A growing number of foreign language students are taking part in study
and residence abroad programs but what actually happens when they cross
cultures in an unfamiliar land? What effect can a sojourn have on their
sense of self and their perceptions of the target language and culture?
What factors affect their willingness to use the target language in
social settings? This book is based on the premise that student
sojourners and educators can benefit from a deeper understanding of the
language, identity, and cultural factors that impact on the development
of intercultural communicative competence and intercultural personhood,
"a new, alternative identity that is broader, more inclusive, more
intercultural... something that will always contain the old and the new
side by side to form "a third kind" - a kind that allows more openness
and acceptance of differences in people" (Kim, 2001: 232-3). Linking
contemporary sociocultural/ identity theories with practice, the
relationship between language and cultural learning and identity
reconstruction are examined through an ethnographic exploration of the
actual experiences of study abroad participants. The book provides a
unique, interdisciplinary perspective, addressing issues of importance
to professionals in second language acquisition, sociolinguistics,
cross-cultural psychology, speech communication, and intercultural
communication.
