Treffer: Assessing the Effects of Semester-Length Study Abroad with the Miville-Guzman Universality-Diversity Scale

There is a vibrant literature dedicated to evaluating the effects of international education experiences on the students who participate in them. While much discourse centers on the development of "(inter) cultural competencies," research on assessment suggests that these competencies develop over a longer period of time than most abroad programs last, hindering educators' ability to attribute their development to these programs. In this paper, we present the results of our research from two semesters of our program. We collected quantitative and qualitative data relative to students' Universal-Diverse Orientation (UDO). The quantitative data was gathered through the short version of the Miville-Guzman Universality-Diversity Scale (M-GUDS-S). For qualitative data, we relied on openended questions and reflective journaling assignments. We found statistically significant quantitative changes in both semesters. The qualitative data reflected and helped explain these changes. We discuss the implications of these results for future research.

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