The effectiveness of task-based intercultural competence training program on intercultural sensitivity, ethnocentrism, cultural intelligence levels and multicultural personality traits of university students

The aim of this study is to examine the effectiveness of the 'Task-Based Intercultural Competence (TBIC) Training Program' designed and implemented by the researcher in the Intercultural Communication course on university students' intercultural sensitivity, ethnocentrism, cultural intelligence levels and multicultural personality traits, and to design, implement and evaluate a training program that can be used in the process of developing intercultural competence in universities by determining the participant students' views on the related program. In line with the above basic purpose, quantitative and qualitative data were collected from university students in stages during the research process in which explanatory mixed method design was used. The research was conducted with one hundred students who took the elective "Intercultural Communication" course in the elective category among the 3rd grade regular and second shift education students of the Department of Radio, Television and Cinema and the Department of Journalism at Uşak University Faculty of Communication. In the quantitative dimension of this study, a quasi-experimental design with pre-test/post-test control (comparison) groups was used. In order to investigate the effectiveness of the "TBIC Training Program", which was presented to the study group as an intervention program within the scope of the Intercultural Communication course, data collection tools including Intercultural Sensitivity Scale, Ethnocentrism Scale, Cultural Intelligence Scale and Multicultural Personality Scale along with Participant Information Form were all applied to the experimental and comparison groups as pre-test and post-test before and after the implementation of the program. The data set in the qualitative dimension of the study was obtained through the opinion forms and session evaluation forms collected from the students participating in the weekly sessions within the scope of the TBIC Training Program, and focus group interviews conducted with two groups of experimental group students participating in the program following the completion of the program in the last stage of the research. All statistical procedures for analyzing the quantitative data of the study were carried out in SPSS 25 data analysis program. In analyzing the qualitative data obtained, descriptive analysis method was used by taking into account the conceptual framework of the research.The results obtained from the quantitative data revealed that when the TBIC Training Program was completed, it led to a significant difference in the intercultural sensitivity and cultural intelligence levels and on the multicultural personality traits such as cultural empathy, social assertiveness and open-mindedness scores of the students in the experimental group, while partially reducing the ethnocentrism levels of the participants. The results obtained from the qualitative data of the study showed that the participants understood and internalized cultural differences and had positive feelings towards differences, developed intercultural sensitivity with the practices; they tended to rise above the level they were at; they have cultural intelligence indicators, they expand their knowledge of different cultures by reviewing their cultural knowledge; they show predisposition and positive attitude in terms of cultural empathy, social assertiveness and open-mindedness, which are among the multicultural personality traits. According to the qualitative results obtained from the opinions of the participants regarding the implemented program, it was observed that the content of the program and the activities implemented were effective in terms of understanding people from different cultures correctly, increasing self-awareness, increasing interest in different cultures, a wider awareness of their prejudices and respect for differences, and it was concluded that 97.20% of the sessions implemented within the framework of the program were found useful by the participants. Keywords: Intercultural Competence, Intercultural Sensitivity, Ethnocentrism, Cultural Intelligence, Multicultural Personality, Mixed Method Research