Books and journals Case studies Expert Briefings Open Access
Advanced search

Students achieving intercultural competence through group work: realised or idealised?

Jane Burdett (School of Management, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia)

Journal of International Education in Business

ISSN: 2046-469X

Publication date: 29 April 2014

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to explore local and international business students' perceptions of their intercultural group work experience as a mechanism for developing intercultural competence and group work skills.

Design/methodology/approach

Using qualitative interviews, the group work experiences of 11 final-year undergraduate local and international students in a business program in a large Australian university were analysed.

Findings

The findings suggest that international and local students working together on group assignments create social and academic situations that result in “at best” limited positive intercultural learning and relationships. Differences in expectations, motivations, language fluency, trust and relationship issues were evident when students collaborated on group assignments. Thus, it appears that group assignments are potentially flawed mechanisms for delivering the goals of intercultural competence and group work skills in business students.

Practical implications

Although this exploratory study is limited in scope, the research has implications for pedagogical strategies, in particular, the use and design of group assignments and the preparation of students for working on group tasks in intercultural groups. It also has implications for developing effective learning mechanisms that lead to improved student intercultural competence, greater socio-cultural engagement and the academic success of international and local business students, as well as positive learning experiences for all.

Originality/value

The findings of this study are likely to be a useful resource for university staff considering the use of group work assignments for the development of intercultural understanding and competence and collaborative skills.

Keywords

  • Diversity
  • Collaborative learning
  • Internationalisation
  • Group assignments
  • Intercultural group work

Citation

Burdett, J. (2014), "Students achieving intercultural competence through group work: realised or idealised?", Journal of International Education in Business, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 14-30. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIEB-05-2013-0017

Download as .RIS

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Please note you do not have access to teaching notes

You may be able to access teaching notes by logging in via Shibboleth, Open Athens or with your Emerald account.
Login
If you think you should have access to this content, click the button to contact our support team.
Contact us

To read the full version of this content please select one of the options below

You may be able to access this content by logging in via Shibboleth, Open Athens or with your Emerald account.
Login
To rent this content from Deepdyve, please click the button.
Rent from Deepdyve
If you think you should have access to this content, click the button to contact our support team.
Contact us
Emerald Publishing
  • Opens in new window
  • Opens in new window
  • Opens in new window
  • Opens in new window
© 2021 Emerald Publishing Limited

Services

  • Authors Opens in new window
  • Editors Opens in new window
  • Librarians Opens in new window
  • Researchers Opens in new window
  • Reviewers Opens in new window

About

  • About Emerald Opens in new window
  • Working for Emerald Opens in new window
  • Contact us Opens in new window
  • Publication sitemap

Policies and information

  • Privacy notice
  • Site policies
  • Modern Slavery Act Opens in new window
  • Chair of Trustees governance statement Opens in new window
  • COVID-19 policy Opens in new window
Manage cookies

We’re listening — tell us what you think

  • Something didn’t work…

    Report bugs here

  • All feedback is valuable

    Please share your general feedback

  • Member of Emerald Engage?

    You can join in the discussion by joining the community or logging in here.
    You can also find out more about Emerald Engage.

Join us on our journey

  • Platform update page

    Visit emeraldpublishing.com/platformupdate to discover the latest news and updates

  • Questions & More Information

    Answers to the most commonly asked questions here