The Forms of Dissonance Experienced by U.S. University Agriculture Students During a Study Abroad in Nicaragua

Abstract

In spring 2018, nine agriculture students from Louisiana State University traveled to Nicaragua for a study abroad course. During this experience, students explored agricultural industries and engaged in cultural tours as well as in a service-learning project. Evidence has demonstrated that such experiences can transform students' intercultural sensitivity, global knowledge, and views on agriculture. To facilitate such an experience, however, requires educators to design experiences that challenge students' existing values and worldviews-a concept known as dissonance. Mezirow theorized that when individuals reflect critically on dissonance, it spurs a transformational learning (TL) process. However, knowledge of the types of dissonance that initiate TL in study abroad programs is insufficient. This study, therefore, sought to understand the multiple ways that students experienced dissonance during a study abroad course. Through our analysis, four forms of dissonance emerged: (1) environmental, (2) sociocultural, (3) intellectual, and (4) personal. When viewed through the lens of TL theory, the forms of dissonance appeared to shape and influence how students experienced TL as well as their resulting perspective changes. As a consequence, this study provided important insights into how study abroad courses could be designed and delivered to better encourage the maturation of students' perspectives on global issues and problems.

Awakening Transformative Learning: A Comparison of the Dissonance Experienced by Agriculture Majors During Study Abroad Courses to Costa Rica and Thailand

“…Students also articulated they experienced intellectual dissonance, or discrepancies regarding their existing knowledge, as they encountered new concepts, practices, and innovations in Costa Rica and Thailand that seemed to stand in contrast to their previous knowledge of U.S. agriculture. This finding supports those reported by O'Malley et al (2019). However, the final form of dissonance, moral, does not appear to have been explored previously.…”

“…Mezirow (1991) explained that when individuals reflect on dissonance, it could spur a powerful learning process, called transformational learning (TL), by which individuals' previously held worldviews are transformed. O'Malley, Roberts, Stair, and Blackburn (2019) reported that university students experienced four forms of dissonance during a study abroad course to Nicaragua: (1) environmental, (2) sociocultural, (3) personal, and (4) intellectual. And, as a consequence of such dissonance, they experienced a transformation of their perspectives (O'Malley et al, 2019).…”

“…O'Malley, Roberts, Stair, and Blackburn (2019) reported that university students experienced four forms of dissonance during a study abroad course to Nicaragua: (1) environmental, (2) sociocultural, (3) personal, and (4) intellectual. And, as a consequence of such dissonance, they experienced a transformation of their perspectives (O'Malley et al, 2019). However, a need existed to understand whether agriculture students in study abroad courses in other contexts and at varying durations of time experienced similar forms of dissonance.…”

A Typology of University Agriculture Students’ Projected Motivations to Study Abroad: An Application of Q Methodology

“…However, literature on the role social influences play in serving as a primary motivation for agriculture students, especially regarding racial minority groups, to study abroad is scant. Finally, the Learning-Oriented Students, who were primarily female, reported their desire to gain more agricultural knowledge, experience an alternative method of instruction, and learn to work with diverse populations provided intrinsic value (Eccles et al, 1983) to encourage them to enroll in a study abroad course in the future, which is supported by literature reported in agricultural education (Danjean, et al, 2015;O'Malley et al, 2019;Raczkoski et al, 2018). Our findings, therefore, provided important insights into expectancy-value theory and practice regarding the design and delivery of study abroad courses.…”

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“…The literature in agriculture has also explored the short-term impacts and best practices of study abroad courses (Bunch et al, 2018;Conner et al, 2019;Conner & Roberts, 2015;Dobbins et al, 2019Dobbins et al, , 2020O'Malley et al, 2019;Roberts & Edwards, 2016, Roberts et al, 2020a, 2020b. During short-term study abroad courses, existing evidence has demonstrated that students can began to reexamine their lifestyle, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors (Dobbins et al, 2019(Dobbins et al, , 2020O'Malley et al, 2019;Roberts & Edwards, 2016, Roberts et al, 2020a. Despite this progress, the value and validity of short-term study abroad courses have consistently been called into question (Tarrant & Lyons, 2012).…”