Does diversity matter? Developing dimensions of intercultural communication competence

This paper posits that colleges are fertile training grounds for decreasing stress in intercultural interactions and for developing students' intercultural communication competence. Societal trends and growing public sentiment suggest every college student should have as an essential element of their educational experience (formal and informal) the acquisition and enhancement of skills that will facilitate their development as competent global citizens, international workers, and future world leaders. This study demonstrates that cultural diversity influences the development of a relevant skill set that contributes to the successful achievement of desired outcomes in an intercultural communicative event. This development is evidenced by the impact of diversity on cognitive, affective and operational skills associated with adapting to the challenges inherent in intercultural interactions.;Using regression analysis, this study determines that relationships exist between diversity, as measured by a student's view of the institution's climate for multiculturalism and their participation in specific college experiences, and the development of: (a) message skills, (b) self-concept, and (c) cultural awareness. It also affirms the significance of engaging in intercultural interactions and of acquiring that knowledge in environments committed to multiculturalism.;Data for this study was obtained from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) based at the University of California, Los Angeles' Higher Education Research Institute (HERI). Information drawn from three surveys completed by approximately 12,000 students attending 184 4-year traditionally white institutions are utilized in this analysis. The results of the 1989 and 1994 analyses indicate that both student participation and their perceptions are positively correlated with their message skills, self-concept, and cultural awareness after controlling for other variables. These findings support the hypotheses that participation in curricular and co-curricular multicultural educational experiences and the student's perception of their college's commitment to multiculturalism have an effect on the development of cognitive, affective and operational skills used by interculturally competent communicators and that this impact is sustained over time.