Student Study Abroad Goals and Change in Intercultural Competence
Author | : Tammera R. Maloney |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : 104 |
Release | : 2019 |
Genre | : Cultural competence |
ISBN | : |
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University study abroad facilitators must maximize the benefits of a semester away from the home campus for students seeking to realize a transformational experience. Among the documented benefits of study abroad for students is the development of intercultural competence. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between student goals (excluding foreign language goals) for study abroad and change in intercultural competence. Data for this study was collected over four semesters from students (N = 78) who applied and were accepted to attend a study abroad program in a western European country. The study abroad program was hosted by a faith-based university in the Midwest. Participants were from the host university (n = 69) and other similar universities (n = 9). Participants were first-semester freshmen (n = 34), upperclassmen (n = 44), female (n = 61), and male (n = 17). The Study Abroad Goals Scale (SAGS) (Kitsantas, 2004) and the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) (Hammer, 2012) were administered within the first week of the semester. The IDI was administered again at the conclusion of the semester. Students were encouraged but not required to complete the instruments. Kitsantas' (2004) study on the role of goals as a predictor of cross-cultural development served as a model for this study. Two research questions guided this study. First, what is the relationship (correlation) between student goals as measured by the SAGS for their study abroad experience and change in intercultural competence as measured by the IDI? A Pearson r correlation analysis was run on each of the three SAGS subscales for the combined, freshmen, and upperclassmen participants. Results indicated a simple negative linear correlation on SAGS subscale two for the combined (r = -.279; p