Research Article: 2023 Vol: 27 Issue: 4
Andriana Eliadis, Cornell University
Citation Information: Eliadis, A.(2023). Cultural intelligence and coaching: an integrative literature review. Journal of Organizational Culture Communications and Conflict, 27(4), 1-13.
Cultural intelligence can lead to effective leadership, however, it is vital to highlight what skills and theories a coach should know/learn to be successful in supporting clients within the cultural intelligence (CQ) arena. Therefore, this integrated review of literature aims to highlight the CQ and its applications for leaders and particularly professional coaches. This review considered five studies focusing on cultural intelligence. To identify the relevant articles from quality journals, a search was conducted on various databases including Scopus. Moreover, this review has provided the research purpose, questions, participant details, data collection/analysis, and findings of every article that was under consideration.
Cultural Intelligence, Coaching, Professional Coaching, Metacognition.
Over the last three decades, many researchers are focusing on cross-cultural communication and have alluded to the idea that there are several attributes possessed by individuals that enable them to be effective in cross-cultural interactions (Cushner & Brislin, 1995), maintaining overseas assignments (Caligiuri, 2000) and cross-cultural communication (Ting-Toomey, 1999). Recent literature explains these differences among individuals and their abilities in terms of an important type of intelligence, which is known as cultural intelligence (CQ) (Thomas et al., 2008). Before focusing on cultural intelligence, it is essential tohave a clear comprehension of what intelligence entails. There are several definitions of intelligence and the majority of them are culture-bound, as in the West intelligence is linked to the speed of making appropriate decisions. In African countries, it is associated with the behaviorof an individual conforming to the desires of elders. Therefore, whatever cultural bounding or differentiation exists in organizations, there is a need for extensive training to make a person culturally intelligent (Triandis, 2006).
Bandura’s social cognitive theory is the most prominent theory that clarifies the influence of cultural intelligence on certain factors (Bandura, 2001) and examines peoples’ knowledge- sharing behavior (Hsu et al., 2007). This theory is always helpful to understand factors related to the cultural environment (Bandura, 2011; Saengratwatchara & Pearson, 2004; Schunk & Dibenedetto, 2020), thus, it has also been used by many studies focusing on cultural intelligence. According to Triandis (2006), there is a need for some important attributes to achieving cultural intelligence and there are several aspects of this intelligence from the organizational context.
Detterman and Sternberg (1986) highlighted the multiple-loci conceptualization of intelligence and on the basis of this, Earley and Ang (2003) developed the cultural intelligence model which comprises four factors including metacognitive cultural intelligence, cognitive cultural intelligence, motivational cultural intelligence, and behavioral cultural intelligence. The initial conceptualization of cultural intelligence was lacking the involvement of biological aspects of intelligence and now the studies on cultural intelligence have embraced the biological foundations of CQ (Rockstuhl et al., 2010). Table 1, highlights the conceptualization of all four factors of cultural intelligence.
| Table 1 Factors Of Cultural Intelligence Model (Earley & Ang, 2003) |
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|---|---|---|
| Sr # | Factor | Conceptualization |
| 1 | Metacognitive cultural intelligence | Individual’s cultural consciousness and awareness |
| 2 | Cognitive cultural intelligence |
Individual’s cultural knowledge of norms, practices, and conventions |
| 3 | Motivational cultural intelligence | Individual’s capability to direct attention and energy towards cultural differences |
| 4 | Behavioral cultural intelligence | Individual’s capability to exhibit appropriate verbal and non-verbal actions |
Source: (Van Dyne et al., 2015).
Thomas et al. (2008) explained conceptualized cultural intelligence based on three important factors, including cultural knowledge, cultural metacognition, and cross-cultural skills. The explanation of these factors is given in Table 2.
| Table 2 Factors Of Cultural Intelligence Model (Thomas et al., 2008) |
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|---|---|---|
| Sr # | Factor | Conceptualization |
| 1 | Cultural knowledge | Information about culture, how it differs and influences behaviors |
| 2 | Cultural metacognition | Monitoring and regulation of cognitive processes towards the achievement of the goal. |
| 3 | Cross-cultural skills | Having a range of cultural general abilities |
Source: (Ott & Michailova, 2018).
