Introduction

Among intercultural competencies, language plays a critical role, central to the perception and interpretation of external reality, the construction and transfer of meaning and the projections of self. Contemporary information technologies have done much to minimize geographical and temporal barriers to global communication, but native language(s), local culture and regional context strongly influence all modes and modalities of intercultural communication, particularly where the establishment or maintenance of mutual understanding, personal trust and professional collaboration are concerned. For that reason, overseas language immersion is an obligatory component of all Language Flagship programs, as well as of many other international programs today. Second language (L2) gain within the context of well-designed immersion study is extensively documented in the literature, as is the need for the overseas sojourner to comprehend and engage effectively with the host culture (Davidson, 2015).

Alumni of successful overseas immersion learning programs such as the Flagship are able to consciously adjust cognitive perspectives and adapt to different cultural environments, utilizing appropriate sociolinguistic and intercultural communication strategies. These abilities are what is meant by intercultural competence (IC), as reflected in Deardorff's (2004) widely recognized 'consensus definition'. IC comprises both internal (cognitive and attitudinal) and interactional components for an adaptable and nuanced ethno-relative capacity to interpret contexts and function effectively across cultural divides (Deardorff, 2006; King & Baxter Magolda, 2005). The interrelationship of second language acquisition (SLA) and intercultural development in the study abroad (SA) context, while often acknowledged as relevant, has remained largely unspecified. One recent study, for example, found that pre-program intercultural development scores appear to predict ultimate L2 proficiency outcomes (Baker-Smemoe et al., 2014), while other researchers have observed parallel development of IC and L2 proficiency (Paige et al., 2004; Watson et al., 2013).