Whence legitimate peripheral participation? De-trivializing the social dynamics around Chinese students' doctoral research in the West

Abstract

While research on Chinese doctoral students in Western higher education institutions has garnered growing scholarly attention, the social dynamics around these students' research writing, arguably one of the most core elements of their academic life, have remained trivialized. This study, therefore, draws upon Lave and Wenger's Legitimate Peripheral Participation theory and examines the salient features of said dynamics. Our inquiry based on Chinese tourism students in the U.S. uncovers the social activeness and inactiveness that exhibit in the negotiation and co-participation between these students as “newcomers” of a community of practice and their advisors and writing center consultants as “oldtimers”.