Twenty Countries in Twenty Years: Modeling, Assessing, and Training Generalizable Cross-Cultural Skills

Abstract

The authors summarize research efforts aimed at promoting generalizable cross-cultural skills among Warfighters, with particular emphasis on bottom-up approaches to model, assess, and train cross-cultural competence (3C) in operational environments. Bottom-up approaches begin with real incidents, involving real Warfighters making real decisions in uncertain, high-stakes, time-critical operational environments. These critical incidents and other experience-based information elicited from Warfighters have been leveraged to develop conceptual models of 3C in operational environments. Bottom-up approaches have also been used to support the development of methods to assess and train cognitive aspects of 3C (e.g., cultural acuity). Warfighter experiences and critical incidents can also guide the development of cognitively authentic situations that realistically represent the demands of operational situations and can serve as building blocks for 3C assessment and training methods. Performance-based assessment methods have been developed using these cognitively authentic situations to elicit relevant, observable behavior to assess 3C. Cognitively derived training methods give learners repeated, safe opportunities to deal with cognitively authentic situations, and with the benefit of feedback tailored to their responses, thus promoting the development of relevant 3C skills. Bottom-up approaches ensure that 3C models, training methods, and assessment tools remain grounded in, and relevant to, operational realities.

The views, opinions, and/or findings contained in this report are those of the authors and shall not be construed as an official Department of the Army position, policy, or decision, unless so designated by other documents.