The Role of Cultural Exchange in the Development of Intercultural Competence in the Context of Cultural Diplomacy

Abstract

This study positions cultural exchange students at the core of cultural diplomacy and argues that those students can become potential agents of soft power by making them appreciate cultural differences and developing their intercultural competence. In other words, this study aims to report on the role of cultural exchange in developing students’ intercultural competence. A mixed-method approach was used to collect the data, including a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. 16 former exchange students of the YES (Youth Exchange Scholarship) Program were invited to complete a questionnaire related to their cultural exchange experience. Then, seven of them were selected to take part in the semi-structured interviews. The findings of the study showed that the development of participants’ intercultural awareness and abilities is largely positive in consideration of the positive perception of the host culture and the authentic cultural exchange in which they took part. Besides, the findings also indicated how participants become active agents of cultural diplomacy thanks to cultural exchange.