A Compromise between Global and Local: Glocal Identity and Its Effects on Pragmatic Development

ABSTRACT

The concept of glocal identity has captured researchers’ imagination particularly in the last two decades and has been examined in relation with language learning. However, no study has yet touched upon pragmatic development in the target language under the effects of glocal identity. This longitudinal case study examined the development of glocal identity and its effects on students’ target language pragmatic development. The participants were 10 international students receiving preparatory education at a Turkish Teaching Center. The data were collected through instructor’s and researcher’s unstructured observation notes, participants’ self-reflection notes and their answers to open-ended questions. The results of the conventional content analysis indicated that the participants experienced increasing awareness of their local identities, adapted to their global identities and formed a glocal identity during their language learning experience. They also went through a three-stage pragmatic development during which reflections of their glocal identities were observed.

KEYWORDS:

• Glocal context
• glocal identity
• learner identity
• pragmatic development

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ayşegül Takkaç Tulgar

Ayşegül Takkaç Tulgar is an associate professor at ELT Department, Ataturk University, Turkey. She completed her undergraduate education at Middle East Technical University, and her M.A. and PhD. at Ataturk University. Her PhD. dissertation is on pragmatic competence. Her research interests are cross-cultural pragmatic competence, peace education, glocalization, language education and pre-service teacher education.