How Does Short-Term Study Abroad Impact Japanese EFL Learners’ Willingness to Communicate and Intercultural Communication Competence?

The aims of this study are to examine the impact short-term study abroad has had on a group of Japanese EFL (JEFL) university students’ L2 English pragmatic competence and also to determine whether pre-departure instruction is beneficial to students endeavoring to study abroad (SA). In particular, this study focuses on gains in terms of willingness to communicate (WTC) and intercultural communication competence (ICC) in L2 English. The findings of this study point to the benefits of shortterm study abroad (SA), particularly on the learners who received instruction prior to studying abroad