“Step Back and Level the Playing Field”: Exploring Power Differentials and Cultural Humility as Experienced by Undergraduate Students in Cross-National Group Work

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences of undergraduate students who are engaged in cross-national group work and to identify strategies that undergraduates perceive as most effective in addressing the challenges identified by the literature in this field. My research questions focused on students’ experiences of power within groups, and explored ways in which cultural humility may mediate power imbalances. A thematic analysis of the literature included a review of the internationalization of higher education, recent research on cross-national interactions, and an examination of Allport’s (1954) intergroup contact theory, the conceptual framework of cultural humility (Tervalon & Murray-Garcia, 1998), and Johnson and Johnson’s (1987) model of cooperative learning. I utilized a qualitative case study design in which I conducted multiple observations of three cross-national groups in a Food Science course within the context of a large, public research university in the Midwest, over a 15-week semester. I facilitated 15 semi-structured interviews with student and instructor participants, and also analyzed course documents and multiple reflection responses from 18 students enrolled in the course. My findings indicate that both U.S. and international students reported to experience varying degrees of communicative discomfort in cross-national interactions and group work. Students perceived power within groups to be shaped by a variety of factors, but most highly regarded was the ability to express strong levels of verbal competence, which created some barriers for students from different educational backgrounds. Students demonstrated some capacity to recognize and utilize cultural humility to equalize power imbalances at the level of interpersonal dynamics. Cultural humility, however, was not applied to deconstruct the traditional norms and practices of group work, although the use of some communication methods were utilized to encourage more inclusive interactions for cross-national groups.