Cultural intelligence and the role of international classroom composition: Insights from Dutch higher education

Abstract

This paper reports on a study that looked into the relationship between the composition of the international classroom (a classroom composed of students from multiple nationalities), educational interventions aimed at intercultural learning, and domestic students’ levels of Cultural Intelligence (CQ). Using cross-sectional data from 10,243 students enrolled in eleven different higher educational institutions in the Netherlands, we applied multilevel analyses to examine whether the composition of an international classroom, internationalization at home activities and the interaction between the two were related to students’ levels of CQ. Results show that Dutch domestic students who are members of a class with a higher number of international students reported higher levels of motivational CQ, but not of the other three dimensions of CQ. Educational interventions aimed at intercultural learning were reported as being positively related to all dimensions of CQ. The findings underscore that when it comes to students’ overall CQ, the international composition of their classroom is not enough to explain differences in CQ levels. Therefore, this study advocates the use of intentionally designed educational interventions next to the informal interactions in a diverse classroom when it comes to fostering cultural intelligence among domestic students.