Examining the Relationship between Cultural Intelligence and the Academic Performance of International Students: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis

Volume 5, Issue 1, February 2021     |     PP. 25-52      |     PDF (391 K)    |     Pub. Date: March 31, 2021
DOI: 10.54647/sociology84488    117 Downloads     5359 Views  

Author(s)

Yurou Wang, Department of Educational Studies in Psychology, Research Methodology, and Counseling, University of Alabama, USA
Jihong Zhang, Department of Psychological and Quantitative Foundations, University of Iowa, USA

Abstract
Driven by globalization, cultural intelligence (CQ) has become a critical element for human communication. The increasing international student population also calls for an in-depth understanding of CQ, which incorporates metacognitive, cognitive, motivational, and behavioral dimensions that could promote international learning and working performance. This study evaluates the relationship between Cultural Intelligence and international students’ academic achievement. Our sample included 452 American students who studied abroad were recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk. Findings provide partial support for the relationship between CQS factors and participants’ self-reported grade point average (GPA). Specifically, students’ motivational (β = .188, p < .01) and behavioral (β = .126, p < .05) CQ scores were found to be significantly correlated with GPA. Such results demonstrate the need for CQ training for students who will study abroad. Further research is needed regarding using CQ to promote students’ GPAs and how CQ could change over time.

Keywords
cultural intelligence; academic achievement; GPA; international student; structural equation modeling

Cite this paper
Yurou Wang, Jihong Zhang, Examining the Relationship between Cultural Intelligence and the Academic Performance of International Students: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis , SCIREA Journal of Sociology. Volume 5, Issue 1, February 2021 | PP. 25-52. 10.54647/sociology84488

