In the first chapter, there are a few components to be described. They include background of the research, statement of the problem, research purpose, research questions, definition of the key terms and finally delimitations of the study.
Background of the Study
Because of the era of globalization, where the world has become flat, everything started to lose its distinctiveness. Looking from a business perspective, more and more companies started to emerge. In recent years they have been springing up like mushrooms after the rain which gives the heads of various businesses a headache to create something brand-new and so original that would allow their companies to gain a competitive advantage over the others.
Expatriation that is one of the examples of in-depth exposure to a culture (Crowne, 2013) that can be a source of competitive advantage for an organization (Carpenter, Sanders, & Gregersen, 2000, 2001). It is really challenging to come up with something unique since people have seen almost everything in their lives already. On the one side of a coin there are employers, on the other there is a huge number of people who want to find a source of income. It takes a lot of trouble and hard work to become a person who is being looked for by employers in the job market.
Globalization and internalization increased the need for globally-minded managers and leaders (Deardoff, De Wit, Heyl, & Adams, 2012). That is why gaining an international experience has become so important in recent years. Institutions of higher education have started to respond to that need by reinforcing experiences that can be obtained abroad by pursuing academic knowledge in another country (Barbuto, Beenen, & Tran, 2015). Currently, on the market there is a huge need for people who possess high levels of cultural intelligence (CQ) since its faucets have been proved to predict cultural judgement, decision-making, adaptation to a culture, as well as task performance (Ang et al., 2007), and because of the fact
2
which states that one can learn culture (Hofstede, Hofstede, & Minkov, 2010), it is better to invest in learning and experiencing various cultures as fast as possible, that is also why using exchange, degree or visiting programs abroad is a good way to obtain and broaden the knowledge which may increase CQ and in consequence makes finding an ideal job easier (Ang
& Van Dyne, 2008).
Many branches of business are looking for leaders who are able to work effectively across borders, those people have to have a great variety of abilities and competencies. Bartlett and Goshal (2003) said it is required for an individual to adopt to a multicultural perspective instead of one perspective that is unique only to one country, that person also ought to balance global and local interests that may be conflicting, last but not least, has to cooperate with number of cultures at the same time than just with one that predominates. That is why, it is crucial to be able to function in culturally different contexts in order to be a good and effective leader (Van Dyne, Ang, & Livermore, 2010). According to Social Learning Theory proposed by Bandura (1977), cultural intelligence may lead to different work behaviors.
At this point, in a foreign language ability cannot be omitted. In order to communicate effectively and successfully across cultures, one very often needs at least some basic knowledge how to use a language with the locals. Not infrequently, a good command of foreign language facilitates or allows obtaining information on a culture. Alon and others (2018) reported that number of languages an individual speaks highly contribute to the higher levels of CQ.
Accordingly, Ng, Van Dyne, and Ang (2009) prove that the ability to communicate in a foreign language can predict higher CQ. “A rationale is that language skills are a fundamental instrument for acquiring cultural knowledge” (Lee, Crawford, Weber, & Dennison, 2018, p.
169).
The previous articles concerning cross-cultural topics often mention foreign language ability as a key factor leading to a faster adaptation or deeper understanding of an environment
3
an individual happened to be found himself or herself (Froese, Peltokorpi, & Ko, 2012; Trice, 2003). However, if the communication is impeded by the anxiety, it is harder to obtain crucial information. Guntzviller, Yale, and Jensen (2016) said that foreign language communication anxiety is a very significant construct to be taken into consideration while communicating across cultures. They also pointed out that the role of foreign language communication anxiety (FLCA) in daily life may vary depending on linguistic or cultural setting. Interestingly, it has been reported that international students from Asia are thought to encounter more problems and obstacles while experiencing cross-national processes than international students from Europe.
Asian students seem to be more prone to run into high levels of anxiety, lower foreign language self-efficacy, especially in English, less assistance coming from the society. Those individuals perceive themselves as a group which is more discriminated as well (Chataway & Berry, 1989).
Statement of the Problem
Previously researchers described cultural exposure in numerous but at the same time overly simplistic ways. Reuber and Fischer (1997) focused on the fact whether an individual has had experience working aboard or not, others took into consideration how many times a person has been aboard (Takeuchi, Tesluk, Yun, & Lepak, 2005; Tarique & Takeuchi, 2008;
Tay, Westman, & Chia, 2015). Carpenter and others (2001) tried to look at the duration of being in a foreign country. Because all of those were measured separately, it was impossible to show cultural exposure as a variable that is multifaceted. Crowne (2008, 2013) was the first one who attempted to demonstrate cultural exposure as a complex construct dividing the variable into two facets: breadth and depth. Researchers who embarked on investigating that particular variable used to combine it with acculturation (Tadmore & Tetlock, 2016) or racial identity (Lee & Quintana, 2005), which means that a huge knowledge gap on the topic of cultural exposure exists.
4
The research on cultural intelligence looks similar. CQ is a rather new concept.
Although "research on CQ is leaving its adolescence" (Ott & Michailova, 2016, p.16) because in the recent years researchers have been studying the variable passionately, the elements which facilitate or cause higher levels of CQ are yet unknown or not proven empirically.
