Culturally integrated Mandarin instruction and intercultural communicative competence: the mediating role of intercultural willingness to communicate

Introduction Intercultural communicative competence (ICC) has become a target outcome of second and foreign language education, yet evidence on how culturally integrated instruction develops this competence in Mandarin learners, and through what psychological pathway, remains thin. This study tested whether culturally integrated Mandarin instruction—teaching that builds cultural comparison, small-group discussion, role-play, misunderstanding-repair tasks, and short reflections into communicative tasks, so that culture becomes the material of language work rather than a supplementary lecture—improves learners’ overall ICC and overall intercultural willingness to communicate (IWTC), and whether IWTC accounts for the link between instruction and competence. Methods Using a quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test control-group design, Mandarin-as-a-second-language learners were assigned to an experimental group receiving an 8-week, weekly 90-min culturally integrated program or to a control group receiving regular Mandarin instruction. The main analysis retained 62 learners who completed both testing points and attended at least 75% of sessions (experimental n = 31; control n = 31). ICC and IWTC were measured with self-report scales scored on total-scale values. Results The experimental group improved on ICC (pre 2.958 to post 3.650) and IWTC (pre 2.859 to post 3.519), while the control group remained essentially unchanged. After adjustment for baseline scores, group membership was associated with higher post-test ICC ( p = 0.005) and post-test IWTC ( p < 0.001). A bootstrap mediation model indicated that IWTC largely accounted for the association between instruction and ICC, with a significant indirect effect (0.520, 95% CI [0.256, 0.823]) and a non-significant direct effect. Discussion Because the mediator and outcome were measured concurrently, the results are consistent with—rather than demonstrate—that culturally integrated Mandarin instruction supports competence gains by increasing learners’ readiness to engage in intercultural communication.