Research on US Education Abroad: A Concise Overview

This chapter provides a concise overview of research in the area of United States (US) education abroad, beginning with a brief discussion of the changing role of US Higher Education (HE) and the ever-increasing momentum toward assessing and documenting outcomes. This is followed by a brief overview of the major trends in contemporary education abroad research in the US, with particular emphasis on research in short-term programming, and an assessment of the major methodological and design challenges. Because of their importance to education abroad and HE research, brief attention is given to the major theoretical models that have traditionally informed education abroad research in the US and the conceptual frameworks from related disciplines that may further extend education abroad research. Commonly used instruments are discussed in context of measuring outcomes. Some notable gaps in the existing research and needed directions are also discussed.