which individuals are expected to take care of only themselves and their immediate families” (Hofstede Insights, n.d.). Countries with high individualist views include: the United
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