Search results

1 – 10 of 303
Open Access
Article
Publication date: 27 December 2021

Tanju Deveci, Glenda Elgamal, David Dalton and Donald John Langille

This study investigated the effects of an intercultural communication (IC) course on Emirati university students' intercultural sensitivity (IS).

Abstract

Purpose

This study investigated the effects of an intercultural communication (IC) course on Emirati university students' intercultural sensitivity (IS).

Design/methodology/approach

The participants were 89 Emirati students. The course required student involvement in a variety of tasks and activities, both inside and outside the classroom. The development of the students' IS was tracked using two instruments: the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) and a reflective writing task.

Findings

The difference between the students' overall pre-test and post-test scores was at a statistically significant level. The data from the reflective writing papers showed that the course developed the students' IS with a particular effect on their awareness of other cultures, barriers to effective communication and self-confidence.

Originality/value

In an increasingly globalized world, the findings of this study highlight the importance of a course designed to enhance university students' IS and therefore intercultural competence. They also indicate the need for more experiential learning to bridge in-class and out-of-class experiences which facilitate the development of students' intercultural competence.

Details

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Gulf Perspectives, vol. 18 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2077-5504

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Qualitative Research Journal, vol. 24 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1443-9883

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 2 September 2021

Walead Etri

This qualitative research set out to understand what teachers’ assessments were of the context of teaching as it relates to the curriculum, and what they consider appropriate for…

1525

Abstract

Purpose

This qualitative research set out to understand what teachers’ assessments were of the context of teaching as it relates to the curriculum, and what they consider appropriate for an optimal teaching and learning experience in a university English language teaching (ELT) context.

Design/methodology/approach

Qualitative data were deemed required to understand the effects and understanding teachers had of the ELT curriculum as it played out in their teaching context. Focus group interviews and observations were the main method for data generation.

Findings

The context has a bearing on the ongoing development of teachers’ intercultural sensitivity (IS) frames and how they address IS over time in their context of teaching as it pertains to curriculum.

Originality/value

This is an original research paper which gives insight to knowledge about the relationship between ELT, curriculum and culture.

Details

Higher Education Evaluation and Development, vol. 16 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-5789

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 31 August 2021

Jonna Koponen, Saara Julkunen, Mika Gabrielsson and Ellen Bolman Pullins

The purpose of this paper is to explore how business-to-business (B2B), intercultural, interpersonal salesperson–customer relationships develop using the lens of identity…

4891

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how business-to-business (B2B), intercultural, interpersonal salesperson–customer relationships develop using the lens of identity management theory (IMT; Imahori and Cupach, 2005).

Design/methodology/approach

The research uses qualitative semi-structured interviews on 18 targeted relationships with customers from another culture conducted with business-to-business salespeople.

Findings

The findings indicate that our respondents' relationships moved from trial toward enmeshment and on occasion toward the renegotiation phase, as described in IMT. In the case of low cultural diversity between salesperson and customer, the relationships reached the trial and enmeshment phase. In the case of high cultural diversity between salesperson and customer, the relationships on occasion evolved toward the renegotiation phase. Salespeople's cultural intelligence (CQ) facilitates the development of interpersonal, intercultural salesperson–customer relationships.

Originality/value

The authors transfer IMT from the personal relationship development arena to B2B intercultural, interpersonal relationships, address a gap in the literature in the understanding of salesperson–customer interpersonal relationships in different contexts and develop a theoretical model to understand intercultural, interpersonal salesperson–customer relationship development across different levels of cultural diversity.

Details

International Marketing Review, vol. 38 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-1335

Keywords

Content available
Article
Publication date: 2 August 2011

Robert Gibson

2710

Abstract

Details

Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, vol. 18 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1352-7606

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 February 2024

Anne Margrethe Glømmen, Beate Brevik Sæthern and Rikard Eriksson

This study aimed to identify and describe how mentoring influences the mentor, by operationalising and specifying learning outcomes involved in mentoring.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aimed to identify and describe how mentoring influences the mentor, by operationalising and specifying learning outcomes involved in mentoring.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used an action research approach, by uniting theory and practice to explore new ways of learning and evolve the field of practice in education. Thematic analysis was used to identify and organise patterns or themes that emerged from the data.

Findings

The results showed that mentoring changed the mentors' perspectives towards improved understanding, more flexibility and approval of other cultures. It seems that mentoring expanded the mentors' search for values, wishes and resources, including an awareness that our values, wishes and needs are more similar than different. Mentoring also seems to have improved the ability to reformulate, be flexible, strive to optimise user engagement and engage with people as they are, based on their own prerequisites.

Research limitations/implications

The low number of participants means the results cannot be generalised, and voluntary participation may have led to more motivated involvement and positive results.

