Towards an understanding of the impact of intensity and diversity of contact with the TL during study abroad on the construction of identity

The objective of this paper is to investigate the correlation between diversity and intensity of interactions with the target language in a Study Abroad context, duration of SA and the construction of identity. In order to determine such a correlation, a two-fold study is conducted. The first stage is the completion of a highly detailed language contact profile (LCP) questionnaire. This provides extensive information regarding language learning history and is a powerful tool in illuminating the intensity and diversity of exposure to a range of loci of learning that learners experience during study abroad. Following completion of the LCP, the informants take part in two role plays which require the construction of differential identities when engaged in a speech event of asking for advice. The construction of identities then undergoes linguistic analysis in order to investigate if and how differences in the construction of compound identities are indexed. In brief, results indicate that highly-intense, symmetrical exposure to a range of loci of learning is probable only after an accumulated duration of more than one year and that only after such a period, the learner acquires agency over identity construction.