Rethinking the Concept of Acculturation

Article Outline
1. Provide an expanded model of acculturation (multi dimensional process
consisting of the influence among heritage cultural and receiving cultural
practice, values, and identification)
2. Acculturation are the changes that take place as a result of contact with
culturall dissimilar people, groups , and social influences
!. Provide an expanded operationali"ation of acculturation in needed to address
the #immigrant paradox$ where% international migrants with more exposure to
the receiving cultural context report poorer mental and phsical health outcomes
&. 'iscuss the role of ethnicit, cultural similarit, and discrimination in the
acculturation process
'iscuss the roles of ethnicit, and of similarit %etween heritage
culture and receiving culture, in acculturation.
(e delineate the was in which acculturation is more or less
salient, and ma operate differentl, for diff groups) tpes of
migrants
(e discuss the immigrant paradox, in which acculturation has %een
simplisticall in relation to health outcomes, and we suggest
addressing the immigrant
'elineate context of reception as the was in which the receiving
societ constrains and directs the acculturation options availa%le to
migrants, and we frame acculturation stress and discrimination
under the heading of an unfavora%le context of reception
Article Purpose*
+o raise some ,uestions a%out the
operational definitions, contextual forces, and relationships to
pschosocial and health outcomes that must %e addressed.
Open a line of research on the expanded
construct of acculturation and its effect sin the important outcomes in the
lives of migrants
+o propose an expanded, multidimensional
model of acculturation and of the demographic and contextual forces that
can influence the acculturation process
-se health outcomes to illustrate some of the
limitations on current acculturation literature, and to suggest was of
circumventing these limitations, and to highlight potential was to
advance the conceptuali"ation of acculturation so that we can %etter
understand the health and well %eing of international migrants
.otes*
+here are o%served gaps in cultural values and
the societies that are receiving them, as migrants are generall from
counties that focus on collectivism rather than individualism
Acculturation studies most often stud
individuals living in countries or regions other than where the were %orn
acculturation originall conceptuali"ed as a uni/
dimensional model, as migrants ac,uired the values and practices, and
%eliefs of their new homelands, the were expected to discard those from
their cultural homeland
Berrys Model of Acculturation
(0iculturalism)/ receiving 1 culture ac,uisition
and heritage/culture are cast as independent dimensions
+hese two dimensions intersect to create four
acculturation categories
1/ Assimilation (adopts the receiving culture and discards the heritage culture)
2/seperation (re2ect the receiving culture and retains the heritage culture)
!/ 3ntegration (adopts the receiving culture and retains the heritage culture)
(ease depends upon the similarities %etween the heritage and adopted
cultures)
&/ 4arginali"ation (re2ects %oth the heritage and receiving cultures)
5nculturation/ process of selectivel ac,uiring)retaining elements from the
receiving cultural context (these individuals tend to %e %etter ad2usted)
+o understand acculturation, one must understand the interactional context in
which it occurs (the characteristics of the migrants themselves, the groups or
countries from which the originate, their 656 status and resources, the countr
and local communit in which the settle, and their fluenc in the language and
countr of settlement.
7ulture refers to the shared meanings, understanding, or referents held % a group
of people. (6ometimes snonmous with nations and national %oundaries)
6hared language is a part of the fa%ric of national identit and that migrants who
speak other languages are considered a threat to national unit
8our tpes of migrants*
1. 9oluntar migrants/ those who leave their homelands % choice in search of
emploment, economic opportunities, marriage, or to 2oin famil mem%ers who
have immigrated previousl
2. :efugees are those who have %een involuntaril displaced % wa of persecution,
or natural disasters and are resettling into a new countr, usuall % virtue of
agreements %etween international aid agencies and the govt;s of those countries
who have decided to accept those refugees
!. Aslum seekers/ those who, % their own choice, seek sanctuar in a new countr
for fear of persecution or violence.
&. 6o2ourners relocate to a new countr on a time limited %asis and for a specific
purpose, with full intentions to return to the countries of origin after that period of
time if over (international students, seasonal workers, etc.)
4igrants who are seen as contri%uting to the receiving countr are more likel
to %e received with open arms, as opposed to refugees and aslum seekers,
and those who immigrate illegall, who might %e seen as a drain on the
receiving countries econom and are more likel to face discrimination
:eactive ethnicit/ discrimination encourages ethnic minorit migrants and
their descendants to remain separated from the mainstream culture.
