Cross-cultural Experiences Research Articles

Mediating Effect of Cross-Cultural Competency on International Experiences and Self-Efficacy among Hotel Employees

ABSTRACT Despite the importance of cross-cultural competency in the hospitality and tourism industry, minimal information is available regarding its antecedents and consequences. Accordingly, by uniquely adopting and integrating experiential learning theory and a cultural competency model, the present study explored the mechanisms that underlie cross-cultural competency, international experiences, and self-efficacy. The hypothesized relationships were tested via partial least squares–structural equation modeling using survey data from hotel employees. Results showed that the international experiences of employees positively predicted their cross-cultural competencies (i.e., metacognitive, cognitive, motivational, and behavioral dimensions). Moreover, motivational and behavioral competencies fully mediated the relationship between international experiences and self-efficacy.

Immigrant Social Entrepreneurs: Managing Organizational Tensions with Cross-Cultural Experience

This article explores how exposure to contrasting national culture dimensions might inform organizing within hybrid organizations. At the individual level, we draw on the acculturation literature t...

THE LEARNING EXPERIENCES OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDENTS IN A CULTURE TRIP

This study examined the learning experiences of students of English as a Foreign Language in a culture trip that was conducted within the students' own multicultural society (Indonesia). The culture trip was aimed at providing the students with hands-on experience to learn about cross-cultural adjustment, skills to relate to people of other cultures, to be independent, and to act responsibly. Those skills are parts of the skills that people need to perform in the 21 st century environments. The study was guided by a research question: what were the students' learning experiences during the culture trip? The qualitative data for answering the research question were collected from the students' individual written reports of the trip, and the results of open-ended questionnaires given after the trip. The findings showed that for many of the students, the trip was their first independent travel experience which provided not only cross-cultural adjustment learning experience but also learning lessons about many of the skills needed in the 21 st century such as communication, using information technology, being self-directed, independent and responsible, managing goals and time, collaboration and working in a team. The study may be useful for teachers of language who would like to provide cross-cultural experiences and soft skills to the students to function effectively in 21st-century environments. Keywords: authentic learning activities; cross-cultural adjustment; 21st century skills

New Zealanders returning from overseas: how their experiences of xenophobia could help us respond to superdiversity

ABSTRACTThis article draws on qualitative interview data with 42 New Zealanders returning to New Zealand after living overseas, finding they feel more like a ‘migrant’ than someone coming ‘home’. This is in part because New Zealand people and institutions demonstrate an intolerance to difference, theorised here as a form of xenophobia that inhibits the economic, social and political integration of participants. However, the same experiences and ideas that lead many New Zealanders to frame returnees as an ‘out-group’ can be regarded as a national resource. The article concludes that we should embrace – not ignore or disparage – returnees' awareness of integration issues, transnational networks and cross-cultural experiences as we attempt to maintain social cohesion in an increasingly superdiverse world.

Navigating between cultures: Cross-cultural challenges of Nigerian Catholic priests working in the United States

The issue of cross-cultural movements of professionals within organizations in the 21st century’s networked-style of the global organization has created the question of how to prepare professionals to meet the demands of satisfactory service in a culture different from their home culture. The absence of the cross-cultural preparation of professionals is causing cross-cultural maladjustments among many professionals, and the Nigerian Catholic priests who move from Nigeria to the United States face this reality. Given the priest shortage in the United States, the US Roman Catholic Church recruits many priests from overseas and a significant number of these priests are being recruited from Nigeria, whose culture is very different from US culture. The work of these priests helps to solve the shortage problem but is creating new challenges in some Catholic parishes because of cultural differences. The priests continually face cross-cultural challenges to succeed in their pastoral work. There is little research on the cross-cultural problems and other experiences of these priests in adjustment and in carrying out their duties. This qualitative study investigated the cross-cultural experiences of Nigerian priests serving in the United States. Interviews with 12 Nigerian priests serving in four different regions of the United States yielded 11 themes. Participants described five common challenges and identified six strategies to facilitate adjustment. The themes influenced the use of Kolb’s learning theory to design pre-departure cross-cultural training for Nigerian priests.

