Measuring international posture at an internationalised university in Barcelona: an exploration of gender, language, and educational and intercultural trajectories

This study investigates local first-year undergraduates’ international posture (Yashima, Citation2002, Citation2009) when starting studies at an internationalised university in the multicultural and multilingual context of Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain). We aimed, first, to explore the configuration of the international posture measurement model (Yashima, Citation2009) in a European university and to contrast it with Yashima’s (Citation2009) model developed in Japan. Second, we aimed to investigate what individual variables interact with students’ degree of international posture. Five hundred and two students answered two questionnaires covering their background profile and Yashima’s international posture scale. Factor analyses and descriptive and inferential statistics were performed. Our analysis resulted in three sub-scales with a total of 14 items, in contrast to Yashima’s original 20 items structured into four sub-scales. Higher scores were reported for questionnaire items focused on intergroup relationships in local contexts rather than interactions abroad. Regarding individual variables, being a female and having intercultural friendships emerged as the most predictive factors. In contrast, individual plurilingualism, readiness to move within the country for university studies, and choosing a degree with a high proportion of English-medium instruction only partially predicted undergraduates’ high international posture in this European higher education context.