Piropos and Friendships: Gender and Culture Clash in Study Abroad

Authors

  • Susan B. Twombly

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v1i1.2

Keywords:

study abroad, study abroad experience, critical learning, women, gender roles

Abstract

In this paper I will describe and focus on two ways in which being a woman affected students' study abroad experiences in Costa Rica: (l ) piropos, or unsolicited gender-oriented comments, and (2) women's friendships, their absence with women of the host culture, and the importance of friendships with other North American women. At least two other facets of the gender-study abroad relationship warrant attention but will not be dealt with here: gender and classroom experiences, and the different experiences of male and female students. First I briefly describe the University of Costa Rica, the status of women in Costa Rica, and the method employed in this study.

In this article, I argue that educators must ask not only how gender (and race/ethnicity) affects the study abroad experience, including attitudes toward the host country, but what study abroad programs can do to turn potentially negative experiences for women students into critical learning experiences. It is neither possible nor necessarily desirable to change the host country; however, we can help young women to understand how gender roles are constructed in other cultures and better prepare them to confront the differences.

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Author Biography

Susan B. Twombly

Susan B. Twombly is associate professor and chairperson of the Department of Educational Policy and Leadership at the University of Kansas. She spent a year as a visiting scholar at the Institute for Improvement of Costa Rican Education at the University of Costa Rica in 1992 and received a Fulbright Fellowship to lecture on higher education in Ecuador during the summer of 1995. 

References

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Carlson, J.; Burn, B.; Useem, J.; and Yachimowicz, D. 1990. Study Abroad: The Experience of American Undergraduates. New York: Greenwood Press.

García, A. and Gomáriz, E. 1989. Mujer Centroamericanas: Tomo 1. Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales, Consejo Superior Universitario de Centroamérica, Universidad para la Paz.

GRANDE End-of-Semester Yearbook, spring 1992.

GRANDE End-of-Semester Yearbook, fall 1992.

GRANDE End-of-Semester Yearbook, spring 1993.

GRANDE Study Abroad Handbook.

Gullahorn, J.T., and Gullahorn, J.E. 1963. “An Extension of the U-Curve Hypothesis.” Journal of Social Issues, 19 (3), 33-47.

Hogan, J. 1983. “Culture Shock and Reverse Culture Shock: Implications for Juniors Abroad and Seniors at Home.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American College Personnel Association, Houston, TX. ERIC Documents Reproduction No. ED2332698.

Oberg, K. 1958. “Culture Shock: Adjustment to New Cultural Environments.” Practical Anthropology, 7, 177-182.

Pickert, S. 1992. Preparing for a Global Community: Achieving an International Perspective in Higher Education.

ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report No. 2. Washington, DC: George Washington University, School of Human Development.

Stage, F. 1994. “Research Based Means for Improving International Exchange Programs.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, April.

Tierny, W.G. 1994. “Multiculturalism and Studies Abroad.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, April.

Universidad de Costa Rica. Oficina de Planificación Universitaria. Perfil del Funcionario Docente, 1992.

Wallace, J. deA. 1993. “Leveling the Playing Field.” CIEE Update, 5 (May), 12.

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Published

1995-11-15

How to Cite

Twombly, S. B. . (1995). Piropos and Friendships: Gender and Culture Clash in Study Abroad. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 1(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v1i1.2

Issue

Section

Research Articles