Study abroad as social and emotional learning

Purpose This paper investigates and reports on the study abroad experiences of 22 teacher candidates from the Southeast region of the USA (n=22). The purpose of this paper is to examine the teacher candidates’ development of social and emotional learning through their international teaching experiences. Design/methodology/approach The study is framed by Critical Cosmopolitan Theory, which is a theoretical lens for a critical understanding of the development of global competencies for critical consciousness. The paper uses a case study research design (Yin, 2008), which included data collected via artifact analysis, participant interviews and participant observation through field notes. Findings The study found how the study abroad and international teaching experiences were instrumental in aiding in the teacher candidates’ social and emotional learning. This included the adoption of culturally responsive teaching practices, development of reading the world and enactment of taking action to rewrite the world. Research limitations/implications One of the limitations is the relatively small sample size. This is due, in part, to the high cost associated with study abroad. The high cost of study abroad can be a barrier for students to access the cross-cultural experiences afforded by study abroad. The hefty price tag of study abroad often limits the number of teacher candidates at public institutions who can go on study abroad (Malewski and Phillion, 2009). A future research agenda is needed about ways to help off-set the costs in order to make study abroad more affordable and equitable. Practical implications The practical implications of this paper are that it provides an instructive lens for how to integrate social and emotional learning within a study abroad experience. At the same time, the paper connects socio-emotional learning (SEL) with the development of global competencies and global citizenship. Social implications The social implications relate to the practical implications in that the paper illustrates how SEL is connected to the development of global citizenship development. The study weds the critical cosmopolitan framework with SEL to show how learners develop empathy through reading and rewriting the world. Originality/value The case study presented in this paper highlights the possibilities of study abroad in tandem with international teaching experiences to help prepare teachers with SEL features like fostering empathy, developing culturally responsive practices, and becoming critically conscious and cosmopolitan. The study fills a gap in the literature regarding the development of SEL among elementary education teacher candidates through study abroad and international teaching experiences.

An examination of cross-cultural experiences on developing culturally responsive teacher candidates

As the P-12 student landscape continues to grow in cultural and linguistic diversity, teacher preparation programs have yet to adequately prepare teacher candidates’ teaching and learning skills in meeting the academic and socio-emotional needs of diverse student demographics. This article examines teacher candidates’ cultural competence and cultural responsiveness to enhance candidates’ educator preparation and stimulate candidates’ personal growth development as developing culturally and linguistically responsive new teachers. While many teacher preparation programs require one multicultural or diversity education course, the authors examine a Minority Serving Institution’s integration of a cultural immersion experience for teacher candidates as one way of supporting their development as culturally and linguistically sustaining pedagogues. This paper aims at supporting school districts’ need of culturally competent new teachers who have the content knowledge and pedagogy to teach and support culturally and linguistically diverse children. Recognizing this need, this qualitative analysis highlights the importance of and a need for cultural and linguistic competence among teacher candidates. Findings from this study provides a means by which universities can implement cross-cultural coursework and field-based experiences to prepare culturally responsive teacher candidates.

An examination of cross-cultural experiences on developing culturally responsive teacher candidates

As the P-12 student landscape continues to grow in cultural and linguistic diversity, teacher preparation programs have yet to adequately prepare teacher candidates' teaching and learning skills in meeting the academic and socio-emotional needs of diverse student demographics. This article examines teacher candidates’ cultural competence and cultural responsiveness to enhance candidates' educator preparation and stimulate candidates' personal growth development as developing culturally and linguistically responsive new teachers. While many teacher preparation programs require one multicultural or diversity education course, the authors examine a minority serving institution's integration of a cultural immersion experience for teacher candidates as one way of supporting their development as culturally and linguistically sustaining pedagogues. This paper aims at supporting school districts' need of culturally competent new teachers who have the content knowledge and pedagogy to teach and support culturally and linguistically diverse children. Recognizing this need, this qualitative analysis highlights the importance of and a need for cultural and linguistic competence among teacher candidates. Findings from this study provides a means by which universities can implement cross-cultural coursework and field-based experiences to prepare culturally responsive teacher candidates.

Skills, careers and cross-cultural understanding: How Russian-American journalism education collaboration works

This article explores the collaborative exchange programme that both authors have been involved in as the faculty supervisors for more than fifteen years. In this programme students from the US and Russian universities come together to write, design and produce a media project at each other’'s campuses. From working as an international team, students from both countries practice journalism skills and learn about different cultural and professional traditions, which cannot be reproduced in textbooks or classrooms. In the study, which includes survey responses from 61 former programme participants, the authors measure the success of the programme in two main areas: as a highly impactful study-abroad experience and its ability to foster collaboration and cooperation in journalism education across borders. Based on the responses to the survey, the authors were able to evaluate the long-lasting impact on the students who participate, indicating that during the process they gain not only valuable journalistic skills but also cross-cultural experiences that have a positive impact on their future careers.

