The Relationship of Intercultural Experience, Acculturation Expectations and Creativity among Russian Students

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Abstract

Intercultural contacts can be both destructive and beneficial to creativity, depending on the characteristics of acculturation. The aim of this study is to identify the relationship between intercultural experiences, acculturation expectations and creativity of Russian students in the context of internationalizing educational environment. Using quantitative methods on a sample of 272 Russian students (average age 21 years, 61% women) we tested hypotheses that the intercultural experiences are directly related to creativity, while acculturation expectations can both mediate this relationship and be an independent predictor of creativity. Our questionnaire included “Many instances” game from the RCAB of M. Runko, acculturation expectations scale (MIRIPS by J.W. Berry), intensity of friendly intercultural contacts scale (MIRIPS by J.W. Berry) and questions about length of staying abroad. The results showed that (1) the duration of stay abroad is positively related to creativity of Russian students; (2) positive relationship between the intensity of intercultural friendly interactions at the university and creativity is partly mediated by acculturation expectation of integration; and (3) expectations of integration and segregation are positively related to creativity, while the expectations of assimilation and exclusion are negatively related.

General Information

Keywords: creativity, multicultural experience, friendly intercultural contacts, acculturation expectations, contact hypothesis

Journal rubric: Empirical Research

Article type: scientific article

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17759/chp.2019150306

Funding. The article was prepared within the framework of the Basic Research Program at the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE) and supported within the framework of a subsidy by the Russian Academic Excellence Project '5-100'.

For citation: Bultseva M.A., Lebedeva N.M. The Relationship of Intercultural Experience, Acculturation Expectations and Creativity among Russian Students. Kul'turno-istoricheskaya psikhologiya = Cultural-Historical Psychology, 2019. Vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 51–59. DOI: 10.17759/chp.2019150306. (In Russ., аbstr. in Engl.)

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Information About the Authors

Mariya A. Bultseva, Junior Research Fellow, Center for Socio-Cultural Research, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5899-9916, e-mail: mbultseva@hse.ru

Nadezhda M. Lebedeva, Doctor of Psychology, Professor, Director of the Center for Socio-Cultural Research, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Employee of the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2046-4529, e-mail: lebedhope@yandex.ru

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