Leaders can use any of these above-given models and/or professional coaches can help leaders understand cultural intelligence by providing them the knowledge about metacognitive cultural intelligence, cognitive cultural intelligence, motivational cultural intelligence, behavioral cultural intelligence, cultural knowledge, cultural metacognition, and cross-cultural skills.
It is important to understand how professional coaching supports clients in leveraging cultural intelligence in their workplace; before that though, it is vital to comprehend the reason why leaders must have cultural intelligence. Offermann and Phan (2002) provided three theoretical reasons to explain why leaders with more cultural intelligence can efficiently manage the culturally diverse expectations of their followers (Avolio et al., 2009). Firstly, intercultural interactions provide awareness that allows leaders to understand the impact of their own background and culture. It provides information to them on how their values can differ from assumptions related to workplace behaviors. Also, it develops more awareness about the expectations they hold for themselves and others in a “leader-follower relationship.” Secondly, the high level of cultural intelligence in leaders enables them to validate the accuracy of their cultural assumptions and hypothesize about possible value biases, Thirdly, culturally intelligent leaders combine their rich understanding of others and their own self with behavioral andmotivational flexibility in the way that allows them to drive and behaviorally adapt in ways that enable them to tailor their leadership styles to particular cross-cultural circumstances (Rockstuhl et al., 2011).
In the 21st century, organizations are comprised of diverse cultures and are known as multicultural organizations. In one country the products are designed, their production is done in multiple countries and then these products are marketed in more than one hundred countries. This reality of designing and production distribution results in several dyadic relationships where the cultures of two or more members differ. This differentiation can be related to social class, religion, ethnicity, politics, language, and other attributes (Triandis, 2006). For both members of the dyad, good working relationships require cultural intelligence (Early & Ang, 2003).
The individuals are assigned specific tasks to acquire particular experiences and while working they encounter different stressful situations that challenge their coping processes (Brislin et al., 2006). For example, organizational leaders want to develop a joint trade agreement with any business party but are unable to find the ways of making decisions and identifying the main decision maker. Technical assistance advisors are making efforts to develop a project for improving the quality of life in less-developed countries, but they found that the majority of residents have different perceptions and thinking about the future. The solution to these problems is cultural intelligence (Brislin et al., 2006) as people in collectivist cultures show more commitment to organizations (Wasti, 2002) and they can efficiently conduct any task assigned to them.
The term cultural intelligence is referred to as CQ because it is conceptualized as a facet of intelligence and it was introduced by Earley (2002) and Ott & Michailova (2018). This concept is gaining a lot of attention from researchers of different domains, particularly in the intercultural management studies (Ng & Earley, 2006). Currently, researchers of leadership and coaching are also keenly focusing on cultural intelligence as it can help leaders in the proper implementation of intelligence. According to Earley & Ang (2003), cultural intelligence is defined as “a person’s capability for successful adaptation to new cultural settings, that is, for unfamiliar settings attributable to cultural context” (p. 9). Culturally intelligent employees or employees having a high level of cultural intelligence possess different other attributes as they are culturally competent and have motivational and behavioral abilities to efficiently work with other members of diverse cultures. Moreover, they have the capability to adapt to foreign environments. In addition, individuals who are able to develop new behavior and interpretations in a culture that is unfit for their learned cues have a high level of cultural intelligence. Furthermore, people having high cultural intelligence have the capability to expect that misunderstandings will happen in other cultures; thus, they postpone their judgment towards any specific situation until they get a better or deeper understanding (Brislin et al., 2006).
Cultural intelligence is a form of interpersonal intelligence, and this conceptualization of CQ makes it similar to emotional and social intelligence. Social intelligence is an ability of a person or an employee (i.e. in an organizational context) to manage and understand others, thus itis considered as a broader real-world or interpersonal intelligence. The term social intelligence deals with the ability of a person to deal with his or her own emotions and the emotions of others. Whereas, cultural intelligence has similarities with emotional and social intelligence as it possesses the ability to understand emotions and manage others. The main element that distinguishes CQ from social intelligence (SQ) is the intercultural context. There is a need for different abilities to understand the cultural differences in others as people from different cultures express themselves differently. Thus, a person high in social and emotional intelligence will also have a high level of cultural intelligence. Moreover, many studies have revealed that cultural intelligence is different from other types of intelligence (i.e. social and emotional) (Ang et al., 2015).
