Necessary Redefinition: Response Shift Bias in Study Abroad Programs

• In Event: Roundtable Session 5
  In Roundtable Session: Broadening the Reach of Study Abroad Opportunities

Abstract

University students studying abroad are still maturing their self-perceptions skills; therefore, their internal standards are shifting as they are empirically measured. The combination of a lack of prior cross-cultural knowledge and maturing self-perception skills make objective self-reports particularly susceptible to response shift bias. This study examined the intercultural knowledge and intercultural awareness of eighty-three students who studied abroad. Participants filled out pretests, posttests, and retrospective pretests. Results revealed that pretests were significantly higher than retrospective pretests indicating a response shift bias. They were both significantly lower than the posttest signifying self-perceived growth while abroad. These results highlight that international education can help students redefine the parameters of their worldview and help contextualize their knowledge within a globalized community.

Authors

• Kendra Joy Edwards Thomas, Ball State University

• Stephen J. Snyder, Taylor University