While transformative learning often leads to positive experiences, it can also be a complex, emotionally turbulent process. The process for some can represent a messy and emotionally chaotic journey, where learners may find themselves in conflict with their emotional comfort zones as they question belief systems, who they are, how they see the…

This article explores students' experiences of intellectual, social, and emotional growth during the first year at university and the extent to which these experiences can be considered transformative (Mezirow, 1981). The study is a qualitative interpretive multiple-case study built on semi-structured interviews with students in two higher…

A key challenge for international students in the United States is a readiness to study and live in a culture that is vastly different from their own. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of the lived experiences of Brazilian students studying in the United States six months after returning home. Thirty-three Brazilian students…

Marginalized adults have limited access to learning experiences that prioritize reflection and discourse, both considered preconditions in the Mezirow-informed field of transformative learning (TL). Using narrative analysis of a staff focus group and participant interviews over a 1-year learning journey, this study shows how a literacy program in…

This article investigates students' experiences of learning about privilege and oppression in the context of an introductory university course in civic engagement and global citizenship. Participants included 24 students enrolled in the course during either the 2013-2014 or the 2014-2015 academic year. The authors collected data through pretests,…

This qualitative case study explores how former Supplemental Instruction (SI) leaders experienced perspective transformation as a result of serving in a peer leadership role at a 4-year, private university through a blended theoretical framework based on the principles set forth by Mezirow and Nohl. Through their participation in interviews and…

This article investigates the transformative learning experiences of international graduate students from Asian countries. Data collection consisted of quantitative and qualitative methods. Participants included international graduate students from Asia, in the Colleges of Arts and Sciences and Engineering. Overall, 82.3% of the participants…

This article explores the potential of pedagogical approaches such as International Service-Learning (ISL) to cultivate a cosmopolitan orientation. Founded upon the premise that conceptualisations of transformative learning must be expanded upon to account for the interaction and balance between epistemological and ontological aspects of learning,…