Examining the Correlation between American Students' Cultural Intelligence and Their Social Distances from Their International Peers at a Private Midwestern Universit

The number of international students studying at American colleges and universities has increased tremendously since 2000. The influx of global student mobility has had positive economic outcomes for higher education institutions in the U.S. and has given rise to voluminous literature concerning the cultural and educational experiences of international students. International students experience isolation and difficulty in making and maintaining close social distances with American-born students, both of which present significant challenges to their adjustments and academic engagements. However, much of the research has focused one-sidedly on the integration and problems of acculturation from the perceptions of international students. Given the importance of social and educational interactions among students, an understanding of the American student's social distance from his/her international counterparts was warranted. Guided by the theories of cultural intelligence and social distance, the purpose of this quantitative non-experimental study was to determine whether first-year American-born college students' political party affiliations and cultural intelligence relate to their self-reported social distances from international students. Survey questionnaire containing 36 questions was e-mailed to 689 first-year college students who were enrolled at a four-year Midwestern university, and 121 first-year students have participated in the study. Multiple regression analysis showed that political party affiliation was a statistically significant predictor of social distance between American students and their international peers. Results also showed that the metacognitive, motivational, and behavioral dimensions of cultural intelligence were statistically significant predictors of social distance between these two groups. However, cognitive cultural intelligence was not a statistically significant predictor of social distance. These findings confirm existing literature concerning the social and educational challenges that international students face as they interact with their American peers as it reveals additional factors influencing these interpersonal connections. The findings of this study also have theoretical and practical implications in scholarly discourses, educational, and other practices within the social and behavioral sciences. A further investigation of cultural intelligence as a predictor of social distance is warranted.