Leadership is important for human sciences as it is conceptualized as one of the key principles of human science with an administrative nature and it is a social role played by leaders by interacting with other group members (Kerr et al., 2006). A leader not only provides directions but also gives guidance to the followers for achieving a particular goal, and effective leadership is based on the capability of the leader to solve social and complex technical problems (Mumford, Zaccaro, Harding, Jacobs, & Fleishman, 2000) and in this study the issue isthe cultural intelligence of the leader. Therefore, this study aims to highlight how professional coaching can help leaders become culturally intelligent and manage cultural issues in their workplaces.
It has been observed that the social problems of leadership are complex when the leaders are working in a cross-border context; the reason behind this complexity is the influence of cultural background on the prototypes and schemas of “appropriate leadership behaviors.” For example, the nature of the relationships Yeung & Ready (1995), behaviors of managers (Shin et al., 2007), and expectations about preferred leadership styles (House et al., 2004) are all influenced significantly by culture. Thus, there is a dire need for effective cross-border leadership that requires the capacity to function in culturally diverse contexts and this ability can be generated via cultural intelligence.
Torelli, Chiu, Tam, Au, and Keh (2011) explained that leaders manage diverse expectations as a function of cultural differences; apart from this, leaders in cross-bordercontexts should be able to manage the exclusionary reactions that can be generated by cross- cultural contact. According to the social categorization theory (Turner, 1987) these reactions are culturally diverse, whereas others are driven by perceptions of dissimilarity and perceiving others as non-group members. Therefore, Rockstuhl and Ng (2008) highlighted that leaders with a high level of cultural intelligence develop trusting relationships with others and they dislike engaging in exclusionary reactions.
The navigation of culturally diverse situations leads to cross-cultural coaching. To enhance cultural intelligence, coaching works in tandem with and in addition to other support services like mentorship and training. Many studies provided different definitions of cultural competencies; the most common among them is that it is the capability to effectively function in another culture (Caligiuri & Tarique 2012; Johnson, Lenartowicz & Apud, 2006). Culturaldifferences should be accepted instead of dismissed (Rosinski, 2010). Coaching in a cross- cultural setting can help the client in developing culturally appropriate behavior through improved awareness and higher mental agility in a particular context. Cross-cultural coaching can be defined as “a meaning- making process, in which the coach helps the coachee to surface and address deeply held beliefs and behaviors, based on cognitive schemas and frameworks shaped by culture and identity constructions that inhibit their performance in their current context” (Booysen, 2015). Therefore, cultural intelligence can have an imperative role in coaching; this can be general or cross-border.
Emotional intelligence and particularly cultural intelligence is essentially required by leaders to successfully respond to interpersonal relationships and different environmental conditions (Alon & Higgins, 2005). The concept of cultural intelligence has great importance, and it is broadly highlighted by several studies, but little attention has been paid to the emerging practice of professional coaching in the context of cultural intelligence. The aim of this study is to highlight how can professional coaches support their clients in leveraging cultural intelligence in their workplace. This research has highlighted several studies on cultural intelligence with reference to coaching (Barabino, 2017; Couch & Rose, 2020; Rand, 2015; Van der Horst & Albertyn, 2018), however, there is a paucity of literature examining what cultural intelligence knowledge, skills, models/theories are required to be successful in supporting clients within the cultural intelligence area. On the basis of this, the following research question was developed:
“What cultural intelligence knowledge, skills, and models a coach should know or learn to be successful in supporting their clients within the cultural intelligence area?” To respond to this research question, this study focused on the existing literature in cultural intelligence.
