The Role of International Study Tours in Cultivating Ethnocultural Empathy: Preservice Teacher Standpoints

Intercultural experience facilitates majority-group acculturation through ethnocultural empathy: Evidence from a mixed-methods investigation in Japan

“…Although the findings that emerged through Study 1 were insightful, given that they had never been studied in school settings in a non-WEIRD society, it was not possible to reach general conclusions due to the limited sample size and the subjective nature of qualitative findings. We hypothesize that ethnocultural empathy, a skill that can be learned through intercultural exposure (Cacciattolo et al 2020;Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023;Rasoal et al, 2011), facilitates majority group members' acculturation in school settings. In order to statistically confirm what had emerged through the qualitative findings, we tested the found associations between the factors-intercultural experience, ethnocultural empathy, and majority-group members' acculturation-with a larger sample size through a quantitative design in Study 2.…”

“…For this, majority-group members need to "unlearn their biases and stereotypes while being intentional about learning new information, perspective taking, reflexivity, and awareness of injustices and inequities" (Valdez et al, 2023, p. 373). This metacognitive process would not only help them recognize the feelings of people from other ethnic and cultural backgrounds but also closely relate to them (Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023;Moffit et al, 2022;Hua, 2020). Especially, in school settings, where majority and minority-group members frequently engage in intercultural interactions, ethnocultural empathy can be an effective tool cultivated through the regular practice of self-reflection.…”

“…Previous studies indicate that teachers with long-term intercultural experience tend to adopt culturally inclusive pedagogies, which help them work in diverse cultural settings (Cacciattolo et al 2020;Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023). However, intercultural experience alone may not be sufficient to trigger an acculturative response.…”

“…A skill that includes "feeling, understanding, and caring about what someone from another culture feels, understands and cares about" (1, p. 8) is essential for teachers to not only understand the perspectives of children from underrepresented backgrounds such as asylum seekers but also, empathize with them. In the current literature, this skill is described as "ethnocultural empathy" (Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023;Kapıkıran, 2023;Rasoal et al, 2011). Teachers who possess ethnocultural empathy not only think beyond ethnocentric values and norms (Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023) but also become more receptive to recognizing other cultural values and norms different than their own (7).…”

“…In the current literature, this skill is described as "ethnocultural empathy" (Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023;Kapıkıran, 2023;Rasoal et al, 2011). Teachers who possess ethnocultural empathy not only think beyond ethnocentric values and norms (Cacciattolo & Aronson, 2023) but also become more receptive to recognizing other cultural values and norms different than their own (7). However, we suspect that ethnocultural empathy does more than merely recognizing minority-groups' cultural values and norms.…”