Misconceptions about Intercultural Learning

Developmental models of intercultural competence like the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity and the AAC&U Intercultural Knowledge and Competence VALUE rubric are based on research that points to individual potential for enhancing intercultural competence, which is represented on a continuum. Validated assessment instruments like the Intercultural Development Inventory and the Intercultural Effectiveness Scale include strategies and planning tools for increasing personal intercultural competence. Some components of intercultural competence such as openness and curiosity are both personality traits and attitudes that can be further developed. Other components like empathy, communication, and emotional management are behavioral skills that can be enhanced. Knowledge of oneself and of others, which also contributes to intercultural competence, can always be increased. In sum, people who appear to be better at intercultural competence than others are simply at a different point in their development due to life experiences and how they have processed these, but everyone has the potential to develop and grow.

This belief focuses on knowledge that is culturally specific – the idea that substantially knowing specific cultural worldviews, language, and practices allows you to bridge differences. Although such knowledge is a component of intercultural competence, this cognitive dimension doesn’t necessarily translate into the behaviors associated with intercultural competence. Instead, research points to the importance of “culture general” attitudes (e.g., curiosity and suspending judgement) and skills (e.g., frame-shifting, adaptive communication) that allow individuals to navigate differences with greater agility even when their knowledge is limited. Unfortunately, higher education tends to favor knowledge and therefore misses supporting the development of attitudes and skills that are foundational for intercultural competence.

There is a grain of truth in this assumption, so the scholarly response is nuanced. Yes, research has demonstrated that some aspects of ICC may be generalizable. For example, attitudes like tolerance for ambiguity, openness, and curiosity previously developed may transfer to other cultural settings or relationships, setting the stage for positive interactions in new contexts. On the other hand, they may not. You may be very motivated to learn about one area of the world or linguistic group but not be very curious about others. Some of the most generalizable aspects of intercultural competence may be behaviors of mindfulness –attentiveness to self and others as cultural beings, sensitive cultural discovery skills, and thoughtful application of abstract worldview frameworks. However, as a whole, many components of intercultural such as specific linguistic and cultural knowledge and communication styles and nonverbal behaviors are not transferable from one context to the next. This nuance in the generalizability of ICC is why it is problematic when instruments, frameworks, or experts claim that once people gain competence, they will always be competent.

Historically, conceptualizations and applications of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Access and intercultural competence emerged in two distinct spaces in the United States. Diversity training programs developed with the Civil Rights Movement and legislative changes of the 1960s and have since broadened their scope. Concepts of intercultural competence emerged through anthropology, communication studies, and research on US service staff working in other countries (Arasaratnam-Smith 2017), in world language studies, and in cultural immersion programs in US higher education. DEIBA and intercultural competence have operated with different theoretical frameworks and have been institutionalized in significantly different ways. In the US, DEIBA programming tends to focus more on structures and systems that lead to injustice and on the specific experiences and needs of groups who experience those injustices. Intercultural competence in many settings is associated with working across national cultural differences, and thus is often the mission of global learning or international education units in universities. Intercultural learning tends to focus on skills, attitudes, and knowledge that will help individuals develop their capacity to bridge differences in perspective more effectively.

As institutions work to meet the increasing demand for a globalized workforce, the natural tendency has been to send as many students on immersion programs as possible and claim that they gained intercultural competence as a result. However, researchers assessing student learning discovered that experience and exposure does not equate to developing intercultural competence. Although Allport’s Contact Hypothesis is often cited to demonstrate that positive intergroup relations naturally result from intergroup contact, his theory includes crucial conditions that must be present in order for a positive result to occur. Similarly, research has demonstrated that pairing experience with interventions through guided, mentored reflection are the necessary conditions necessary for intercultural learning to occur. Lou and Bosley (2012) found that “the primary intercultural learning from study abroad did not necessarily occur abroad, but rather as a result of particular kinds of reflection on the experience abroad” and that “intervention prior to and after study abroad is just as critical to students’ intercultural learning as the study abroad experience itself” (p. 268). Applying Kolb’s 1984 learning theory to intercultural learning, Dr. Tara Harvey reminds educators that learning does not necessarily follow directly from experience, rather, in a practical sense the key is to design experiences that facilitate learning for students. Check out what Purdue University Intercultural Learning, Research, and Assessment Specialists are to doing to make this happen.

There is no consensus in the broader field of intercultural studies about the role of language in acquiring intercultural competence. Some scholars emphasize the importance of language and culture-specific knowledge, while others consider culture-general, transferable skills to be more important. The 2006 D. Deardorff study concluded that language is important but does not guarantee the development of intercultural competence. In 1993, M. Benett used the term “fluent fool” to describe someone who is proficient in a foreign language but lacks pragmatic and intercultural skills. Research in the field of world languages supports the hypothesis that intercultural competence is not an automatic outcome of the acquisition of linguistic proficiency but must be targeted intentionally through learning activities, assessments, and mentorship (Durocher; Garrett-Rucks; Jackson), and many scholars see the language classroom as an ideal place to carry this out (Aski & Weintritt, 2020; Aski, Jiang, & Weintritt, 2023; Bennett et al.; Byram; Moeller & Nugent). Byram has made a useful distinction between the broader notion of intercultural competence and the concept of intercultural communicative competence, which also includes language competences (linguistic, sociolinguistic, discourse) (Wagner et al). According to Byram, intercultural communicative competence involves the ability to build relationships, to successfully negotiate communication, and to mediate interactions among diverse people while communicating in a foreign language. We can thus say (simplifying a bit) that a monolingual individual can develop intercultural competence, while a proficient speaker of two or more world languages might develop intercultural communicative competence. In either case, intercultural development requires intentionality and reflection.