Cultural Intelligence
Richerson & Boyd (2005) defined culture as “information capable of affecting individuals’ behavior that they acquire from other members of their (group) through teaching, imitation, and other forms of social transmission.” According to Sternberg (2008), intelligence is the capability of a person to learn from experiences by using metacognitive processes to enhance learning. Moreover, it is widely explained as an ability to adapt to the surrounding environment. The term cultural intelligence is the combination of culture and intelligence, and Early and Ang (2003) explained cultural intelligence as the capability of an individual to effectively adapt to different cultures. Similarly, Ang & Van Dyne (2008) defined cultural intelligence as the ability to be successful in a cross-cultural environment and this intelligence comprises several dimensions including metacognitive cultural intelligence, behavioral cultural intelligence, motivation cultural intelligence, and cognitive cultural intelligence. These dimensions are used by many studies, but some studies focused on different dimensions of cultural intelligence.
Alon & Higgins (2005) focused on emotional and cultural intelligence to identify global leadership success and found that both of these are required for a foreign leader to successfully develop interpersonal relationships and respond to different environmental conditions. In comparison to emotional intelligence, cultural intelligence can enhance the performance of workers (Shane & Chen, 2011). Moreover, Ng et al. (2009) stated that “higher levels of CQ enhance the likelihood of active involvement in all four stages of the ELT (Experiential Learning Theory) cycle, resulting in better integration of the ELT processes of grasping experience and transforming experience.” Therefore, the improvement of cultural intelligence by cross-cultural coaching can unlock the client’s ability to access Kolb’s full experiential learning cycle.
Coaching
The competitive business environment has created the need for coaching employees and particularly leaders. Coaching is becoming a popular trend as Larson and Richburg (20040) said “While coaching focuses on the individual, its successful implementation brings significant benefits to both the individual and the organization. These benefits include retention of valued talent, increases in productivity, development of high-potential performers, greater job satisfaction for the participant, and achievement of organization objectives.” Moreover, coaching is considered a vital developmental strategy, but it is not done once and during the course of a successful career, leaders will need a succession of teachers, guides, coaches, and counselors. Furthermore, the establishment of an environment using formal coaching will help the organizations to achieve increased performance (Marson, 2019).
In an organizational scenario, the development of successful leaders is not merely the task of the human resource department but the complete organization should work on the areas such as education, role modeling, and coaching (Alon & Higgins, 2005). Over the last two decades, the studies on the efficacy of coaches mainly focused on the characteristics of the mentor, their behavioral patterns, and leadership styles as they are important components of cultural intelligence (Zad et al., 2013).
Cultural Intelligence and Coaching
Van Dyne et al. (2012) highlighted that a leader being a coach should have knowledge of every sub-dimension of cultural intelligence. As leaders' necessity for a global mindset increases, the literature is increasingly recognizing the value of cultural intelligence (Booysen, 2015). Many researchers have studied the term, cultural intelligence, in different contexts however there is a paucity of literature explaining CQ with reference to cross-cultural coaching. Moreover, there is a lack of studies highlighting the benefits that can be gained from the cultural intelligence-based approach of cross-cultural coaching. Many studies on cultural intelligence and similar concepts aim to know cultural adaptions and the transformation of experience into culturally appropriate behavior. However, in cross-cultural coaching, the issue of cultural adaptation is still dealt with using staticand dimensional cultural profiling techniques that almost entirely concentrate on the content of culture. Even though many studies are given in this integrated literature but still, there is a need for research on determining the theoretical developments and empirical evidence of how cross- cultural coaching transforms cultural knowledge and experience into culturally appropriate behavior (Yari et al., 2020).
Current accreditation training courses can equip coaches with cross-cultural skills. Many highly skilled professionals such as lawyers and bankers use cultural intelligence training because it enables them to successfully adjust to a different culture and adapt to it (Rüth & Netzer, 2020). Moreover, cultural intelligence training has a great impact on the cultural intelligence of university students (MacNab, 2012). These training programs are based on experiential training and include important components (i.e. behavioral and metacognitive cultural intelligence dimensions) to enhance the cultural intelligence of learners. In addition, cultural intelligence training positively improves the CQ of other participants (Ott & Michailova, 2018; Solomon & Steyn, 2017).
The characteristics of individuals can help in the development of cultural intelligence and manage its relationship with self-efficacy (Mc Nobb & Worthly, 2012). Many studies focusing on cultural intelligence have linked CQ with global leadership. Moreover, several qualitative studies have highlighted that CQ plays an important role in offshoring vendors and managing subordinates belonging to different cultural backgrounds (Ang et al., 2015).
