Open AccessIntercultural Competence and Study Abroad Programs-A Mixed Method Study
Author(s) -
Liqin Tang,
John Matt,
Patty Kero
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of education and training studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2324-8068
pISSN - 2324-805X
DOI - 10.11114/jets.v9i8.5323
Subject(s) - intercultural competence , psychology , intercultural communication , multimethodology , competence (human resources) , study abroad , qualitative research , pedagogy , cultural competence , mathematics education , social psychology , sociology , social science
The purpose of this mixed methods study was to investigate the intercultural competence (IC) level of college students, explore whether there is a statistically significant difference in the IC level between students with study abroad (SA) experience and those without SA experience, and examine their attitudes, ideas and experiences about SA programs and intercultural communication. Data collected from online questionnaires and Zoom interviews were examined through the lens of Hall’s the Iceberg Analogy of Culture and M. J. Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS), which were also used as the conceptual framework in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative results indicated the IC level of college students was high, reaching up to the acceptance stage or/and adaptation stage of Bennett’s DMIS. Quantitative study showed that the IC level of students who participated in SA programs was higher than those who didn’t.