Graduation Term
Spring 2026
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
School of Communication
Committee Chair
Lance Lippert
Committee Member
John Baldwin
Committee Member
Jessica Rick
Abstract
International graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) from high power distance cultures play a significant role in undergraduate education at U.S. universities, yet they face challenges that go well beyond language proficiency. Coming from educational backgrounds where teacher authority is unquestioned and hierarchical, these GTAs must navigate American classrooms that operate on fundamentally different assumptions, where authority is earned rather than assumed, informality is the norm, and students expect to question, negotiate, and be personally known by their instructors. The present study examined how eighteen (18) international GTAs from seven (7) high power distance countries perceived and adapted to these differences while teaching at a Midwestern university. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) thematic analysis.
Hofstede’s Power Distance Concept and Kim’s Integrative Theory of Communication and Cross-Cultural Adaptation served as the theoretical framework. Analysis yielded six themes organized across two research questions, capturing the specific challenges participants encountered and the communication strategies they developed in response. The findings suggest that international GTAs do not simply assimilate to American classroom norms but develop hybrid teaching identities that draw from both cultural contexts. The study extends existing theory by demonstrating that power distance orientations shift over time through teaching experience, and calls for more intentional institutional support that addresses the cultural dimensions of teaching, not just language proficiency.
Access Type
Thesis-Open Access
Recommended Citation
Appiah, Deborah Akua Afi, "From Deference to Dialogue: How International GTAs from High Power Distance Cultures Adapt to U.S. Classroom Dynamics" (2026). Theses and Dissertations. 2279.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/2279
Included in
Africana Studies Commons, Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons, Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Education Policy Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, Higher Education Administration Commons, International and Comparative Education Commons, International and Intercultural Communication Commons, Language and Literacy Education Commons, Organizational Communication Commons, Organization Development Commons, Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons