Intercultural Competence and Effectiveness of Intercultural Communication

The article aims to present the results of the study of intercultural competence as a predictor of effective intercultural interaction. The mechanism by which this effect is achieved is currently poorly understood. The study involved students from Russian universities (N=748) aged 18 to 25 years (M=20.09, SD= 1.73). 85% of the sample were women. The following methods were used: “Integrative questionnaire of intercultural competence”, the Scale of intergroup anxiety U.The scales of Attributive confidence and perceived predictability and Self-assessment of the effectiveness of cross-cultural communication was from the studies of W. Gudykanst, Scale of evaluation of the desire to interact with a partner of other cultures. All scales were modified for the study and showed good reliability. The theoretical model was tested using path analysis. The effects of all components of the integrative model of intercultural competence on the desire to interact with a partner in intercultural communication and self-assessment of its effectiveness were found, except for the “lack of ethnocentrism”sub-scale. It is also shown that the effects of cross-cultural interest and cross-cultural stability on the perceived effectiveness of communication with a foreign cultural partner and the desire to interact with them are mediated by intergroup anxiety and perceived predictability of cross-cultural communication.

1. Khukhlaev O.E. Integrativnaya sotsial’no-psikhologicheskaya model’ otsenki i prognozirovaniya effektivnosti mezhkul’turnogo vzaimodeistviya [An integrative socio-psychological model for assessing and predicting the effectiveness of intercultural interaction]. Sotsial’naya psikhologiya i obshchestvo [Social psychology and society], 2020. Vol. 4, no. 11, pp. 26—41. DOI: 10.17759/sps.2020110403 (In Russ., abstr. in Engl.).
2. Khukhlaev O.E., Gritsenko V.V., Makarchuk A.V., Pavlova, Tkachenko N.V., Usubyan Sh.A., Shorokhova V.A. Razrabotka i adaptatsiya metodiki «Integrativnyi oprosnik mezhkul’turnoi kompetentnosti» [Development and adaptation of the methodology “Integrative questionnaire of intercultural competence”]. Psikhologiya. Zhurnal Vysshei shkoly ekonomiki [Psychology. Journal of the Higher School of Economics], 2021. Vol. 18, no. 1. (In Russ., abstr. in Engl.). (In the press).
3. Abe H., Wiseman R.L. A cross-cultural confirmation of the dimensions of intercultural effectiveness. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1983. Vol. 1, no. 7, pp. 53—67. DOI: 10.1016/0147- 1767(83)90005-6
4. Ang S., Van Dyne L., Koh C., Ng K.Y., Templer K.J., Tay C., Chandrasekar N.A. Cultural Intelligence: Its Measurement and Effects on Cultural Judgment and Decision Making, Cultural Adaptation and Task Performance. Management and Organization Review, 2007. Vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 335—371. DOI: 10.1111/j.1740- 8784.2007.00082.x
5. Byrne B.M. Structural Equation Modeling With AMOS. In B.M. Byrne (eds). Ney York: Routledge, 2016. 460 p. DOI: 10.4324/9781315757421
6. Capell J., Dean E., Veenstra G. The Relationship Between Cultural Competence and Ethnocentrism of Health Care Professionals. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 2008. Vol. 2, no. 19, pp. 121—125. DOI: 10.1177/1043659607312970
7. Chaturvedi M., Chander R. Development of emotional stability scale. Industrial Psychiatry Journal, 2010. Vol. 1, no. 19, pp. 37—40. DOI: 10.4103/0972-6748.77634.
8. Gudykunst W.B. A model of uncertainty reduction in intercultural encounters. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 1985. Vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 79—98. DOI: 10.1177/0261927X8500400201
9. Gudykunst W.B. Applying anxiety\uncertainty management (AUM) Theory to intercultural adjustment training. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1998. Vol. 2, no. 22, pp. 227—250. DOI: 10.1016/S0147-1767(98)00005-4
10. Gudykunst W.B., Nishida T. Anxiety, uncertainty, and perceived effectiveness of communication across relationships and cultures. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 2001. Vol. 1, no. 25, pp. 55—71. DOI:10.1016/S0147-1767(00)00042-0
11. Gudykunst W.B., Shapiro R.B. Communication in everyday interpersonal and intergroup encounters. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1996. Vol. 1, no. 20, pp. 19—45. DOI: 10.1016 / 0147-1767 (96) 00037-5
12. Cui G., Awa N.E. Measuring intercultural effectiveness: An integrative approach. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1992. Vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 311—326. DOI: 10.1016/0147-1767(92)90043-t
13. Hu L.-T., Bentler P.M. Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 1999. Vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 1—55. DOI: 10.1080/10705519909540118
14. Hubbert K.N., Gudykunst W.B., Guerrero S.L. Intergroup communication over time. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1999. Vol. 1, no. 23, pp. 13—46. DOI: 10.1016/S0147-1767(98)00024-8
15. Kabir R.S., Sponseller A.C. Interacting With Competence: A Validation Study of the Self-Efficacy in Intercultural Communication Scale-Short Form. Frontiers in Psychology, 2020. Vol. 11, pp. 1—15. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02086
16. Khukhlaev O.E., Gritsenko V.V., Pavlova O.S., Tkachenko N.V., Usubian S.A., Shorokhova V.A. Comprehensive Model of Intercultural Competence: Theoretical Substantiation. RUDN Journal of Psychology and Pedagogics, 2020. Vol. 1, no. 17, pp. 13—28. DOI: 10.22363/2313-1683-2020-17-1-13-28
17. Leung K., Ang S., Tan M.L. Intercultural Competence. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 2014. Vol. 1, pp. 489—519. DOI: 10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091229
18. Logan S., Steel Z., Hunt C. Investigating the Effect of Anxiety, Uncertainty and Ethnocentrism on Willingness to Interact in an Intercultural Communication. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2015. Vol. 1, no. 46, pp. 39—52. DOI: 10.1177/0022022114555762
19. Logan S., Steel Z., Hunt C. Intercultural willingness to communicate within health services: Investigating anxiety, uncertainty, ethnocentrism and help seeking behaviour. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 2016. Vol. 54, pp. 77—86. DOI: 10.1177/0022022114555762
20. Peterson J.C., Milstein T., Chen Y.W., Nakazawa M. Self-Efficacy in Intercultural Communication: The Development and Validation of a Sojourners’ Scale. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 2011. Vol. 4, no. 4, pp. 290—309. DOI:10.1080/17513057.2011.602476
21. Simkhovych D. The relationship between intercultural effectiveness and perceived project team performance in the context of international development. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 2009. Vol. 5, no. 33, pp. 383—390. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijintrel.2009.06.005
22. Spitzberg B., Cupach W. Interpersonal skills. In M. Knapp, J. Daly (eds.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications Ltd, 2011, pp. 481—524.
23. Stephan W.G., Stephan C.W. Intergroup Anxiety. Journal of Social Issues, 1985. Vol. 3, no. 41, pp. 157— 175. DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-4560.1985.tb01134.x
24. Stephan W.G., Stephan C.W., Gudykunst W.B. Anxiety in intergroup relations: A comparison of anxiety/uncertainty management theory and integrated threat theory. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1999. Vol. 4, no. 23, pp. 613—628. DOI: 10.1016 / S0147-1767 (99) 00012-7
25. Ting-Toomey S., Dorjee T. Intercultural and intergroup communication competence: Toward an integrative perspective. Communication Competence. Publisher: De Gruyter Mouton. In Annegret F. Hannawa & Brian H. Spitzberg (eds), 2015, pp. 503—538.
26. Whaley A.L., Davis K.E. Cultural Competence and Evidence-Based Practice in Mental Health Services: A Complementary Perspective. American Psychologist, 2007. Vol. 6, no. 62, pp. 563—574. DOI: 10.1037/0003- 066X.62.6.563
27. Zhang X., Zhou M. Interventions to promote learners’ intercultural competence: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 2019. Vol. 71, pp. 31—47. DOI:10.1016 / j.ijintrel.2019.04.00
28. Zimmermann J., Greischel H., Jonkmann K. The development of multicultural effectiveness in international student mobility. Higher Education, 2020. DOI: 10.1007/s10734-020-00509-2