The relation between motivational and behavioral cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment

29 July 2010 - A study published by the Cambridge Business Review explores the relation between two facets of cultural intelligence and the three dimensions of cross cultural adjustment.

Cultural intelligence is defined as a person's ability for successful adaptation into new cultural settings. Three major components of cultural intelligence are: a knowledge of culture and the fundamental principles of cross-cultural interactions; mindfulness, or an awareness of the new cultural environment; and the ability to generate appropriate behaviors in new cultural settings.

The ability to make correct judgment in cross-cultural interactions requires paying close attention to the situation at hand. Failure to successfully interact with others from different cultures is one of the main difficulties, challenges, and expenses for organizations with international operations. Individuals must learn how to interact with individuals with different cultural backgrounds. The study reports that there are three dimensions of cross cultural adjustment: general adjustment, interaction adjustment, and work adjustment, while cultural intelligence involves motivational and behavioral cross-cultural adjustment. The study aims to broaden the cultural intelligence body of knowledge. The results provide empirical evidence for the cultural intelligence construct and provide insight for managers regarding the importance of developing cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment skills in their workforce.

Source: Cambridge Business Review