Research has identified the need for additional teaching strategies to address issues within intercultural computer-supported collaborative learning (iCSCL) environments. While some strategies have been proposed to support teacher effectiveness and student participation, to date no research has traced issues back to students' underlying, intrinsic motivation for participation, or perception of social interdependence in small-group collaboration processes. To increase understanding of these critical aspects of learning, this study utilized a mixed methods approach to analyze the intrinsic motivation and social interdependence of 40 students enrolled in two universities, and participating in small-group intercultural computer-supported collaborations between the USA and China. The findings identified different sources of intrinsic motivation between the two cultures and five hierarchically different perceptions of social interdependence. The implications include the emergence of four teaching strategies which support the teachers' ability of aligning students' understanding of what type of participation is expected and motivating students' interests to successfully participate in iCSCL environments.