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Article published In:
Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education
Vol. 9:1 (2024) ► pp.100–126

Do students carry their home in their pocket?

Influence and impact of smartphone usage on the attachment to or detachment from family and friends during study abroad

ORCID logo | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

This longitudinal mixed methods study followed 16 U.S.-affiliated learners of French in Paris. After merging monthly social network and weekly smartphone usage reports, K-means clusters analysis revealed significant differences between (1) learners displaying attachment to versus detachment from their friends and family at home, and (2) smartphone usage profiles – spectators versus communicators and explorers. Triangulation with pre-/during-/post-study abroad in-depth interviews allowed identification of what was most instrumental for participants’ interactions in the target language and intercultural gains: geolocation applications on their phones and living with host families. The electronic umbilical cord hypothesized to exist for those displaying attachment was in fact not a detrimental force – quite the opposite. Instead, the way participants had (detrimentally) taken their home with them to Paris was by being visited by friends and family, by often interacting with U.S. students on site, and by frequently consuming English-speaking audiovisual content on their phones.

Keywords: mobile technology, social network index, French, intercultural effectiveness, language engagement, homestays, geolocation, audiovisual media, family, friends
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Review of literature
    • 2.1Parents/friends-student communication and visits during SA
    • 2.2Influence of social networks and mobile technology on language and intercultural gains
  • 3.Methods
    • 3.1Participants and setting
    • 3.2Data collection
    • 3.3Data analysis
      • 3.3.1Social network indices
      • 3.3.2Phone usage (RQ1)
      • 3.3.3Language engagement, intercultural effectiveness, multicultural personality, and living arrangement
      • 3.3.4Attachment versus detachment (RQ2)
      • 3.3.5Cluster comparison (RQ3)
      • 3.3.6Advantageous versus disadvantageous aspects of phone (RQ4) and other ways students took their home with them to Paris (RQ5)
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Phone usage during SA (RQ1)
    • 4.2Attachment versus detachment (RQ2)
    • 4.3Cluster comparison (RQ3)
    • 4.4Advantageous versus disadvantageous aspects of phone (RQ4)
    • 4.5Other ways students took their home with them to Paris (RQ5): Relatives and friends’ visits and contacts with co-nationals
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • References
Published online: 9 February 2024
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/sar.22018.mro
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