Occupational Therapy as a Framework for Intercultural Collaboration: Proculturation and Adaptive Communication in Multinational Teams
Occupational Therapy as a Framework for Intercultural Collaboration: Proculturation and Adaptive Communication in Multinational Teams

Summary/Abstract: In an era marked by global mobility and hybrid work environments, intercultural communication and psychological adaptability have become essential to collaborative performance. This paper explores occupational therapy (OT) as an innovative framework for fostering proculturation—the dynamic process through which individuals integrate new cultural values while maintaining their core identity (Marsico, 2016). Traditionally applied in rehabilitation and inclusion, OT can also function as a model of cross-border collaboration, supporting identity reconstruction and emotional regulation in multinational professional teams. Through the lens of procultural communication, the study highlights how OT methodologies—creative, expressive, and task-oriented activities—enhance self-awareness, empathy, and cohesion within diverse teams. Activities such as narrative drawing, bilingual storytelling, and role-based simulation serve as nonverbal mediators that bridge linguistic and cultural gaps. These practices align with the principles of AI-supported collaboration, where adaptive and inclusive design can replicate the human capacity for cultural translation and emotional attunement in digital environments. The paper proposes a transdisciplinary model that integrates occupational therapy principles, intercultural psychology, and AI-assisted teamwork. It argues that multinational organizations can leverage procultural communication strategies to address global challenges such as social inclusion, workforce sustainability, and intercultural competence. By transforming communication itself into an “occupational act” of co-creation and meaning-making, collaboration becomes not only productive but also restorative—reconstructing trust, identity, and shared purpose across borders. Ultimately, this contribution positions occupational therapy beyond its clinical scope, as a philosophy of adaptive collaboration—a bridge between care, culture, and innovation in a globalized world.

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