'iscrimination against migrants perceived as different is not a new
phenomenon (as was experience in 1<
th
/2=
th
centur waves of immigration)
3ndividuals who %elonged to the ma2orit ethnic group in their countries of
origin, ma suddenl %e cast in the role of ethnic minorities (>ispanics, now
have to decide what it means to %e >ispanic)
Other factors ma determine which su%groups ma face different tpes of
acculturative challenges
3ndividuals who migrate as children are more likel to ac,uire the receiving
cultures practices, values, and identifications easil and fluidl than those who
migrate at older ages (1.? generation/ more similar to second generation
migrants)
3ndividuals who migrate as adults ma experience more difficult, or
unwillingness in adopting the practices, values, and identities of the receiving
societ (the unwillingness of some migrants to learn to language of the
receiving countr or region ma %e viewed as disrespectful in the ees of
man receiving societ mem%ers
Acculturation is as issue for some, %ut not all second generation migrants
(2
nd
generation do not have to deal with pre/migration trauma (%eing
undocumented, and not knowing the receiving countr;s language)
5thnic identities ma %e optional for 2
nd
generation individuals who can pass as
white (visi%le minorit individuals ma therefore %e compelled to consider
what their ethnicit means to them)
Acculturation ma %e important for later/generation immigrants who reside in
ethnic enclaves (areas where a vast ma2orit of the residents are from the same
ethnic group (these individuals can function in their da to da lives w)o
interacting with or ac,uiring the practices, values, of identifications of the
receiving societ
3mmigrant paradox@ greater degrees of acculturation were associated with
pro%lematic health outcomes acculturation is ha"ardous to one;s health
-ni/dimenstional models in studing acculturation is not concise we are not
clear whether the immigrant paradox is due to immigrant ac,uisition of
receiving/culture practices, of loss of ones heritage/culture practices, or %oth,
(6hould immigrants and their children %e discouraged from ac,uiring the
practices of their new homelands, or %e encouraged to preserve practices and
social ties from their countries of origins, or %oth to ease acculturation and
prevent stressA
6tudies suggest that %iculturalism is the most adaptive approach to acculturation
7ultural values are associated with protection against health compromising
%ehaviors in some societies (Asian American individualism risk factor for
unprotected sex, 7ollectivism against mari2uana use in African Americans
7ultural values and identification nall change during the process of
acculturation
Multidimensionality of the Acculturation Model
>eritage language receiving/societ language
>eritage culture food receiving culture foods
7ollectivism
B>5:3+AC5D 3nterdependence individualism B:575393.CD
8amialism independence
7ountr of origin 3'5.3+3 receiving countr
EE+he multidimensionalit of acculturation needs to %e incorporated explicitl into
acculturation theorEE
Acculturation is complex, it is a larger higher order process, %ut is also a set of
related % also somewhat independent dimensions
5thnogenesis/ %oth heritage and receiving cultural streams are prominentl
endorsed
0iculturalism might %e most common and communities associated with
5thnogenesis, and ma involve com%ining and snthesi"ing aspects of the
two cultures streams into a single com%ined culture
0lended %icultural individuals tended to report higher self esteems and lower
pschological distress than those who kept their heritage and cultural streams
separate
0lended tpe of %iculturalism also ma %e associated with lower levels of
acculturation related stress
Acculturative stress/ unfavora%le context of reception
4a come from receiving culture individuals, who ma scrutini"e the person
for not %eing sufficientl oriented towards the receiving culture. +he heritage
culture communit ma scorn the person for not %eing sufficientl oriented
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toward the receiving/culture. +he heritage culture communit ma %e
displeased with the person for a%andoning the heritage culture.
7ontext of reception/ when receiving societ mem%ers ma have also
different attitudes towards migrants from different ethnic groups, 656
%rackets, or how the ma have migrated for different reasons
1. 7hange over time
2. 0oth o%2ective and su%2ective
!. Farge gatewa cities for immigration have different contexts of
reception
(e do not know what effect this has on the receiving/cultures health
5thnic identit/ extent to which a person has explored what her ethnic group
means to him)her (explorations), values and feels attached to his)her ethnic
group (affirmation), and resolution/ having decided what one;s ethnic groups
mean following a period of exploration
5thnic identit associated with positive health outcomes
Aslum seekers and refugees often tend to come from low 656 class
%ackgrounds, and are less likel to have existing support sstems, in the
countr of settlement increase stress and difficulties associated with
acculturation
8urther studies*
.eed to access the agreement %etween migrant perceptions of the context of
reception sand the perceptions of people in the receiving societ
Civen that cultural practices, values, and identification are conceptuall and
empiricall related, an expanded perspective on acculturation might %e
derived % integrating the literatures on these three constructs
4ore research is clearl needed to delineate the was in which heritage
culture and receiving culture;s practices, values, and identifications are
interrelated and change in similar or different was