"It's my gem in my life": A Multiple Case Study of Japanese Students’ Study Abroad Experiences in Hungary

Abstract

This multiple case study explores the complexity of sojourn, more precisely, how two Japanese students benefited from a study abroad (SA) experience in Hungary. It aims to understand the processes, the gains and the underlying factors leading to development by looking at two different cases. Research was embedded in a longitudinal design using qualitative methods. Participants were two female Japanese exchange students who studied for one year at the University of Pécs, Hungary. Data was collected retrospectively using various instruments. In depth interviews were conducted immediately after the sojourn and follow-up interviews took place four years later to tap into the long-term impact. The interview questions elaborated on the participants’ experiences at four time intervals: prior SA, upon arrival, during SA and post-SA; the follow-up interviews applied stimulated recall to elicit the sojourners’ accounts. Participants filled in a questionnaire about their self-perceived Hungarian communicative competence and intercultural communicative competence. To complement their self-report data, they took a Hungarian oral test. English proficiency test scores were compared in the pre/post design to track participants’ English language gains. In addition to these data, Facebook posts about their SA experiences were also used as authentic SA materials reflecting lived experiences. The case by case analysis revealed that although the participants studied abroad at different times (in the academic year of 2010/11 and 2012/13), they shared many aspects of their study abroad outcomes. First of all, findings suggest that social networking with locals and international students played a major role in their language gains and intercultural development and it was necessary for constructing a critical self. Interacting with locals and international students also expanded their knowledge and shaped their understanding about their own context. Visits to Hungarian peers’ homes emerged as highly relevant for both participants in terms of host language development and successful adaptation. English as a lingua franca was an important aspect of communication, boosting students’ self-confidence in approaching speakers of other languages. SA supported both participants to think more globally and served as an essential opportunity to grow and shift towards becoming intercultural individuals.