Do multicultural exposure and interaction affect creative teaching by building self-belief? A mixed methods study

•Teachers with MCEs teach creatively following the assessment of MCEs.•Having MCEs is related to having more creative self-belief and confidence.•Creative self-beliefs and confidence gained from MCEs are related to creative teaching.•MCEs build creative self-belief and confidence that support creative teaching behaviors. This mixed-method study expands the understanding on how creative-self belief serve as one mechanism by which multicultural exposure and interaction, or multicultural experiences (MCEs), affect creative teaching. Quantitative data were collected through an online survey of 337 elementary and high school teachers in the Philippines while qualitative data were generated from interviews of a subset of 15 teachers. Through a convergent mixed methods design, a depiction of the relationships among creative self-beliefs, MCEs, and creative teaching was achieved with the following mixed-methods themes: (1) Teachers with MCEs teach creatively following assessment of MCEs; (2) Having MCEs is related to having more creative self-belief and confidence; (3) Creative self-beliefs and confidence gained from MCEs are related to creative teaching; and (4) MCEs build creative self-belief and confidence that support creative teaching behaviors. Implications of the study were discussed.