The Impact of Digital Literacy on the Intercultural Sensitivity of Filipino BPO Employees in Client Communication

Abstract

The Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines has emerged as a powerhouse in the global market. For an industry that is reliant on international clientele, the Philippines as an internet hub in Southeast Asia, could be a major factor in facilitating effective communication to ensure success. Derived from the said idea, this study was conducted to explore the relationship between digital literacy and intercultural sensitivity among Filipino BPO employees, considering the importance of effective client communication in a globalized workplace and the transformative impact of digital tools and platforms on communication practices. With a research question, “What is the correlation between the digital literacy scores and intercultural sensitivity scores of BPO Filipino employees?," the study aims to determine whether higher levels of digital literacy correspond to greater intercultural sensitivity in client communication. A Descriptive Correlational Research Design was employed to analyze data collected from 100 Filipino BPO employees using standardized instruments, such as Digital Literacy Scale (Bayrakci, 2021) and Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (Chen and Starosta, 2000). Data were analyzed through Pearson correlation analysis for correlation and regression analysis for predictive relationship. The findings indicate that Filipino BPO employees do not just have aboveaverage levels of digital literacy and intercultural sensitivity scales, the two variables also have a positive correlation, which means higher digital literacy levels were associated with increased intercultural sensitivity. Further analysis also showed that 24.5% of intercultural sensitivity levels can be attributed to digital literacy, suggesting that proficiency in digital tools contributes to effective cross-cultural communication.