A Qualitative Case Study on University Students' Intercultural Cognitive Expansion in Generative AI-Based Creative Writing : Focusing on Interactions between International and Korean Students

Abstract

This study explores the aspects and structural dynamics of intercultural cognitive expansion experienced by international and Korean undergraduate students in a generative AI-based creative writing process. Using purposeful and maximum variation sampling, 22 participants were selected from a “Creative Thinking and Writing” course at “A” University. Data collected from writing drafts, AI logs, reflective journals, and interviews were analyzed through inductive content analysis and data triangulation. The findings are as follows. First, through interactions with generative AI and peers, participants experienced cultural decentralization, objectification of their native cultures, recognition of the limits of translation, and the creative utilization of cultural heterogeneity. Second, the process of cognitive expansion unfolded as a dynamic trajectory progressing from AI-supported perspective exploration to peer-to-peer negotiation, the co-construction of third alternative perspectives, and a reconstructed global civic identity. Third, while generative AI functioned as an effective cognitive catalyst and linguistic scaffold, it also revealed limitations by reproducing cultural stereotypes and weakening learner agency. Fourth, these experiences formed a spiraling cyclical structure where AI-driven prompts, cognitive dissonance, negotiation, and reflection repeatedly converged and deepened. This study is significant in that it reconceptualizes generative AI as an educational mediator that facilitates collaborative meaning-making rather than a mere writing assistant. It suggests that the Human-AI-Human (HAH) collaborative framework can serve as a vital mechanism for expanding global citizenship perspectives and creative thinking in higher education. Future writing education should combine AI integration with pedagogical scaffolding designed to critically address technological bias and stimulate authentic human interaction.