References

[ 1 ] Andrade, M. S. (2006). International students in English-speaking universities: Adjustment factors. Journal of Research in International Education, 5(2), 131–154.
[ 2 ] Ang, S., Van Dyne, L., Koh, C., Ng, K. Y., Templer, K. J., Tay, C., & Chandrasekar, N. A. (2007). Cultural intelligence: Its measurement and effects on cultural judgment and decision making, cultural adaptation and task performance. Management and Organization Review, 3(3), 335–371.
[ 3 ] Ang, S., Van Dyne, L., & Rockstuhl, T. (2015). Cultural intelligence: Origins, conceptualization, evolution and methodological diversity. In Gelfand, M., Chiu, C. Y., & Hong, Y. Y. (Eds.), Handbook of Advances in Culture and Psychology, Vol. 5 (pp. 273–323). Oxford University Press.
[ 4 ] Bance, L. O., & Acopio, J. R. B. (2016). Exploring Emotional Intelligence and Academic Performance of Filipino University Academic Achievers. International Journal of Psychological Studies, 8(3).
[ 5 ] Bandura, A. (2002). Social cognitive theory in cultural context. Applied psychology, 51(2), 269–290.
[ 6 ] Bentler, P. M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107(2), 238–246.
[ 7 ] Brislin, R., Worthley, R., & Macnab, B. (2006). Cultural intelligence understanding behaviors that serve people’s goals. Group & Organization Management, 31(1), 40–55.
[ 8 ] Caskie, G. I., Sutton, M. C., & Eckhardt, A. G. (2014). Accuracy of self-reported college GPA: Gender-moderated differences by achievement level and academic self-efficacy. Journal of College Student Development, 55(4), 385-390.
[ 9 ] Chen, A. S. Y., Lin, Y. C., & Sawangpattanakul, A. (2011). The relationship between cultural intelligence and performance with the mediating effect of culture shock: A case from Philippine laborers in Taiwan. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 35(2), 246–258.
[ 10 ] Chen, G., Kirkman, B. L., Kim, K., Farh, C. I., & Tangirala, S. (2010). When does intercultural motivation enhance expatriate effectiveness? A multilevel investigation of the moderating roles of subsidiary support and cultural distance. Academy of Management Journal, 53, 1110–1130.
[ 11 ] Chen, X. P., Liu, D., & Portnoy, R. (2012). A multilevel investigation of motivational cultural intelligence, organizational diversity climate, and cultural sales: Evidence from U.S. real estate firms. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97, 93–106.
[ 12 ] Credé, M., & Kuncel, N. R. (2013). Self-reported grades and GPA. International guide to student achievement, 49-50.
[ 13 ] Crowne, K. A. (2008). What leads to cultural intelligence? Business Horizons, 51(5), 391–399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2008.03.010
[ 14 ] Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). The general causality orientations scale: Self-determination in personality. Journal of Research in Personality, 19(2), 109–134.
[ 15 ] Deng, L., & Gibson, P. (2009). Mapping and modeling the capacities that underlie effective cross-cultural leadership: An interpretive study with practical outcomes. Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, 16(4), 347–366.
[ 16 ] DeSimone, J. A., Harms, P. D., & DeSimone, A. (2015). Best practice recommendations for data screening. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36, 171–181.
[ 17 ] Earley, P. C., & Ang, S. (2003). Cultural intelligence: Individual interactions across cultures. Stanford University Press.
[ 18 ] Ehlers, C., Greene-Shortridge, T. M., Weekley, J. A., & Zajack, M. D. (2009, March). The exploration of statistical methods in detecting random responding. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Atlanta, GA.
[ 19 ] Fan, X., Thompson, B., & Wang, L. (1999). Effects of sample size, estimation methods, and model specification on structural equation modeling fit indexes. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 56–83. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540119
[ 20 ] Fang, F., Schei, V., & Selart, M. (2018). Hype or hope? A new look at the research on cultural intelligence. International Journal of Intercultural Relations. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2018.04.002
[ 21 ] Racicot, B. M., & Ferry, D. L. (2016). The Impact of Motivational and Metacognitive Cultural Intelligence on the Study Abroad Experience. Journal of Educational Issues, 2(1), 115-129.
[ 22 ] Fertonani, A., Brambilla, M., Cotelli, M., & Miniussi, C. (2014). The timing of cognitive plasticity in physiological aging: a tDCS study of naming. Frontiers in aging neuroscience, 6, 131.
[ 23 ] Fischer, R. (2011). Cross-cultural training effects on cultural essentialism beliefs and cultural intelligence. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 35(6), 767–775. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2011.08.005
[ 24 ] Gudykunst, W. B., Ting-Toomey, S., & Chua, E. (1988). Culture and interpersonal communication. Sage Publications, Inc.