REAL LIFE EXPERIENCE IN INQUIRY-BASED EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE INSTRUCTION

Science teachers play an important role in improving science literacy of their students. In achieving and building students’ interest and literacy about science, teachers must have an appropriate approach to be used in teaching. In teaching science, students must be active and participative in the learning process. Engaging students in variety of activities can help them in constructing their own knowledge by experiencing and observing results of the experiment. Teachers must provide real world experiences for students to engage with around global issues. This took the form of service-learning projects emphasizing issues of global concern, or working in teams to devise and debate solutions to real-world problems. Notably, these activities were student-centered and inquiry-based. Teachers also incorporated their own cross-cultural experiences into the classroom through informal conversation, discussions, around artifacts and photos, and lesson plans that incorporated knowledge gained and relationship built though their global experiences. The need for utilizing real life experiences in science teaching is a must in today’s classroom as the new generations of learners are ready to work with the different global issues and concerns of which can play an important role in the learning process. However, the utilization of real life experiences in science instruction grows as a measure when teachers are able to develop an engaging and positive learning environment for learners. With this, teachers should carefully plan how to utilize the students’ real life experiences efficiently and effectively in inquiry-based science instruction to enhance more the teaching-learning process. The focus of this study was to determine the real life experience in inquiry-based earth and space science instruction in public secondary schools in Batangas City. The descriptive method of research was applied in the study, with the questionnaire as the main data gathering instrument responded to by 102 science teachers. Based on the analysis, it was revealed that real life experiences in science areas were moderately utilized by the students while teachers applied inquiry-based learning activities along its phases of exploration, concept introduction, and concept application to a moderate extent. It was recommended that the proposed learning plans be used to enhance science instruction and an instrument or assessment tool may be developed to determine the impact of utilization of real life experiences in teaching-learning process.

Negotiating intercultural spaces and teacher identity in an internationalised school in Shanghai

There is now a general acceptance that schools need to prepare students for the realities of a globalised world, which necessitates developing intercultural competence. Such an educational mandate is felt particularly keenly in internationalised schools, where the work of teaching and learning involves the negotiation of diverse cultural assumptions, practices, and identities on a daily basis. Whilst schools are in a position where they need to formulate some kind of understanding of what intercultural competence means and how it is expected to be developed with educational content and pedagogical practices, the notion of intercultural competence is perpetually contested. Critical scholars have critiqued the tendency for theorising on intercultural competence to adhere to “solid” notions of culture and assume that there is an end to the intercultural process at which point an individual will become interculturally competent (e.g., Dervin, 2016; Ferri, 2018). This paper, however, argues that it is important to understand the ways in which solid notions of culture surface in the lived experiences of teachers working in intercultural contexts. The paper draws on findings from a qualitative case study of international teachers’ cross-cultural experiences in an international school in Shanghai, China to highlight the ways in which individuals draw on notions of solid culture as a resource for claiming an identity position in relation to dominant cultural practices in the local context.

Farzad Sharifian, (Ed.) The Routledge Handbook of language and culture. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2015. Pp. xv-522. ISBN: 978-0-415-52701-9 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-79399-3 (ebk)7

Farzad Sharifian, (Ed.) The Routledge Handbook of language and culture. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2015. Pp. xv-522. ISBN: 978-0-415-52701-9 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-79399-3 (ebk)7

Formation of Teachers’ Digital Competence: Domestic Challenges and Foreign Experience

Education system in Ukraine is undergoing large-scale reforms including modernization on different school levels and higher educational institutions. Students’ world view is laid out at school, that is why teachers must be ready to promote new content of education. According to the Concept “New School of Ukraine” among the key competencies of a student are the ability of intercultural communication in social and cultural contexts, digital competence, awareness of national identity as the basis of open-mindedness and respect for the diversity of cultural expression of others, and more. With this paper the author intends to initiate modifying demanded competencies and skills for contemporary primary school teachers based on cross-cultural experience. The article explains the necessity of forming a digital competence as a separate component of the professional skills of the modern teacher and shows its influence on the development of the personality of the modern student. Much attention is drawn to the domestic challenges in the implementation of digital devices in classrooms. Some foreign experience is analyzed in this research

A foot in both camps: lessons learned about without-prejudice teaching and learning from cross-cultural experience

