U.S. Undergraduate Business Students and Short-term Study Abroad: An Exploratory Study on Cross-cultural Development

ABSTRACT Employers are continually looking for graduates who show an understanding of people with diverse cultures, languages, and religions. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine how participation in study abroad enhanced the interculturality of undergraduate business students. Participants included two cohorts of U.S. students participating in a short-term biennial study abroad program in China. The data were student’ scores on The Intercultural Effectiveness Scale (IES), a 52-item Likert scale spanning nine dimensions: continuous learning, self-awareness, exploration, interpersonal engagement, world orientation, relationship development, hardiness, positive regard, and emotional resilience. The IES was completed pre and post trip. Additional data were collected from the students’ open-ended journals that they wrote while participating in the study abroad program. Quantitative findings revealed that mean scores increased significantly between Time 1 (pre trip) and Time 2 (post trip) for most dimensions of the IES. Qualitative findings showed that three main themes impact student experiences: Travel, Memories, and Culture. Additional qualitative findings revealed that the Enjoyment and Challenges that students experience as part of a formal study abroad curriculum enhanced attainment of learning outcomes.