Cultural intelligence has applications in coaching and particularly cross-culturalcoaching, thus the etic character of CQ constructs is an important attribute. Metacognition is an important dimension of cultural intelligence, and it has two applications for cross-cultural coaching. The first application is the reflective practices that are used in cross-cultural coaching for the creation of insights through mindfulness and awareness and are broadly used in coaching. There is a paucity of literature on crosscultural coaching to highlight that the insights of metacognitive cultural intelligence are appropriately integrated into reflective practice in cross- cultural coaching. Secondly, the dimension of metacognition provides the client with a set of methods to explore cross-cultural challenges. In the area of coaching, the experiential learning theory is widely used because the integration of cultural intelligence and the experiential learning theory can provide a useful process for managing the complexities linked with cross-cultural issues (Van der Horst & Albertyn, 2018). Therefore, the coach should be trained in metacognitive cultural intelligence, cognitive cultural intelligence, motivational cultural intelligence, behavioral cultural intelligence, and most importantly the experiential learning theory, to be successful in supporting clients with the CQ area.
An integrative review of the literature is essentially required to stimulate further research on any topic. When the literature review aims to re-conceptualize an issue, the conceptual model inevitably presents new links and viewpoints that have not been thoroughly explored. Moreover, further flaws and unsolved problems will be revealed by the author’s analysis of the literature. Whereas, when literature is limited to some specific aspect of the topic, it is essential to observe that available literature does not allow for definitive conclusions in that area (Slavin, 1986). In this research, the literature is limited to a specific aspect of the topic (i.e. cultural intelligence), thus, it has focused on selective integrative literature to ground future research. Torraco (2005) defined selective integrative literature as a “form of research that reviews, critiques, and synthesizes representative literature on a topic in an integrated way such that new frameworks and perspectives on the topic are generated.” The integrated literature review process used in this research has collected and synthesized findings through journals, reports, articles, and books on the topic of cultural intelligence and coaching. To conduct this review, the author has considered qualitative and quantitative research articles published in academic journals, and to ensure the standard of selected studies, two important databases are focused (i.e. Web of Science and Scopus). In addition, google scholar was used to seek the literature. Moreover, the book on cultural intelligence by Maltbia and Power (2008) assisted in determining the essential elements for this review. This research has selected five studies with different research designs. They are listed in Table 3.
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In Table 4, the research objectives of each selected study are mentioned. Moreover, their findings are provided. The table has compressively summarized the studies, besides showing research objectives and research questions; it has also shown their titles, authors’ detail, and year of publication.
| Table 4 Summary Of Studies |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studies | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Titles | Beyond General Intelligence (IQ) and Emotional Intelligence (EQ): The role of cultural intelligence (CQ) on cross‐border leadership effectiveness in a globalized world. |
Cultural intelligence and competencies. | The importance of metacognition and the experiential learning process within a cultural intelligence- based approach to cross-cultural coaching. | Cultural intelligence: A review and new research avenues. | Cultural intelligence, global mindset, and cross- cultural competencies: a systematic review using bibliometric methods. |
| Authors | Rockstuhl, T., Seiler, S., Ang, S., Van Dyne, L., & Annen, H. | Ang, S., Rockstuhl, T., & Tan, M. L. | Van der Horst, C. A., & Albertyn, R. M. (2018). |
Ott, D. L., & Michailova, S. (2018). | Yari, N., Lankut, E., Alon, I., & Richter, N. F. (2020). |
| Years | 2011 | 2015 | 2018 | 2018 | 2020 |
| Research Objectives | To know that the cultural intelligence is critical leadership competency for those with cross- border responsibility | To review the conceptualization, measurement, and empirical evidence for the nomological network of cultural intelligence. | To review the theoretical linkages, benefits and directions of CQ for enhancing cross-cultural coaching. | To analyze the distinct conceptualizations of CQ, developments within the conceptual research, and opportunities for further theorizing by using prior studies. |
To highlight the intellectual structure and temporal evolution of research streams in CQ, GM, and CC and know the promising routes for future research. |
| Research Questions | How the cultural intelligence (i.e. the leadership capability to manage effectively in culturally diverse settings) is critical leadership competency for those with cross- border responsibility? | What research directions to further advance can be taken for the understanding of cultural intelligence in the context of leadership? | What are the theoretical linkages, benefits and directions of CQ for enhancing cross-cultural coaching. | What distinct conceptualizations of CQ, developments within the conceptual research, and opportunities are for further theorizingCQ in context of coaching? |
1.What is the intellectual structure of the CQ, GM, and CC literatures, including key research streams and potentially bridging researchers in the field? 2.What is the temporal evolution of research streams in CQ, GM, and CC research and what are the emerging topics? 3.What are the promising routes for future research? |
Research Designs, Participants, Data Collection, and Analysis
This integrated literature review has considered five important studies and the research design of each study is given in Table 5. This table has also provided the participants and details of data collection. Starting from the top, in the first horizontal row, the number of each study is offered. In the second from the top horizontal row, the titles of the studies are given.