This paper articulates lessons learned about without-prejudice teaching and learning from a researcher-practitioner who has experience in both developing and developed contexts. Developing countries often look to Western countries for education standards, but Western countries rarely look to developing contexts where theory is being generated about divisions and access to education. This comparative study integrates lessons learned from both contexts. It uses an auto-ethnographic methodology and draws upon phenomenographic research and critical theory. The need for emic (insider) without-prejudice teaching and learning practices is articulated in three lessons: 1. culture privileges for or prejudices against students’ access to education; 2. beliefs systems allow or deny access to learning opportunities and environments; and 3. student–teacher relationship can interrupt prejudice.

Value change in response to cultural priming: The role of cultural identity and the impact on subjective well-being

Cross-cultural experiences are increasingly common in people’s daily lives. To better understand the process of acculturation, this study examined how people with different cultural identities changed their personal values under different culturally primed contexts and the impact on their subjective well-being. A sample of Hong Kong university students (n = 179) who varied in their bicultural selves were randomly assigned to one of two culture priming conditions (i.e., Chinese and Western), before and after which their personal values and subjective well-being were assessed. Results showed that the values of Biculturals assimilated to both Chinese and Western culture primes, whereas the values of monoculturals became more in line with their own cultural identities by either assimilating to the primed culture that they identified with or contrasting against the primed culture that they did not. Consistent with our hypotheses, the value changes based on cultural identities were significantly related to the changes in subjective well-being. The implications of the findings for research on personal values and cross-cultural psychology are discussed.

Evaluating Commonalities Across Medically Unexplained Symptoms.

This commentary presents commonalities in medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) across multiple organ systems, including symptoms, aetiological mechanisms, comorbidity with mental health disorders, symptom burden and impact on quality of life. Further, treatment outcomes and barriers in the clinician–patient relationship, and cross-cultural experiences are highlighted. This discussion is necessary in aiding an improved understanding and management of MUS due to the interconnectedness underlying MUS presentations across the spectrum of medical specialties.

Katie Cannon's Encounter with Africa

Katie Cannon's Encounter With Africa Peter J. Paris (bio) The Womanist Approaches to Religion and Society Unit invitation I received to speak about our beloved Katie Cannon proposed that I address the topic, "Cross-Cultural Service as a Source for Intellectual Bridge-Building: Katie Cannon as Pan-Africanist." The topic is most apt. In fact, the first part of the title recommended for my talk is the actual title of an essay Katie wrote for a special issue of Review of Faith and International Affairs (in which I also have an essay).1 More about that momentarily. Katie's cross-cultural experience began with her birth as the fourth child in a black family in Kannapolis, North Carolina, a racially segregated community surrounded by a hostile, white, racist society. The first essay in her indelible book, Katie's Canon, is entitled, "Surviving the Blight." In this piece, she opened her autobiographical reflections by mentioning her enslaved forbears, beginning with her great-grandparents who were born and raised in the cauldron of chattel slavery. She wrote that during thunderstorms, her mother would turn off the electricity, gather the children round her in the dark, and tell stories about the family's lineage of pain and suffering. Yet, within the environs of anguish, they learned how to create another world: a counterculture that comprised folklore, spirituals, and religious practices. Katie frequently reminded all of us that "those ancestors never lost sight of the vision of freedom and justice as they created a culture saturated with their own values and heavily laden with their dreams."2 In the 1950s, the Reverend James Robinson, an African American Presbyterian minister who founded the Church of the Master in Harlem, launched what he called "Operation Crossroads Africa" with the mission of sending interracial teams [End Page 121] of young American men and women to Africa for volunteer work and cultural interaction. Make a difference for others; See the difference in yourself, has been the organization's motto since its founding. As the only Canadian, I was privileged to join that enterprise on its first journey in 1958 and went to Ghana and Nigeria. Katie joined the group in 1971 after receiving a BA in education, magna cum laude, from Barber Scotia College. She later wrote the following: "Dr. Robinson offered me the opportunity to make my first international trek, traveling to Senegal, Ghana, Liberia, and Cote d'Ivoire. I was forever changed by that journey to the motherland in 1971."3 In later years, she and I often took pride in discovering that we had had that common experience of traveling to Africa for the first time with the Crossroads Africa program. While it is easy for African Americans to romanticize about such an experience, Katie described a rude awakening when her group arrived in Cote d'Ivoire on their return route and heard very critical comments from African students about the United States and the danger of its power to manipulate the newly emerging vulnerable African nations. Similarly, I had my own wake-up call when I first arrived in Ghana with uncritical appreciation for its first newly elected president, Kwame Nkrumah, widely known as the father of African independence from British colonialism. Much to my shock and amazement, I discovered Ghanaian students virtually united in their criticisms of his political philosophy and leadership style. A quarter of a century later, when I began thinking about the prospect of launching a Pan-African travel seminar for religion scholars selected from Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Jamaica, Brazil and North America, Katie was most eager to assist. Accordingly, she volunteered to accompany me on a visit to the Ford Foundation in search for a planning grant with which to conceptualize a five-year study project by sixteen scholars on the subject, Religion and Poverty: Pan-African Perspectives, which later resulted in a book written by the group and published by Duke University Press in 2009.4 Katie authored the first essay in that book, "An Ethical Mapping of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade." In it, she wrote, "I look at the religious, economic and moral issues concerning West Africa's participation in the buying...