Practical implications

This study shows that mentoring has had an impact on students' development of intercultural competence and cultural sensitivity through regular meetings with individuals from a different cultural background. Mentoring seems to have revealed insights into underlying prejudices and changed perspectives towards better understanding, thus increased acceptance of other cultures.

Originality/value

Search for similar studies shows a lack of research that operationalises and specifies the learning outcomes that mentors gain from being a mentor.

Details

International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6854

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 December 2023

Cristina A. Huertas-Abril and Francisco Javier Palacios-Hidalgo

Considering the potential of Collaborative International Online Learning (COIL) for cross-boundaries interacting and collaborating effectively, this study aims to explore the…

Abstract

Purpose

Considering the potential of Collaborative International Online Learning (COIL) for cross-boundaries interacting and collaborating effectively, this study aims to explore the intercultural awareness of pre-service language teachers after participating in a COIL project.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a quantitative research approach and an exploratory cross-sectional method, the authors administered a 13-item questionnaire to unveil the perceptions of 64 future language teachers from Spain after their online experience with counterparts from the USA.

Findings

Participants consider that COIL may have enhanced their intercultural and global awareness and equipped them with valuable skills and knowledge for the future, being women more positive than men. Moreover, the results also suggest that those participants who have not traveled abroad consider COIL to be a good opportunity to compensate for the lack of knowledge or experience with other cultures resulting from not having had the opportunity to visit other countries.

Practical implications

COIL needs to be seen as a powerful tool to promote global learning, intercultural understanding and the development of skills among students that will be vital for success in today’s interconnected world. Nevertheless, universities and teacher training centers need to rethink the preparation of future teachers for the increasing demands to prepare students for the requirements of the global world, and to do so, they need to consider that COIL may offer them significant benefits.

Originality/value

This work offers an interesting exploration of teachers’ attitudes toward COIL, providing insights into the potential of online collaboration for developing intercultural awareness.

Details

Journal for Multicultural Education, vol. 18 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2053-535X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 31 May 2022

Abdellah El Boubebkri and Benachour Saidi

This article intends to explore the Sub-Saharan African students' perceptions on their cross-cultural adaptation to the Moroccan society by probing into their adaptive strategies…

1938

Abstract

Purpose

This article intends to explore the Sub-Saharan African students' perceptions on their cross-cultural adaptation to the Moroccan society by probing into their adaptive strategies adopted in order to overcome day-to-day challenges as well as factors impeding their adaptation processes. To this end, three central research questions are advanced: (1) what are the factors that influence Sub-Saharan students' cross-cultural adaptation to the Moroccan society? (2) How do Sub-Saharan students perceive the role of host communication competence, host interpersonal relationship, ethnic proximity, host receptivity and personality type in facilitating or hindering their adaptation? And (3) how do they undergo their cross-cultural adaptation to the Moroccan society?

Design/methodology/approach

The main aim of this article is to explore African Sub-Saharan students' perceptions on their adaptation to Moroccan society as well as factors affecting their adaptive experiences. Due to the complex nature of this research, opting for mixed-methods research, the combination of both qualitative and quantitative, would best serve the objective of this study. For this purpose, qualitative methods (interviews) are used to collect non-numerical data about factors that facilitate or hinder the cross-cultural adaptation of Sub-Saharan students in Morocco in the first phase, and then quantitative methods (questionnaires) are used to collect numerical data about their perceptions of their adaptation in the Moroccan society in the second phase.

Findings

The results of the present study revealed that a large number of Sub-Saran African students are well adapted to the Moroccan culture, but with discrepant degrees. Their adaptation is mainly influenced by an array of intersected factors. Firstly, the participants showed that the more they were aware of the Moroccan culture and language, the more likely they would be able to function properly and effectively in different social settings. Secondly, it was found that establishing social ties with the host members was perceived as significant for easing their adaptation due to the cultural, emotional and academic support these ties provided. Thirdly, host receptivity was perceived as an important factor that facilitated the students' cross-cultural adaptation. With the case of some participants, host receptivity, however, hindered their adaptation because they were subject to different types of discriminatory and racist behaviours by some Moroccans. Lastly, intercultural personality traits displayed in flexibility, prior cross-cultural move and intercultural empathy were found to contribute to the students' overall functional fitness in the

Originality/value

This is the first research to tackle the issue of Sub-Saharan African students' cultural adaptation in Morocco.

Details

Saudi Journal of Language Studies, vol. 2 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2634-243X

Keywords

Content available

Abstract

Details

Journal for Multicultural Education, vol. 18 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2053-535X

Content available
Book part
Publication date: 22 May 2017

Jürgen Deters

Abstract

Details

Global Leadership Talent Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78714-543-6

1 – 10 of 303