Linguistic Identity Positioning in Facebook Posts During Second Language Study Abroad - One Teen’s Language Use, Experience, and Awareness

Oct 15, 2026

Teens who post on Facebook at home often continue doing so during second-language study abroad. This study analyzes one Anglophone Canadian teen’s Facebook posts from two sojourns in Germany, complemented by a written reflection after the second experience, to examine identity positioning in relation to languages and cultures. Findings show the participant used posts to position herself as a German-English bilingual, aligned with an imagined community, and demonstrated increasing language awareness through reported successes and challenges.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages22

Reading Time55 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Literature Review

Linguistic Identity Positioning in Facebook Posts During Second Language Study Abroad: One Teen’s Language Use, Experience, and Awareness Roswita Dressler University of Calgary Anja Dressler University of Calgary Abstract Teens who post on the popular social networking site Facebook in their home environment often continue to do so on second language study abroad sojourns. These sojourners use Facebook to document and make sense of their experiences in the host culture and position themselves with respect to language(s) and culture(s) . This study examined one teen’s identity positioning through her Facebook posts from two separate study abroad experiences in Germany. Data sources included her Facebook posts from both sojourns anda written reflection completed upon return from the second sojourn. Findings revealed that this teen used Facebook posts to position herself as a German-English bilingual and a member of an imagined community of German-English bilinguals by making a choice on which language(s) to use, reporting her linguistic successes and challenges, and indicating growing language awareness. This study addresses the call by study abroad researchers (Coleman, 2013; Kinginger, 2009, 2013; Mitchell, Tracy-Ventura, & McManus, 2015) to investigate the effects of social media, such as Facebook, as part of the contemporary culture of study abroad, and sheds light on the role it plays, especially regarding second language identity positioning. Résumé Les adolescents qui affichent sur le site social Facebook dans leur environnement familial continuent à le faire pendant leur séjour à l'étranger. Ces adolescents utilisent Facebook pour documenter et réfléchir sur leurs expériences dans le pays hôte et pour se positionner par rapport à leur langue et à leur culture ou aux langues et aux cultures. Cette étude aexaminé le positionnement d'une adolescente par rapport à son identité à travers des messages Facebook lors de deux séjours différents en Allemagne. Les données de ces expériences incluent des messages Facebook provenant des deux séjours et une réflexion écrite complétée à son retour du deuxième séjour. Les résultats ont révélé que cette adolescente a utilisé les messages Facebook pour se positionner en tant que bilingue allemand-anglais. De plus, elle a démontré faire partie d’une communauté imaginée debilingues allemand-anglais en choisissant une langue spécifique selon le contexte et en rapportant les succès et défis linguistiques qu’elle a vécus. Elle a également démontré uncertain éveil aux langues. Cette étude comble les besoins d’étudier l’usage des médias sociaux tels que Facebook et le rôle du positionnement identitaire des adolescents qui font des séjours à l’étranger. Ces besoins ont été démontrés par des chercheurs qui travaillent The Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, Special Issue: 19, 2 (2016): 22-43 CJAL * RCLA Dressler & Dressler 23 dans le domaine (Coleman, 2013 ; Kinginger, 2009, 2013 ; Mitchell, Tracy-Ventura et McManus, 2015) . L’usage des médias sociaux tels que Facebook et le rôle qu'ils ont à positionner l’identité linguistique des adolescents qui étudient à l’étranger sera le thème decet article. Linguistic Identity Positioning in Facebook Posts During Second Language Study Abroad: One Teen’s Language Use, Experience, and Awareness There must be something wrong with me…i just thought about opening the window while thinking “ich brauchefrische luft” in my head…but im gonna do it anyway… —Teen, first sojourn Introduction This study examines one Anglophone Canadian teen’s experiences with two separate second language (L2) study abroad (SA) sojourns in Germany through an analysis of her Facebook posts. As the epigraph illustrates, teens use Facebook as a mediational means to position their identity while on SA (Scollon & Scollon, 2004) . In this post, Teen, our chosen moniker for the participant in this study, positions herself as a bilingual sojourner: Posting

FAQs

What is the study’s main focus regarding Facebook use during study abroad?

The study examines what one teen’s Facebook posts during second-language study abroad reveal about her identity positioning in relation to language(s) and culture(s).

How were the data collected for the analysis?

Data came from the teen’s Facebook posts from two separate Germany sojourns, supplemented by a written reflection completed upon return from the second sojourn.

What did the study find about the teen’s identity and language use?

The teen used Facebook posts to position herself as a German-English bilingual and as part of an imagined community, making language choices by context while reporting linguistic successes, challenges, and growing language awareness.

Oct 15, 2026

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