week 3 research part 1

Plan for increasing my CQ

Introduction

Cultural intelligence (CQ) is a measure of a person’s capacity or ability to function effectively in a multi-cultural environment. The areas of strength, which I have identified in my cultural intelligence will help me to effectively communicate cross-culturally. In this paper, I will analyze my personal CQ scores by expounding on my strengths, weaknesses, areas that need improvement, and how I can improve my CQ scores. Because we live in a multi-cultural world, it is important to know more about other cultures. The more we know about other cultures, the better we can effectively communicate with individuals from those cultures.

I took my CQ test in March 2018, and it helped me to identify the areas that I was proficient in and the areas that need improvement. In CQ drive, the extent to which I am energized and persistent in my approach to multicultural situations, my score was very high. I also had a high score in my CQ knowledge, this revealed my level of familiarity with how cultures are similar and different. One area that I need to work on is CQ strategy, specifically planning or strategizing before a culturally diverse encounter. I also need an improvement in some areas of my CQ action, specifically modifying my non-verbal behaviors. A specific step that I need to take to improve on planning is to research about a culture ahead of time before I interact with people from that culture. We Christians are expected to share our faith with nonbelievers from different cultures. To do this effectively, we must be familiar with other cultures so that we can communicate effectively with them.

My CQ strengths

My CQ test revealed that I had a high score of 98 in CQ Drive. The Cultural Intelligence Center defines CQ Drive as “the extent to which you are energized and persistent in your approach to multicultural situations”. It states that it includes our-self confidence in our abilities as well as our sense of the benefits we will gain from intercultural interactions. The CQ assessment report divides CQ drive into three sub-dimensions. The first is intrinsic interest, which is the enjoyment we derive from culturally diverse experiences. The next one is extrinsic interests, which is the benefits we gain from culturally diverse experiences. Finally, we have self-efficacy. It means having the confidence to be effective in culturally diverse situations. My score in all three dimensions was 98, making my overall CQ drive very high. I believe my background and past experiences have helped me to score high in this area. I grew up in Ghana, a very culturally diverse society. There are over fifty tribes in Ghana, all of them with their own unique languages and culture. I had the opportunity to live among seven different cultures because my father was in the military and he was frequently transferred to different parts of the country. I currently speak six different languages as a result if this. My cultural experience in Ghana has prepared me to quickly adapt to any culture I interact with or live in. This is the reason for my high score in my CQ drive.

Another area that I had a high score in is my CQ knowledge. I had an overall score of 96. It is defined by the Cultural Intelligence Center as “The degree to which you understand how culture influences how people think and behave and your level of familiarity with how cultures are similar and different”. It is divided into four different sub-dimensions. The first is business, which is one’s knowledge about economic and legal systems. The second is values and norms. It refers to knowledge about values, social interaction norms, and religious beliefs. The third is socio-linguistics, which is the knowledge about language and communication norms. The final is leadership. This refers to knowledge about managing people and relationships across cultures.

I believe that my exposure to different cultures at an early age helped me to increase my knowledge about different cultures. For example, I was speaking six different languages by the time I was eleven years old. This made it easier for me to learn additional languages later in life. I moved from Ghana to the US when I was about twenty-one years old. I had a job at Wendy’s restaurant here in Huntington Beach, California. I did not speak any Spanish before coming to the US, but I started speaking Spanish after a few months of working at Wendy’s. I learned it just by listening to some of my co-workers who spoke Spanish. Without my prior experience of learning to speak six languages, it would have been more difficult for me to learn Spanish when I moved to the United States. During my undergraduate program at California State University in Long Beach, I took an elective course in Intercultural Communication. I believe this class also helped broadened my general understanding of different cultures of the world. It is also another factor that contributed to my high CQ knowledge score.

CQ areas with opportunity for growth

One of the areas where there is an opportunity for growth is Business. This is a sub-dimension of CQ knowledge It is important to improve in this area because it affects everything we do. Livermore writes, “The path toward improving CQ knowledge begins with seeing the influence of culture on everything we think, say, and do”. Among the four sub-dimensions of knowledge, Business is the one with my lowest score. Business is the knowledge of economic and legal systems. My childhood experience of living among different cultures did necessarily improve my CQ knowledge of business because I was experiencing different cultures in one country. Economic and legal systems usually vary across countries, so I did not have any other experience of a different economic and legal system besides the one from Ghana. Traveling to different countries is what will increase your knowledge of Business. Another area I can improve on is leadership, the knowledge about managing people and relationships across cultures. It is not surprising to me that my knowledge in this area is lower than other areas because I do not have a lot of experience leading a group of people who are culturally diverse.

Plan for increasing my CQ

Bibliography

Livermore, David A. Leading with Cultural Intelligence: The Real Secret to Success Ed. 2.

Amacom, 2015.

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