Previous experience in a similar situation of any kind limits the likelihood that students will experience problems while abroad, or rather it a limits the likelihood that they will experience significant stress. Indeed, stress arises when someone appraises a situation as taxing or exceeding his or her resources (Lazarus, 1999; Lazarus & DeLongis, 1983; Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Previous experience means that one person may appraise the same situation very differently to another. It can also help them better cope with stress. It is not surprising that Eva had never really lived away from home before, let alone in another country. By contrast, a number of the other students involved were attending university in a different city to the one they grew up in; leaving behind people and starting fresh somewhere new was something they had been through before, meaning it was a less threatening prospect. The same was true for those who had lived abroad before, although simply having travelled overseas was not seen as being much help. For example, we have noted that Eva had travelled quite widely prior to her exchange, but she commented that living somewhere brings more challenges. She also noted: “When travelling, I find it much easier to deal with problems, because I know that they're temporary and just part of the experience.” Natalie
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was another student to comment that living somewhere abroad is quite different from travelling: “When you’re travelling, you don't have to figure out things… you stay for a couple of nights, you see the touristy things, you don’t have to figure out how to live there so much.” She also said that travel is exciting and involves constant movement: “Whereas living here… you realise this is where you are, this is where you’re staying, there’s nothing to keep you from missing home.” Molly was one student who had lived abroad previously. Her case was mentioned above. She had been on a high school exchange and had found it very difficult being away from her family during that experience, but she felt that she had developed some kind of immunity from it. The case of Bella was also mentioned above. Bella had a particularly problematic arrival, but this did not seem to cause her significant stress. She had been through the process of moving to another country on her own before, which gave her a sense of perspective that many of those who had not previously gone through this process lacked. Meanwhile, Georgia was another student to have been on a high school exchange. She noted that it was very different experience. This time she travelled on her own and had no one to meet her upon arrival, whereas last time she travelled with a group of other exchange students from New Zealand and they were met at the airport by a group of exchange volunteers. She commented: “We got taken directly from there to the orientation camp, we had three days there with other exchange students, then our families met us, picked us up, took us home and then they looked after us.” Nonetheless, her previous experience was still difficult. She noted that it was especially hard being away from her family: “I was sick when I first got there and I was like, ‘I just want Mum to walk into my room and give me a soup and a water bottle’ and I couldn't have that.” She compared her previous experience to a ride on a roller coaster with lots of ups and downs. She said that there were still ups and downs this time, but that she was better prepared for this, adding: “I feel like they’re smaller bumps this time.” Max had also been on a high school exchange, as well as living abroad on two separate occasions since high school. He noted that this did not prevent him from experiencing problems, including loneliness. However, he felt that he was better able to deal with these because of it: “Yeah, past experience helps me deal with those things and then pull out the positives of it, rather than get down in the dumps on the negatives
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and I think it would be very difficult having not been anywhere before.” He also noted that he still experienced problems related to unfamiliarity, but he was less impacted by these: “I guess this time I’m considering problems that I have and things that I don’t understand, I’m considering it more, well how would I approach that in Australia, rather than it’s completely weird… blah, blah, blah.” Finally, Olivia had spent three months living in a developing country since high school, where she worked as a volunteer. She commented that this previous experience had been a much more trying and that her exchange seemed easy in comparison. This discussion shows that some students already have a degree of what Murphy-Lejeune (2002) terms mobility capital prior to studying abroad, something that has been cultivated through previous experience. Does this also mean that they have less to learn from the experience? The answer to this question in most cases will be yes, but this does not mean that these students have nothing to learn. It seems a truism to say that all students have something to learn by spending a study period abroad. On this note, we must remember that there is a difference between being resilient and being open-minded or possessing other attributes associated with study abroad, not that resilience is a fixed attribute that cannot grow further. Students with relevant previous experience may have been better prepared than others, but they can also be just as prone to judge their host society based on minimal meaningful engagement as is discussed further in the next chapter. The upshot is that even the most experienced travellers can benefit from study abroad, although as with any student it cannot be assumed they will.