| Table 5 Research Design Participants, Data Collection, And Measurement & Data Analysis Approach |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studies | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Titles | Beyond general intelligence (IQ) and emotional intelligence (EQ): The role of cultural intelligence (CQ) on cross‐ border leadership effectiveness in a globalized world. |
Cultural intelligence and competencies | The importance of metacognition and the experiential learning process within a cultural intelligence- based approach to cross-cultural coaching | Cultural intelligence: A review and new research avenues. | Cultural intelligence, global mindset, and cross-cultural competencies: a systematic review using bibliometric methods. |
| Authors | Rockstuhl, Seiler, Ang, Van Dyne, & Annen |
Ang, Rockstuhl, & Tan | Van der Horst, & Albertyn | Ott & Michailova, | Yari, Lankut, Alon, & Richter, |
| Participants | 126 Swiss military officers | It is a qualitative study and in this we reviewed the conceptualization, measurement, and empirical evidence for the nomological network of cultural intelligence |
It is a qualitative study thus, there were no participants. | It is a qualitative study thus, there were no participants. | It is a qualitative study thus, there were no participants. |
| Data Collection | Cultural Intelligence Scale- 20 items (Ang et al., 2007) | Literature | Literature | 73 conceptual and empirical articles published on CQ from2002 to 2015 |
58 publications on Cultural Intelligence (CQ) and related concepts, Global Mindset (GM), and Crosscultural Competence (CC) |
| Data analysis approach |
Quantitative | Qualitative | Qualitative | Qualitative | Qualitative |
Rockstuhl et al. (2011) gathered the data from 126 military officers and used the four dimensions-based scale of CQ (i.e. with 20 items and developed by Ang et al., (2007). Ang et al. (2015) and Van der Horst and Albertyn (2018) used the qualitative literature review based technique and focused on literature. Ott and Michailova (2018) used 73 conceptual and empirical articles published on CQ from 2002 to 2015. Whereas, Yari et al. (2020) conducted a bibliometric analysis and focused on 58 publications on Cultural Intelligence (CQ) and related concepts, Global Mindset (GM), and Cross-cultural Competence (CC).
Findings
Table 6 shows the findings of the four studies considered by this research.
| Table 6 Findings |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studies | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Titles | Beyond general | Cultural | The importance of | Cultural | Cultural intelligence, |
| intelligence (IQ) | intelligence and | metacognition and | intelligence: A | global mindset, and | |
| and emotional | competencies | the experiential | review and new | cross-cultural | |
| intelligence (EQ): | learning process | research | competencies: a | ||
| The role of | within a cultural | avenues. | systematic review | ||
| cultural | intelligence- based | using bibliometric | |||
| intelligence (CQ) | approach to cross- | methods. | |||
| on cross‐border | cultural coaching | ||||
| leadership | |||||
| effectiveness in a | |||||
| globalized world. | |||||
| Authors | Rockstuhl, Seiler, Ang, Van Dyne, & Annen |
Ang, Rockstuhl, & Tan | Van der Horst, & Albertyn | Ott & Michailova, | Yari, Lankut, Alon, & Richter, |
| Findings | Cultural | Cultural | Metacognitive | CQ significant | It is important to |
| intelligence is a | intelligence is a | strategies should | contributes to | highlight different | |
| critical leadership | distinct | be recognized and | effectiveness of | conceptualization | |
| competency | capability that | used in (cross- | cross-cultural | and theories related | |
| accounts for | cultural) coaching. | leadership and | to cultural | ||
| significant | influences | intelligence | |||
| performance | different | ||||
| differences. | important | ||||
| outcomes for | |||||
| successful | |||||
| intercultural | |||||
| interactions | |||||
Rockstuhl et al. (2011) proposed that cultural intelligence is a critical leadership competency. They developed a hypothesis to test this proposition and supported following predictions.
