Communication Competence in Intercultural Settings: The Relationships between Language Fluency, Cultural Awareness, Intercultural Communication Apprehension, and Social Contact.

In intercultural studies, scholars agreed on a model of Intercultural Communication Competence (ICC), composed of aspects people must face in a new culture however, they disagree on its components. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between language fluency, cultural awareness, intercultural communication apprehension, as aspects of the model, and social contact. A language fluency scale was developed by the researcher. The cultural awareness scale (Chen, 1995), the social contact scale (Klineberg & Hull, 1979), and the PRICA (Personal Report of lntercultural Communication Apprehension), (Neuliep & McCroskey, 1997) were also used to gather the data. A total of74 international students from the University of Nebraska at Omaha completed the questionnaire. All hypotheses were supported. The results suggest that higher fluency in the English language, and more cultural awareness are associated with lower intercultural communication apprehension among international students at the university. The results also indicate that the more international students had contacts with Americans, the higher their fluency in English and their cultural awareness, and the lower their intercultural communication apprehension