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'The Grass Is Greener Further Away, Right?' Socio-Geographic Imaginaries and Psycho-Social Motivations of Short-Term Student Mobilities

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Title: 'The Grass Is Greener Further Away, Right?' Socio-Geographic Imaginaries and Psycho-Social Motivations of Short-Term Student Mobilities
Language: English
Authors: Ming Wei Ang (ORCID 0000-0001-5929-5163), Peidong Yang (ORCID 0000-0003-0669-6566), Yan Yun Toh (ORCID 0009-0006-1357-6908)
Source: Journal of International Students. 2026 16(1):91-110.
Availability: Journal of International Students. 4005 Spurgeon Drive #6, Monroe, LA 71203. Tel: 318-600-5743; Fax: 318-342-3131; e-mail: jis@ojed.org; Web site: https://www.ojed.org/index.php/jis/index
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 20
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Undergraduate Students, Student Mobility, Study Abroad, Asian Culture, Time Factors (Learning), Expectation, Student Attitudes, World Views, Cultural Influences, Personal Autonomy, Western Civilization
Geographic Terms: Singapore
ISSN: 2162-3104
2166-3750
Abstract: Singapore undergraduates prefer European destinations to Asian ones for semester-long exchanges, despite sustained efforts to enhance regional mobility within Asia. This research examines how ideological conditions, including socio-geographic imaginaries, sustain these preferences. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 63 local undergraduates from three universities in Singapore and used Causal Layered Analysis (CLA) to analyze emergent themes regarding worldviews, metaphors, and myths. We found that students' preferences are discursively sustained by interlocking perceptions of cosmopolitan normativity, Asian homogeneity, and essentialized Asianness of Singapore's identity. These worldviews are in turn stabilized by metaphors of distance (like "broadening horizons") and the bildungsroman mythical journey of a fledgling leaving the nest, contextually salient to life stage experiences of Singaporean young adults. Our findings illustrate the importance of considering the interplay between socio-geographic imaginaries and the social meanings of specific mobility programs, extending limited research on the ideological factors shaping short-term student mobilities.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1495227
Database: ERIC
FullText Text:
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  Data: 'The Grass Is Greener Further Away, Right?' Socio-Geographic Imaginaries and Psycho-Social Motivations of Short-Term Student Mobilities
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ming+Wei+Ang%22">Ming Wei Ang</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5929-5163">0000-0001-5929-5163</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Peidong+Yang%22">Peidong Yang</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0669-6566">0000-0003-0669-6566</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yan+Yun+Toh%22">Yan Yun Toh</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0009-0006-1357-6908">0009-0006-1357-6908</externalLink>)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Journal+of+International+Students%22"><i>Journal of International Students</i></searchLink>. 2026 16(1):91-110.
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  Data: Journal of International Students. 4005 Spurgeon Drive #6, Monroe, LA 71203. Tel: 318-600-5743; Fax: 318-342-3131; e-mail: jis@ojed.org; Web site: https://www.ojed.org/index.php/jis/index
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Foreign+Countries%22">Foreign Countries</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Undergraduate+Students%22">Undergraduate Students</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Student+Mobility%22">Student Mobility</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Study+Abroad%22">Study Abroad</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Asian+Culture%22">Asian Culture</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Time+Factors+%28Learning%29%22">Time Factors (Learning)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Expectation%22">Expectation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Student+Attitudes%22">Student Attitudes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22World+Views%22">World Views</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cultural+Influences%22">Cultural Influences</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Personal+Autonomy%22">Personal Autonomy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Western+Civilization%22">Western Civilization</searchLink>
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  Data: 2162-3104<br />2166-3750
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  Label: Abstract
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  Data: Singapore undergraduates prefer European destinations to Asian ones for semester-long exchanges, despite sustained efforts to enhance regional mobility within Asia. This research examines how ideological conditions, including socio-geographic imaginaries, sustain these preferences. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 63 local undergraduates from three universities in Singapore and used Causal Layered Analysis (CLA) to analyze emergent themes regarding worldviews, metaphors, and myths. We found that students' preferences are discursively sustained by interlocking perceptions of cosmopolitan normativity, Asian homogeneity, and essentialized Asianness of Singapore's identity. These worldviews are in turn stabilized by metaphors of distance (like "broadening horizons") and the bildungsroman mythical journey of a fledgling leaving the nest, contextually salient to life stage experiences of Singaporean young adults. Our findings illustrate the importance of considering the interplay between socio-geographic imaginaries and the social meanings of specific mobility programs, extending limited research on the ideological factors shaping short-term student mobilities.
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  Data: 2026
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      – Text: English
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      – SubjectFull: Foreign Countries
        Type: general
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      – SubjectFull: Student Mobility
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      – SubjectFull: Singapore
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