This assumption overlooks the complexity of intercultural competence as a multifaceted construct. Intercultural competence involves the ability to effectively and appropriately engage in intercultural situations, encompassing knowledge, skills, attitudes, and awareness (Deardorff, 2006). While international students gain valuable exposure by studying in a new country, research indicates that the development of intercultural competence is significantly influenced by active and meaningful engagement with the host culture rather than mere exposure (Pedersen, 2010). This implies that domestic students who participate in intercultural experiences can also achieve high levels of intercultural competence. Moreover, international students may face challenges such as cultural shock and discrimination, which can impede their intercultural learning (Berry, 2005). Bennett, Bennett, and Allen (2003) highlight that intercultural competence is a continuum of development, suggesting that individuals—regardless of their status as domestic or international students—can enhance their intercultural competence through reflective practice and targeted educational experiences. Structured intercultural programs and curricula have been shown to enhance intercultural competence among both domestic and international students (Vande Berg et al., 2012). In conclusion, the development of intercultural competence is a dynamic process that can be achieved by both international and domestic students through intentional engagement, educational interventions, and reflective practice.

There is an increasing demand for interculturally competent graduates and employees from every discipline and field. Moreover, universities identify global engagement and intercultural competence as intended outcomes of college education in all disciplines (Dimitrov & Haque, 2016). Many colleges across institutions are investing time and funds to research intercultural competence recognizing the need to support students intercultural learning and growth.

This claim sets up a false binary between people who are interculturally competent and those who are not, whereas scholarship conceptualizes intercultural competence as a continuum or spectrum. Even if we reframed this misconception to say that mentors should be “more” interculturally competent than their mentees, it is unrealistic to expect mentors to be interculturally competent in all possible contexts (see Misconceptions about the Nature of Intercultural Competence above). We are all lifelong learners when it comes to intercultural competence, and it can be as or even more helpful for mentors to model their own learning than to simply already have all the answers. That said, research demonstrates that mentorship supports ICC development. Also, examples from faculty and their students suggest that mentors are often one stage farther along the Intercultural Development Continuum than their mentees. In short, it’s important to mentor for intercultural development, wherever you are in terms of your own intercultural competence.

Intercultural competence is crucial for anyone navigating the multicultural landscapes of their local communities, workplaces, and educational settings because the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of intercultural competence can impact everyday interactions. Furthermore, the principles of Cultural Intelligence (CQ) outlined by Earley and Ang (2003) demonstrate that understanding and adapting to cultural differences enhance communication, teamwork, and leadership within any culturally diverse group, not just in international contexts. Other examples highlighting the universal applicability of intercultural competence are The Culture Map by Erin Meyer, which provides insights into how different cultures communicate, lead, and work; David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken’s book Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds, which discusses the concept of global citizenship; and Cultural Intelligence: Surviving and Thriving in the Global Village, which offers practical advice for developing cultural intelligence in any context.

This belief assumes that cultural differences are relatively unimportant, but scholarship has long demonstrated that, while “good interpersonal skills” function well for people within their home cultural groups/contexts, those skills don’t necessarily translate across cultural differences, often resulting in misunderstandings, frustration, judgment, and lack of productivity.

This belief ignores the fact that teams function well but differently in various contexts. People who express this belief typically imagine that their own cultural approach is universal, or should be because it is superior, and bringing this ethnocentric orientation into a team can cause conflicts because it devalues processes that might be equally successful for others.

Research directly contradicts this belief. In fact, viewpoints bumping up against one another can be a catalyst for innovation. Building on this idea, Lencioni (2002) referred to Fear of Conflict as one of the Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Teams that leverage the difference within them tend to be the tails of the bell curve – that is, both the best and worst functioning. It seems that people either leverage their differences or let them get in the way of successful teamwork; homogenous teams, on the other hand, tend to be mediocre.

This assumption leads well-intentioned educators and supervisors to deliberately organize diverse teams for group projects. However, being thrown into interacting across difference with high stakes and without proper preparation and support often ends in failure in terms of team outcomes, reinforces negative cultural stereotypes, and fosters unwillingness to engage across difference. Research says diverse teams need mentorship, reflection opportunities, and most of all direct instruction on what makes diverse teams work, including openness, knowledge of cultural worldview frameworks, self-awareness of oneself as a cultural being, mindfulness, and adaptive communication skills.

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