Title
Local Roots, Global Minds – Identity formation and sense of belonging through the eyes of high school exchange students
Abstract
This master’s thesis aims to explore the issues surrounding the identity and sense of belonging of high school students who participated in a long-term exchange. It further investigates their role in future student mobility trends. Drawing on concepts such as the transnational habitus, the culture shock, or the sense of belonging through the third culture, the thesis uses a qualitative methodology with four semi-structured interviews. It will discover the developments of identity and sense of belonging of high school exchange students in the aftermath of their long-term exchange. Following differentiated levels of identification and belonging, the thesis argues that participants are endowed with a global mindset, while at the same time being rooted in their home country. This leads to the development of an intercultural habitus – a concept suggested in this thesis. It will contribute to a deep understanding of their experience and how this specific type of mobility is valued within privileged societal spheres. Grasping this process of identity and sense of belonging shaping is an important foundation for international student mobility and its intercultural perspective.
Author
Charlotte Housset
Keywords
Interculturality, transnationalism, habitus, high school exchange, exchange student, belonging, identity, AFS
Universities and date
University of Liège, University of Linköping, 2024