What do we learn about a culture when we travel abroad? In this research study, I adopted a Piagetian perspective to understand how students represent a foreign culture before and after study abroad. I contacted four UC Berkeley students who did not initially speak French and who were not familiar with French culture, and I interviewed them before and after one semester abroad in France. I have analyzed the origins and evolution of their representations of French culture as they were shaped by their experience abroad.
The full paper has been submitted for publication.