Research on Cross-cultural Experience of Chinese Students in Australia

Research on Cross-cultural Experience of Chinese Students in Australia

Worldview Climate and the International Student Experience: Internationalization Strategies Overlook Interfaith Necessities

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare domestic and international students’ experiences of the campus worldview climate. Background: Internationalization efforts have continued to increase and more institutions are codifying internationalization into their mission statements or strategic plans. However, most international students are coming to the United States from countries that do not share a Christian-based worldview and most campuses are already underprepared for their students to engage across worldviews. Methodology: To explore the experiences of international students with the campus worldview climate, we used data from the Interfaith Diversity Experiences and Attitudes Longitudinal Survey (IDEALS) to examine differences between domestic and international students with regard to campus worldview climate perceptions, engagement in formal and informal interfaith opportunities, and changes in pluralism orientation during the first year of college. Contribution: This study advances our understanding of how international students perceive their campus worldview climates and how they engage in cross-worldview interactions. We offer these findings in hopes of providing an empirical roadmap for improving international students’ experiences with the worldview climate on campus, especially as internationalization strategies continue to grow and diversify our student populations. Findings: We found that international students do find their campuses less welcoming than their domestic peers. Additionally, international students reported engaging more often in formal cross-worldview interactions than their domestic peers. Recommendations for Practitioners: In light of these findings, we suggest three interfaith initiatives campuses can sponsor to better support their international students: 1) find a physical space for a multi-faith center and provide dedicated staff to support interfaith initiatives, 2) help faculty innovate their practice and the spaces they hold in the classroom to foster environments more inclusive of diverse worldviews, and 3) engage student affairs staff in reflection about their own worldviews and train them to create space for cross-worldview engagement among their students. Recommendation for Researchers: Our findings suggest that international students’ experiences of worldview climate differ from their domestic peers. Researchers should continue to explore worldview as a relevant component of the cross-cultural experience and design research that considers these divergent experiences. Impact on Society: Helping our students engage with diverse worldviews is imperative as part of higher education’s contribution to creating democratic societies across the globe. The results of this study point to ways administrators and campus leaders can align internationalization strategies with effective interfaith and worldview diversity practice. Future Research: Additional research efforts should focus on identifying components of the campus worldview climate international students are more likely to experience than their domestic peers. Also, researchers should consider how international students are exhibiting growth on outcomes like pluralism orientation in comparison to their domestic peers and how cross-worldview interactions affect this development.

Learning to Teach, Again, in China

Teaching English abroad provides an opportunity to travel the world however, it can also be challenging endeavor. Having limited exposure to and understanding of the culture adds to the intensity of the challenge and the inability to navigate daily living in a new environment can be a painful disorienting experience that often results in culture shock. Young Yun Kim’s theory outlines a developmental model that presents the trials of cross-cultural adaptation as a dynamic and transformative process through which “intercultural personhood” can be developed. Kim argues that the stress of acculturation and deculturation is an opportunity for growth that is manifested in cycles of “stress-adaptation-growth”. This account of a three-year experience living and teaching at a public high school in China applies Kim’s model to demonstrate how the difficulties of cross-cultural experiences can be the catalyst for transformation and development of intercultural identity. Developing an understanding of the cultural context through awareness and reflection facilitates the ability to teach students from other cultures. Educators in Georgia, particularly ESL teachers, are likewise challenged by cultural differences with their students and can further develop their intercultural skills in regardless of location.