Ethnic and Racial Studies· 2026Q1
A Bourdieusian study of international students’ lifeworlds: multiplicity in a “twisted space”
- 5citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
International students navigate a "twisted space" characterized by paradoxical multiplicity and exclusivity, experiencing both benefits and burdens from family support.
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Key points
- Developed "twisted space" and "exclusive multiplicity" concepts from Bourdieusian theory and data.
- International students experience a "twisted space" with intertwined benefits and consequences.
- Students navigate paradoxes of multiplicity and exclusivity in social, work, and family life.
- Family support is perceived as both a blessing and a burden ('weight of love').
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
This study explores the tensions and dynamics embedded in the lifeworlds of international students. Data were drawn from an Australian study, including interviews with 16 international students and nine community members supporting international students through their professional work. Building on the under-utilised Bourdieusian construct of “space” and notion of “multiplicity”, we developed the concepts of “twisted space” and “exclusive multiplicity” from and for our data analysis, leading to three themes: (1) negotiating the intertwined benefits and consequences of life overseas – resembling a Möbius Ribbon – in a “twisted” space; (2) navigating the paradox of multiplicity and exclusivity within the social spaces of study, work, and family; and (3) being blessed and burdened by the “weight of love” from family. Multiplicity within twisted space is not merely a theoretical construct but a lived reality for international students. Our study advances understandings of the international students‘ lifeworlds, beyond habitus, capital, and field.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Communication
CommunicationSocial Sciences