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‘I can’t...I won’t?’ International students at the threshold of social interaction.

Lookup NU author(s): Dr Clare Wright, Dr Alina SchartnerORCiD

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0).

Abstract

This mixed-method study tracked social interaction and adaptation among 20 international postgraduates on a 1-year programme in the UK, examining assumptions that language proficiency and interactional engagement directly underpin sociocultural adaptation. Participants remained frustrated by a perceived ‘threshold’ barring successful interaction with English speakers, while reporting reluctance to take up available opportunities, independent of language proficiency and sociocultural adaptation. We challenge linear models of adaptation and call for assistance to international students in crossing the threshold to successful interaction.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Wright C, Schartner A

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Journal of Research in International Education

Year: 2013

Volume: 12

Issue: 2

Pages: 113-128

Print publication date: 01/08/2013

Online publication date: 28/06/2013

Date deposited: 14/07/2016

ISSN (print): 1475-2409

ISSN (electronic): 1741-2943

Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd.

URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1475240913491055

DOI: 10.1177/1475240913491055

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