SPOKANE, Wash., Sept. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- People to People
Ambassador Programs, the leader in global educational travel
experiences, today announced the results of a pilot study conducted
with The Cultural Intelligence Center of East Lansing, Michigan. The pilot study
measured the Cultural Intelligence (CQ) of Virginia high school students that traveled
internationally with People to People Student Ambassador Programs
to discover the impact the program had on the students' individual
CQ – a research based, proven way to measure and develop the
ability to adapt to a variety of cultural situations.
CQ is similar to IQ and EQ (emotional intelligence quotient) in
that it quantifies a set of capabilities believed to be important
to both personal and professional success. It is unique in that it
focuses specifically on the skills needed for success in unfamiliar
cultures.
"Cultural understanding and engagement have always been core
values in how we structure our educational travel programs, in fact
long before CQ became a recognized concept," said Peg Thomas, president of People to People
Ambassador Programs. "But this study helped confirm the cultural
immersion benefits and opportunities we offer with our programs.
Additionally, we are thrilled to confirm via the research findings
that our inspirational teachers who lead our travel experiences are
big drivers for both enhancing and improving a student's CQ."
Using the CQ Self-Assessment, the only academically tested CQ
assessment in the world, students measured their CQ before and
after traveling abroad on a People to People experience. CQ is
measured in four areas: Drive – What's my interest in this
cross-cultural assignment?; Knowledge – What cultural information
is needed to fulfill this task?; Strategy – What's my plan?; and
Action – What behaviors do I need to adopt to do this
effectively?
Key findings from the pilot study concluded that students had
significant enhancement in their CQ after traveling abroad with
People to People, saw comprehensive CQ enhancement across all four
areas: Drive, Knowledge, Strategy, Action and that the People to
People program had the highest impact on Action, the most difficult
of the four CQ areas to increase.
"It's not a foregone conclusion that students who travel abroad
see an increase in CQ," said David
Livermore, PhD, author of Leading with Cultural
Intelligence and senior research consultant with the Cultural
Intelligence Center. "The big difference is that People to People
intentionally structures its programs to enhance CQ. In fact, we
have found that many of the most well intentioned service-based
mission trips and family travel experiences do not impact or
increase CQ."
People to People Ambassador Programs travel to more than 49
countries on all seven continents and program participants come
from over 100 nations. The organization trains more than 5,000
teachers each year who lead students on educational travel
experiences, and 84 percent of students who have traveled on a
People to People program report being accepted into their college
of choice.
"The next generation of leaders needs to start working now on
their CQ," said Cynthia Beath,
professor emerita, McCombs School of
Business, University of Texas at
Austin.
Along with People to People Ambassador Programs, there are a
number of companies, government agencies and nonprofits tapping
into the benefits associated with CQ, including Bank of America,
IBM, U.S. Department of Justice, Georgetown, Stanford, the Red Cross and World Vision.
About the Cultural Intelligence Center
The Cultural Intelligence Center (CQC) is a private business
dedicated to improving the understanding of Cultural Intelligence
(CQ). The center offers the first academically validated instrument
to measure cultural intelligence. The center also sponsors
research, conducts training, and presents workshops and information
sessions on CQ to audiences around the world.
About People to People Ambassador Programs
People to People Ambassador Programs is the world's most
recognized and respected educational travel provider. Since 1963
more than 400,000 people from around the world have traveled with
People to People Ambassador Programs to help further global
understanding through cross-cultural exchange. Offering unmatched
safety measures and unparalleled access to foreign cultures and
countries, People to People Ambassador Programs promotes personal
success in a globalized world and fosters international friendships
for both students and professional adults.
People to People Ambassador Programs is the exclusive
educational travel provider of People to People International
(PTPI), a nonprofit organization founded in 1956 by President
Dwight D. Eisenhower to promote
peace through understanding worldwide. Together, PTPI and People to
People Ambassador Programs are united in a mission to bridge
cultural and political borders through education and exchange. For
more information, please visit www.peopletopeople.com.
About Ambassadors Group
Ambassadors Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: EPAX) is a socially conscious,
education company headquartered in Spokane, Wash. Ambassadors Group is the parent
company of Ambassador Programs Inc. (which administrates People to
People Ambassador Programs), World Adventures Unlimited, and
BookRags, an educational research website. The company also
oversees the Washington School of World Studies, an accredited
travel study and distance learning school. Additional information
about Ambassadors Group and its subsidiaries is available at
www.ambassadorsgroup.com.
SOURCE People to People Ambassador Programs
Copyright . 27 PR Newswire