Relationship Between Iranian L2 Learners’ Intercultural Communicative Competence and Personality Traits

Abstract

The rapid development of communication technologies has facilitated communication between citizens with diverse personality traits. As intercultural communicative competence (ICC) has recently found its way into L2 theory and research, not only is it important for L2 learners to gain knowledge of ICC but also it is essential to be aware of personality traits. Therefore, through investigating the (possible) relationship between ICC and personality traits, this study was an attempt to gain knowledge of L2 learners’ ICC and personality traits/types profiles. For this purpose, 165 upper-intermediate L2 learners (70 males and 95 females) participated in this study. Then, they filled out the ICC questionnaire and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) in different sessions. Data were analyzed through Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, independent samples t-test, and one–way ANOVA. Results indicated that (1) the participants were stronger at the introvert trait and extravert, intuitive, feeling, and judging type, (2) there was no relationship between the eight personality traits and the ICC scores, (3) the participants’ gender differences had no significant effect on their ICC scores, (4) and there were no statistically significant differences between the participants’ ICC scores for the three age groups. Findings are theoretically and practically significant. Pedagogical implications and suggestions are discussed in detail.