There are many types of anxiety, however, the present research is focused only on the anxiety related to foreign language communication. Up to today, researchers attached a lot of attention to the foreign language anxiety that occurs in a specific setting. The center of attraction in the first one is FLA which happens in a classroom while learning a foreign language (Horwitz, Hoewitz, & Cope, 1986; MacIntyre & Gardner, 1991, 1994). The researchers who tried to measure FLA outside the classroom for non-limited environment always had to either come up with their own scale or modify the existing ones for the purpose of their research (Cheng &
Erben, 2012; Humphries, 2011). That shows that researchers focused on foreign language anxiety in the context of learning a foreign or second language, the levels of apprehensiveness in communicating in a foreign language in a non-specific environment have not been broadly discussed so far (Dewaele, 2007; Horwitz, 2010). Only at the end of the year 2017 the scale that measures foreign language communication anxiety outside of a classroom was validated and published (Guntzviller, Yale, & Jensen, 2016).
5
Research Purpose
The focal points of this research were to: Investigate the effects of depth of exposure on cultural intelligence of Taiwanese students who have had the experience of studying abroad.
Examine the moderating effect of foreign language anxiety on the relationship between
depth of cultural exposure and cultural intelligence of Taiwanese students who have had the experience of studying abroad.
Research Questions
Based on the purpose of this research, the following questions were posed:
Is depth of cultural exposure positively related to cultural intelligence?
Does foreign language anxiety negatively moderate the relationship between depth of
cultural exposure and cultural intelligence?
Significance of the Study
This research attempted to investigate foreign language communication anxiety as a moderator between depth of cultural exposure and cultural intelligence. Since little research exists on this specific topic, this study contributes significantly to what has been done already.
in terms of the relationship between depth of cultural exposure and CQ. Furthermore, due to the fact that researchers still are not able to find out what exactly leads to higher levels of CQ, this study increases the amount of literature which proves that the positive relationship between depth of cultural exposure and CQ is present.
Moreover, given the study’s focus was directed at specific group of people, that is, Taiwanese, the literature on that nationality has slightly been enriched. This research was undertaken in the interest of providing a generic understanding of whether those Taiwanese's cultural intelligence increased after being exposed to a different culture for a specific period of time. Little research has been conducted on topic which attempts to measure cultural
6
intelligence of Taiwanese people. However, as the CQ is rather a new one, this research contributes significantly to the data that has already been collected.
Apart from those possible contributions mentioned above, the results of this research may also help the government to assess whether studying abroad brings hoped outcomes in the shape of better command of a foreign language, broadened and increased knowledge on the issues regarding different cultures that may also contribute to development and future internationalization of Taiwan based on the fact that it has been found that people who study in a different country expand sophisticated cognitive and communication abilities. They develop intercultural awareness as well as they start to highly value topics that are connected to global matters, people having experienced studying abroad may also manifest their self-confidence easier (Sailsbury, Paulsen, & Pascarella, 2009). All of those idiosyncrasies could be of benefits to an individual and their mother country.
Last but not least, the study used a recently validated scale for FLCA which makes this research one of the first where the scale was used. Obtained results contribute to another research idea in the future which will embark upon getting to know more about FLCA in non-specific settings.
Definition of Key Terms
There are three key terms used in this research, which are depth of cultural exposure, cultural intelligence (CQ) as well as foreign language communication anxiety (FLCA) and Taiwanese international students.
Depth of Cultural Exposure
Cultural exposure is a type of exposure to a culture other than an individual's own by means of direct human interactions (Reigeluth, 2013). Cultural exposures can take place in different ways, for instance, meetings with people from different cultural backgrounds, short trips to other countries (Li, 2017) or even having parents from different cultures (Bell &
7
Harrison, 1996). Crowne (2008, 2013) divided it into breadth and depth of cultural exposure.
In her opinion breadth of exposure refers to the number of places and times travelled or visited abroad whereas depth of cultural exposure measures frequency in which an individual participated in cultural experiences and interacted with local culture.
Cultural Intelligence (CQ)
For the purpose of this study cultural intelligence was characterized as a person's ability to adapt to living in a new, unknown environment as well as capability to function within a society that has a different cultural background from the one an individual comes from (Earley
& Mosakowski, 2004). In other words, it’s "an individual's competence to function and manage effectively in culturally diverse settings" (Ang & Van Dyne, 2008, p.3). CQ consists of meta-cognitive CQ, meta-cognitive CQ, motivational CQ and lastly behavioral CQ.
Foreign Language Communication Anxiety (FLCA)
Foreign language communication anxiety is "the feeling of tension and apprehension specifically associated with second [or third, or fourth language, etc.] contexts, including speaking, listening, and learning" (MacIntyre & Gardner, 1994, p.284). FLCA happens when shortage of words and incapability of expressing clearly and cogently in a non-native language give rise to the feelings of frustration and anxiety (Guntzviller et al., 2016).
Taiwanese International Students
For the purpose of this study Taiwanese international students are characterized as current students or graduates who have had an experience of pursuing studies overseas regardless of program studied or type, for example, an exchange student, a degree-seeking student, visiting student.
8
9