DRIVING MULTICULTURAL TEAM PERFORMANCE THROUGH CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF CROSS-LINGUISTIC COMMUNICATION COMPETENCE IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
Keywords:
Cultural Intelligence, Cross-Linguistic Communication, Multicultural Team Performance, International Business, International Business OrganizationAbstract
This research examined the influence of cultural intelligence on multicultural team performance in international business organizations and tested the mediating role of cross-linguistic communication competence. A quantitative survey design was employed, using a structured questionnaire as the data collection instrument. The sample consisted of employees in international business organizations who collaborated with colleagues from diverse nationalities, languages, and cultural backgrounds. Based on a required sample size of 385, a total of 405 valid questionnaires were collected. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation, as well as inferential statistics using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM).
The results indicated that cultural intelligence had significant positive effects on both cross-linguistic communication competence and multicultural team performance (β = 0.512 and β = 0.436, respectively; p < .001). In addition, cross-linguistic communication competence had a significant positive effect on multicultural team performance (β = 0.376, p < .001). The findings also revealed that cross-linguistic communication competence partially mediates the relationship between cultural intelligence and multicultural team performance. The model explained 26.2% of the variance in cross-linguistic communication competence and 29.5% of the variance in multicultural team performance. Theoretically, this study extends knowledge on cultural intelligence and multicultural team performance by demonstrating that cross-linguistic communication competence serves as an important mechanism explaining the linkage between cultural intelligence and team outcomes. Practically, the findings suggest that international business organizations should emphasize the development of cultural intelligence alongside cross-linguistic communication skills through training, competency development, and the design of management approaches for culturally diverse teams to enhance collaborative effectiveness and multicultural team performance in a sustainable manner.
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