Study of the relationship between intercultural sensitivity and intercultural communication competence among international postgraduate students: A case study at University Malaysia Pahang

Sarwari, Abdul Qahar; Nubli, Abdul Wahab Muhammad

doi:10.1080/23311886.2017.1310479

Cited by 36 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Statistical analyses showed that the ISS and its subscales were (highly) reliable, as found in Chen and Starosta (2000) and other studies (Dong et al, 2008;Fritz et al, 2002;Liu, 2017;Matsumoto & Hwang, 2013;Nieto & Booth, 2009;Olson & Koeger, 2001;Penbek et al, 2012;Yilmaz, 2019). The analyses also revealed that the participants were generally (fairly) sensitive, confident, attentive and enjoyable in intercultural interactions and respected cultural differences when communicating with people in the Chinese culture, consistent with the findings in many existing studies (Anderson et al, 2006, Chen & Starosta, 2000Christmas & Barker, 2014;Liu, 2017Liu, , 2018bLiu & Liu, 2015;Lukesová, 2015;Martinsen, 2011;Sarwari & Wahab, 2017;Straffon, 2003;Tabatadze & Gorgadze, 2014). Meanwhile, the participants reported to be (highly) willing to communicate with others in Chinese, as found in Liu (2017Liu ( , 2018b and Yousef, Jamil & Razak (2013).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Predicting Effects of Demographic, Linguistic and Psychological Variables on University International Students’ Intercultural Communication Sensitivity

2019

J Ethn Cult Stud

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

With globalization, intercultural communication plays an increasingly more important role in various fields, including business, transportation and education. It is the same with intercultural sensitivity (IS), a critical component of intercultural communication. Though much research has been done on IS, little can be found on effects of demographic, linguistic and psychological factors on learners’ IS simultaneously in the same context. Little research can be found on IS in learners of languages other than English either. For these reasons, the present study investigated the predicting effects of linguistic, psychological and demographic variables on university international students’ intercultural communication sensitivity when immersed in the Chinese culture. One hundred and sixty-seven international students studying in a Chinese university in Beijing answered the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale, the Willingness-to-Communicate in Chinese Scale as well as the Demographic Questionnaire, and self-rated their proficiency in Chinese. Analyses of the data revealed the following main findings: (1) the participants were generally (fairly) sensitive, confident, attentive and enjoyable in intercultural interactions and respected cultural differences when communicating with people from the Chinese culture, (2) interaction engagement, interaction confidence, and overall intercultural communication sensitivity were significantly positively related to the participants’ ability to effectively communicate with people from the Chinese culture; interaction engagement was also significantly correlated with the participants’ openness to the Chinese culture, and (3) ability to effectively communicate with people from the Chinese culture and use of Chinese were powerful positive predictors for intercultural communication sensitivity. These findings imply that intercultural communication sensitivity is closely related to learners’ linguistic, psychological and demographic variables. Based on these findings, some implications were discussed.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Predicting Effects of Demographic, Linguistic and Psychological Variables on University International Students’ Intercultural Communication Sensitivity

2019

J Ethn Cult Stud

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For this research, we decided to use the definition of intercultural sensitivity proposed by Chen and Starosta [22]. The authors emphasized the differences between the idea of intercultural adequacy and potency, and this counters confusion in understanding the concept of intercultural sensitivity and gives a more comprehensive theoretical model to gauge this ideology [23,24].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Teachers’ Intercultural Sensitivity Levels in Multicultural Contexts

Robles

González

2019

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Societies comprise multiple cultures, meaning that different cultural perceptions exist and that intercultural sensitivity is seen as an indicator of successful intercultural relations. The aim of this research is to establish the intercultural sensitivity levels of teachers in two multicultural cities. The sample consists of 190 teachers in primary education in the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla and 174 primary teachers of Malaga and Granada, which makes a total sample of 364 teachers. The scale used in this research is an abridged version of the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale: relational engagement, regard for cultural diversity, relational certainty, relational satisfaction, and relational carefulness. The scale has been validated on many occasions in the abridged and unabridged versions. The results show that teachers in Melilla and Ceuta show high levels of cultural sensitivity. There are significant differences depending on the variables analysed and depending on the context. Interaction enjoyment and interaction attentiveness have the highest levels for teachers in this research.

show abstract

“…Previous studies (e.g. Bal & Savas, 2020;Deardorff, 2007;Marczak, 2013;Sarwari & Wahab, 2017), have also established that L2 teachers who are interculturally competent have attributes such as respecting and valuing other cultures, being accommodative and open towards people from other cultures, and treating people from different backgrounds fairly.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…The second level is related to areas such as competence in intercultural communication, the ability to use verbal and non-verbal forms of communication, socio-cultural competence, and communication approaches (Zhang, 2017). Individuals develop their intercultural communication ability through attributes such as interaction con dence, interaction enjoyment, interaction attentiveness, and respect for cultural differences (Sarwari & Wahab, 2017). These traits are developed when individuals are willing to interact with other people from different cultures, have respect for other cultures, and treat others from different backgrounds fairly (Sarwari & Wahab, 2017).…”

Section: How Educators Develop Intercultural Capabilitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maltese as a Foreign Language Educator’s Acquisition of Intercultural Capabilities

Żammit¹

2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This study sought to understand how teachers of Maltese as a foreign language (MFL) develop intercultural capabilities by exploring the importance of intercultural competence to MFL teachers, the characteristics of interculturally competent MFL educators, and how educators develop intercultural competence. The study adopted the interpretivist paradigm and a case study research design to collect qualitative data. Seventeen MFL teachers of adult learners were purposefully selected and interviewed. Findings regarding the perceptions of the teachers who were interviewed are as follows. Firstly, the participants stated that intercultural competence is important for MFL teachers because it helps them to embrace diversity, to help adult learners to learn the target language (i.e. Maltese) better, and to be sensitive and accommodative to learners from different backgrounds. Secondly, according to the participants, an interculturally capable person is one who knows their own culture and others’ cultural aspects, respects and accepts other cultures. It was also found that teachers develop intercultural capabilities through learning at a school and by visiting other countries and being immersed in the cultures of those countries. The implications of the findings as supported by existing literature, are that intercultural competence is important for foreign language teachers and as a result, intercultural training, learning through interactions with others and visits to other countries are necessary to develop intercultural capabilities.

show abstract

Study of the relationship between intercultural sensitivity and intercultural communication competence among international postgraduate students: A case study at University Malaysia Pahang

Cited by 36 publications

References 23 publications

Predicting Effects of Demographic, Linguistic and Psychological Variables on University International Students’ Intercultural Communication Sensitivity

Predicting Effects of Demographic, Linguistic and Psychological Variables on University International Students’ Intercultural Communication Sensitivity

Analysis of Teachers’ Intercultural Sensitivity Levels in Multicultural Contexts

Maltese as a Foreign Language Educator’s Acquisition of Intercultural Capabilities

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About