Intercultural competence: bridging the intersectoral gap

The concept of intercultural competence is a debated notion that was formed and gained importance especially lately with changes in society which, though undergoing a process of globalization, still fosters increasing diversity with possible clashes of cultures. In that sense intercultural competence would be a product of the intercultural learning process as it represents 'a complex of abilities needed to perform effectively and appropriately when interacting with others who are linguistically and culturally different from oneself' (Fantini, 2007). Intercultural competence includes knowledge skills and attitudes regarding intercultural contexts and situations.