International migration represents a significant contributor to ecosystems of interculturalism. In this context, exploring and addressing systemic dependencies within acculturation processes that result from international migration require openness and awareness among members of the receiving society. In the current study, we present the outcomes of a novel tool for intercultural education: a theory-driven role-play-based-intervention focused on increasing knowledge about migration processes and psychological acculturation, and on fostering majority members’ empathy and positive feelings toward migrants and refugees. Data were collected in non-academic (i.e., involving the general population; N = 44) and academic (i.e., in a university class; N = 15) settings in Lisbon, Portugal, and were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. Findings revealed the effectiveness of the intervention in increasing participants' knowledge both academic and non-academic settings. Moreover, members of the Portuguese receiving society demonstrated heightened empathy towards migrants and refugees in both contexts. Interestingly, an increase in positive feelings was only observed in the non-academic setting. Reflective qualitative analysis upon the facilitator’s experiences will be presented to support the interpretation of these results and provide additional considerations of the opportunities and challenges of conducting interventions in these two settings. This study provides the first empirical evidence for the effectiveness of a theory-driven role-play-based intervention in multiple organizational contexts. From this presentation, participants will gain understanding of a novel educational tool and insight into its implementation.

--

Intercultural Training,Psychological Acculturation,Role play,Assessment