• “General intelligence predicted both domestic and cross-border leadership effectiveness.”
•“Emotional intelligence was a stronger predictor of domestic leadership effectiveness.” •“Cultural intelligence was a stronger predictor of cross-border leadership effectiveness.”
Rockstuhl et al. (2011) also revealed that CQ is a critical leadership competency in today’s globalized world and an effective leader must have metacognitive cultural intelligence, cognitive cultural intelligence, motivational cultural intelligence and behavioral cultural intelligence. According to Ang et al. (2015) research on cultural intelligence is a distinct capability that accounts for significant performance differences. Moreover, they reviewed the detailed literature on CQ and explained its dimensions, measurements, antecedents, outcomes, and significance as moderator and mediator.
Van der Horst and Albertyn (2018) critically explored the directions, benefits, and theoretical linkages of cultural intelligence for boosting cross-cultural coaching. Further, they suggested four important findings motivating a cultural intelligence-based approach to coaching. These findings are listed below:
1. The metacognitive strategies should be recognized and used in (cross-cultural) coaching. 2. Metacognition is useful for cross-cultural coaching for transforming cultural experience and insights into culturally appropriate behavior. 3. There is great significance in the suitability and predisposition of certain learning styles to cross-cultural learning effectiveness. 4. There is an importance of a heightened focus on the experiential learning process within cross-cultural coaching engagement.
Cultural intelligence significantly contributes to the effectiveness of cross-cultural leadership and influences different important outcomes for successful intercultural interactions (Ott & Michailova, 2018). Therefore, it is important to highlight different conceptualizations and theories related to cultural intelligence (Yari et al., 2020).
This research is qualitative in nature and utilized the approach of integrative literature review approach to highlight what cultural intelligent skills, knowledge, and models/ theories a coach should know/learn to be successful in supporting their clients within the cultural intelligence areana. Five research articles were considered for this review. One article was empirical, three articles were conceptual, and one article was based on the bibliometric technique. To find the relevant articles, Google Scholar and other important databases (i.e. Scopus and WoS) were searched. The screening shows that there is no empirical researchhighlighting cultural intelligence within the context of professional coaching. The results revealed that culturally intelligent competencies play an important role in the performance of workers and leaders; leaders having high CQ can perform better and possess the capability of managing the culturally different workforce. Coaching on cultural intelligence should be provided toleaders to improve their workplaces. Coaches who have high knowledge of metacognitive cultural intelligence, cognitive cultural intelligence, motivational cultural intelligence, behavioralcultural intelligence, and are experienced and knowledgeable in the experiential learning theory, can provide increased quality of coaching and training to leaders.
This study has focused on the broad area of cultural intelligence; however, it has some limitations that can be considered by future studies. First, the study is based on cultural intelligence, which is an important capability and future studies can emphasize highlighting social intelligence in the context of coaching. Secondly, this integrated literature review has considered only five studies, among which there was only one empirical, thus, the studies in the future can either use more studies and/or include more empirical articles. Thirdly, the important skills and theories have been highlighted which can be used by future studies in developing a conceptual framework to relate cultural intelligence with coaching.
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Received: 03-Jul-2023, Manuscript No. JOCCC-23-13908; Editor assigned: 05-Jul-2023, Pre QC No. JOCCC-23-13908(PQ); Reviewed: 19- Jul-2023, QC No. JOCCC-23-13908; Revised: 26-Jul-2023, Manuscript No. JOCCC-23-13908(R); Published: 31-Jul-2023