[ 25 ] Gumora, G., & Arsenio, W. F. (2002). Emotionality, emotion regulation, and school performance in middle school children. Journal of School Psychology, 40(5), 395–413.
[ 26 ] Hauser, D. J., & Schwarz, N. (2016). Attentive Turkers: MTurk participants perform better on online attention checks than do subject pool participants. Behavior Research Methods, 48(1), 400–407. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-015-0578-z
[ 27 ] Hickman, G. P., Bartholomae, S., & McKenry, P. C. (2000). Influence of parenting style on the adjustment and academic achievement of traditional college freshmen. Journal of College Student Development. 41(1), 41–54.
[ 28 ] Holtbrügge, D., & Engelhard, F. (2016). Study abroad programs: Individual motivations, cultural intelligence, and the mediating role of cultural boundary spanning. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 15(3), 435-455.
[ 29 ] Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
[ 30 ] Huff, K.C., Song, P., & Gresch, E.B. (2014). Cultural intelligence, personality, and cross-cultural adjustment: a study of expatriates in Japan. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 38, 151–157.
[ 31 ] Izard, C., Fine, S., Schultz, D., Mostow, A., Ackerman, B., & Youngstrom, E. (2001). Emotion knowledge as a predictor of social behavior and academic competence in children at risk. Psychological Science, 12(1), 18–23.
[ 32 ] Jackson, D. N. (1976, September). The appraisal of personal reliability. Paper presented at the meetings of the Society of Multivariate Experimental Psychology, University Park, PA.
[ 33 ] Kuncel, N. R., Hezlett, S. A., & Ones, D. S. (2004). Academic performance, career potential, creativity, and job performance: Can one construct predict them all. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 148–161.
[ 34 ] Lee, J. J., & Rice, C. (2007). Welcome to America? International student perceptions of discrimination. Higher Education, 53(3), 381–409. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-005-4508-3
[ 35 ] Lee, L. Y., Veasna, S., & Wu, W. Y. (2013). The effects of social support and transformational leadership on expatriate adjustment and performance: The moderating roles of socialization experience and cultural intelligence. Career Development International, 18(4), 377–415.
[ 36 ] Li, G., Chen, W., & Duanmu, J. L. (2010). Determinants of international students’ academic performance: A comparison between Chinese and other international students. Journal of Studies in International Education, 14(4), 389–405.
[ 37 ] Lin, J. C. G., & Yi, J. K. (1997). Asian international students' adjustment: Issues and program suggestions. College Student Journal, 31(4), 473–479.
[ 38 ] Lin, Y., Chen, A. S., & Song, Y. (2012). Does your intelligence help to survive in a foreign jungle? The effects of cultural intelligence and emotional intelligence on cross-cultural adjustment. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 36(4), 541–552. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2012.03.001
[ 39 ] Lindenberger, U., & Mayr, U. (2014). Cognitive aging: is there a dark side to environmental support?. Trends in cognitive sciences, 18(1), 7-15.
[ 40 ] MacNab, B. R. (2012). An experiential approach to cultural intelligence education. Journal of Management Education, 36(1), 66–94. https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562911412587
[ 41 ] Olson, L. G. (2008). An investigation of factors that influence academic achievement in Christian higher education: Emotional intelligence, self-esteem and spiritual well-being. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering, 69(5-B), 3254.
[ 42 ] Poropat, A. E. (2009). A meta-analysis of the five-factor model of personality and academic performance. Psychological Bulletin, 135(2), 322–338.
[ 43 ] Poyrazli, S., Arbona, C., Nora, A., McPherson, R., & Pisecco, S. (2002). Relation between assertiveness, academic self-efficacy, and psychosocial adjustment among international graduate students. Journal of College Student Development, 43(5), 632–642.
[ 44 ] Presbitero, A. (2016). Culture shock and reverse culture shock: the moderating role of cultural intelligence in international students’ adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 53, 28–38.
[ 45 ] Project Atlas. (2019). A Quick Look at Global Mobility Trends [Infographic]. Project Atlas. https://www.iie.org/en/Research-and-Insights/Project-Atlas/Explore-Data/Infographics/2019-Project-Atlas-Infographics
[ 46 ] Ramsey, J. R., Rutti, R. M., Lorenz, M. P., Barakat, L. L., & Sant’anna, A. S. (2017). Developing global transformational leaders. Journal of World Business, 52(4), 461–473.
[ 47 ] Raphael, K. (1987). Recall bias: a proposal for assessment and control. International Journal of Epidemiology, 16(2), 167–170.
[ 48 ] R Core Team. (2014). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing. http://www.R-project.org/
