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The purpose of the investigation was to examine how Caucasian students perceptions of peoples of the host cultures changed during a semester of study abroad. Students pass through five stages of conceptual development in thinking about other cultures. Stage one is characterized by seeing people from the host culture largely as stereotypes without reference to personal interaction. In stage two a person references personal experiences to give examples of generalized or stereotypical behavior. In Stage three a person has had enough experience to see that people in the host culture are as human as themselves. In Stage four the sojourner reflectively applies concepts to the immigrants and foreign or ethnic communities with whom they have had personal experience in their home culture. Stage five is an application of this newfound humanity to people of other cultures whom they have not encountered. A critical pedagogical framework was found to scaffold and support students transformative experiences.