The Role of Social Intelligence, Big Five Personality traits and Psychological Adjustment on University Students’ Intercultural Competence
| dc.contributor.advisor | Seleshi Zeleke (Associate Professor) | |
| dc.contributor.author | Tessema Amente | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-08-04T11:12:30Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-08-04T11:12:30Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025-06 | |
| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of this study was to examine the role of social intelligence, big five personality traits and psychological adjustment on university students’ intercultural competence. The research utilized a correlational research design. Data were collected twice: initially for instrument validation, involving reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), as well as convergent and discriminant validity assessments, with 476 participants (male = 244; female = 232). The reliability and validity of the instruments were deemed satisfactory. The factor analysis conducted for instrument validation indicated that most items were valid and suitable for the constructs they aimed to measure, which was further supported by favourable fit indices. Additionally, evidence for acceptable convergent and discriminant validity was established. The second round of data for the main study were collected from 528 participants (male = 276; female = 252) through proportionate stratified random sampling techniques. Measure of relationship, structural equation model (SEM) and MANOVA were used to analyze the data. The findings showed that a sizable percentage of participants, 36.7%, 38.5%, and 41.1%, scored lower than the mean in intercultural competence, social intelligence and psychological adjustment, respectively indicating a low level in these domains. The findings also showed that social intelligence, Big Five personality traits and psychological adjustment together explained 81% of the variation in university students' intercultural competence. When controlling for other variables, psychological adjustment emerged as the strongest predictor of intercultural competence, followed by social intelligence, agreeableness, and openness among personality traits. Standard multiple linear regression analysis indicated students' class year, linguistic abilities, and parental education levels as significant predictors of overall intercultural competence and its four dimensions. Moreover, there were significant differences in students' intercultural competence due to sex and the types of cultures they experienced prior to enrolling in university. However, no significant mean difference in intercultural competence was found between respondents from intact and non-intact homes. In conclusion, all major variables, except for family structure and neuroticism personality traits, have a statistically significant impact on university students' intercultural competency. The study's results addressed a range of practical and theoretical insights, as well as limitations and recommendations for future research. | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/6021 | |
| dc.language.iso | en_US | |
| dc.publisher | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | |
| dc.subject | Intercultural competence | |
| dc.subject | social intelligence | |
| dc.subject | psychological adjustment | |
| dc.subject | big five personality trait | |
| dc.subject | university students | |
| dc.subject | Ethiopia | |
| dc.title | The Role of Social Intelligence, Big Five Personality traits and Psychological Adjustment on University Students’ Intercultural Competence | |
| dc.type | Thesis |