Level-Based Diagnostics of Developing Ethnocultural Linguistic Personality Types in Language University Students

Abstract

This paper proposes a level-based diagnostic framework for tracking how language-university students develop an ethnocultural type of linguistic personality during professional English training. The study argues that mastering Anglophone communicative behaviour requires not only lexico‑grammatical skills but also interpretive reflection, cultural commenting, and pragmatic adaptation. The framework operationalises four levels – local ethnocentric, comparative reactive, contrastive adaptive, and intercultural strategic – each described through observable verbal and nonverbal indicators, typical interference errors, and assessment criteria. The model was validated in a pedagogical experiment (EG N=356–357; CG N=342–344) using three measurements (entry, mid-course, exit) and a mixed toolkit (situational tests, scenario-based contrastive analysis, classroom observation, and self-assessment). Results show a stronger upward shift in the experimental group: the intercultural-strategic level rose from 7.86% to 20.45%, while the local-ethnocentric level decreased from 49.72% to 25.49%. Tasks draw on the author’s teaching manual and target routine classroom and interaction scripts.