Intercultural Communicative Competence in Virtual and Face-to-Face Teamwork: A Quantitative Analysis of Culturally Diverse Teams

Abstract

Purpose: Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of virtual teams has increased during this period. There is a gap in current literature about the transformation of cultural diversity, how it appears in face-to-face interactions, and how it does in virtual teamwork. Global, virtual coworking requires different skills in order to communicate efficiently and understand the team members. This paper analyzes the importance of intercultural communicative competence in virtual and face-to-face teamwork.
Methodology: The research was conducted with a quantitative methodology to see the pattern regarding teamwork throughout culturally diverse teams. A total of 133 questionnaires were obtained for the data analysis. The collected data were then analyzed by using the IBM SPSS Statistics 27 program.
Findings: The results found that intercultural communicative competence is crucial in virtual teams. With better intercultural competence, cultural differences can be identified and considered during project management. However, in face-to-face teamwork, it seems to be more complex. Willingness to discover another culture and eagerness to understand fellow teammates makes a higher priority than being temporarily effective due to intercultural competence.
Conclusion: Intercultural communicative competence is a crucial workplace requirement in today’s globalized world, regardless of branch, profession, or geographic location. The ability to understand people with different cultural backgrounds is an increasingly important competency both virtually and in face-to-face interactions.

Keywords: Intercultural communicative competence, Culturally diverse teams, Global virtual teams, Virtual teams, Cultural differences