ABSTRACT
This chapter explores research on intercultural competence (ICC), within service learning and in other fields, in order to advance understanding of this key outcome within higher education generally and in service learning in particular. It provides a consensus-based definition of ICC and uses a framework built on that definition, and contact hypothesis theory, to emphasize relevant considerations to practitioners and researchers who want to assess elements of ICC within service learning courses and programs. The chapter reviews key studies in order to uncover how and in what forms ICC has been framed and assessed within service learning. It explores strategies and methods for assessing ICC, implications for practice related to integrating assessment of ICC within service learning, and questions that can inform future research.
