The Development and Validation of the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale

Sample Abstract

Sample Abstract

The Development and Validation of the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale Guo-Ming Chen, Ph.D. Department of Communication Studies University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI 02881, USA Tel: (401) 874-4731 Email: gmchen@uri.edu

William J. Starosta, Ph.D. Department of Communication Howard University Washington, D. C. 20059 Tel: (202) 806-4039 Email: wstarosta@fac.howard.edu

The present study developed and assessed reliability and validity of a new instrument, the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS). Based on a review of the literature, 44 items thought to be important for intercultural sensitivity were generated. A sample of 414 college students rated these items and generated a 24-item final version of the instrument which contains five factors. An assessment of concurrent validity from 162 participants indicated that the ISS was significantly correlated with other related scales, including interaction attentiveness, impression rewarding, self-esteem, self-monitoring, and perspective taking. In addition, the predicted validity test from 174 participants showed that individuals with high ISS scores also scored high in intercultural effectiveness and intercultural communication attitude scales. Potential limitations and future direction of the study were discussed as well.