Cultural Adjustment and Identity Negotiation: An Ethnographic Study of a Korean Student in an American Academic Community

• In Event: Strategic Presentation of Face in an Intercultural Space

Abstract

Adopting the Community of Practice (CoP) theory as the theoretical framework, this ethnographic study looked in-depth at how a Korean student adjusted to the PhD community of practice (CoP) at a Southern American university. It was found that personal traits and adjusting strategies played major roles in the participant’s adjustment to the new academic environment. Also, there seemed to be a constant identity negotiating and shaping process involved in her participation in the target CoP.

Author

• Yu Lu, Pennsylvania State University