[ 49 ] Rosseel, Y. (2012). Lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling and more. Version 0.5–12 (BETA). Journal of Statistical Software, 48(2), 1–36.
[ 50 ] Rice, K. G., & Slaney, R. B. (2002). Clusters of perfectionists: Two studies of emotional adjustment and academic achievement. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 35(1), 35–48.
[ 51 ] Roy, M., Lu, Z., Loo, B. (2016). Improving the international student experience: implications for recruitment and support. WES. http://knowledge.wes.org/WES-2016-Research-Report-October.html
[ 52 ] Şahin, F., Gürbüz, S., Köksal, O., & Ercan, Ü. (2013). Measuring cultural intelligence in the Turkish context. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 21(2), 135–144.
[ 53 ] Schmidt, F. L., & Hunter, J. (2000). Select on intelligence: In E. A. Locke (Ed.), Handbook of principles of organizational behavior (pp. 3–14). Oxford, England: Blackwell.
[ 54 ] Shu, F., McAbee, S. T., & Ayman, R. (2017). The HEXACO personality traits, cultural intelligence, and international student adjustment. Personality and Individual Differences, 106, 21–25.
[ 55 ] Steffener, J., Brickman, A. M., Rakitin, B. C., Gazes, Y., & Stern, Y. (2009). The impact of age-related changes on working memory functional activity. Brain imaging and behavior, 3(2), 142-153.
[ 56 ] Sternberg, R. J. (1986). A framework for understanding conceptions of intelligence. In R. J. Sternberg & D. K. Detterman (Eds.), What is intelligence? Contemporary viewpoints on its nature and definition (pp. 3–15). Ablex.
[ 57 ] Sternberg, R. J., & Detterman, D. K. (1986). What is intelligence?: Contemporary viewpoints on its nature and definition. Praeger Pub Text.
[ 58 ] Thomas, D., Stahl, G., Ravlin, E., Poelmans, S., Pekerti, A., Maznevski, M., Lazarova, M., Elron, E., Ekelund, B., Cerdin, J., Brislin, R., Aycan, Z. and Au, K. (2012). Development of the Cultural Intelligence Assessment. In Mobley, W., Wang, Y. and Li, M. (Eds.) Advances in Global Leadership (pp. 155-178). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
[ 59 ] Thomas, D. C., Liao, Y., Aycan, Z., Cerdin, J. L., Pekerti, A. A., Ravlin, E. C., ... & Moeller, M. (2015). Cultural intelligence: A theory-based, short form measure. Journal of International Business Studies, 46(9), 1099–1118.
[ 60 ] Thompson, R. (2018). A qualitative phenomenological study of emotional and cultural intelligence of international students in the United States of America. Journal of International Students, 8(2), 1220–1255. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v8i2.144
[ 61 ] Triandis, H. C. (2006). Cultural intelligence in organizations. Group & Organization Management, 31(1), 20–26.
[ 62 ] UNESCO Glossary. (2020). International (or internationally mobile) students. UNESCO. http://uis.unesco.org/en/glossary-term/international-or-internationally-mobile-students
[ 63 ] University of Oxford. (2015). International trends in education 2015. University of Oxford. https://www.coursehero.com/file/16198048/International-Trends-in-Higher-Education-2015pdf/
[ 64 ] Wang, K. T., Heppner, P. P., Wang, L., & Zhu, F. (2015). Cultural intelligence trajectories in new international students: Implications for the development of cross-cultural competence. International Perspectives in Psychology: Research, Practice, Consultation, 4(1), 51–65.
[ 65 ] Ward, C., Fischer, R., Zaid Lam, F. S., & Hall, L. (2009). The convergent, discriminant, and incremental validity of scores on a self-report measure of cultural intelligence. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 69(1), 85–105. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164408322001
[ 66 ] Ward, A., Stoker, H. W., & Murray-Ward, M. (1996). Educational measurement: Theories and applications. University Press of America.
[ 67 ] Ward, C., Fischer, R., Zaid Lam, F. S., & Hall, L. (2009). The convergent, discriminant, and incremental validity of scores on a self-report measure of cultural intelligence. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 69(1), 85–105. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164408322001
[ 68 ] Ward, C., Wilson, J., & Fischer, R. (2011). Assessing the predictive validity of cultural intelligence over time. Personality and Individual Differences, 51(2), 138–142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2011.03.032
[ 69 ] Weiss, L. H., & Schwarz, J. C. (1996). The relationship between parenting types and older adolescents' personality, academic achievement, adjustment, and substance use. Child Development, 67(5), 2101–2114.
[ 70 ] York, T. T., Gibson, C., & Rankin, S. (2015). Defining and measuring academic success. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 20(5), 2.
[ 71 ] Zhang, Y., & Oczkowski, E. (2016). Exploring the potential effects of expatriate adjustment direction. Cross Cultural & Strategic Management, 23(1), 158–183.