ACCULTURATION

Sociologyindex

Sociology Books 2008

Acculturation is the adoption of or adaptation to an alien culture. Acculturation is a process of cultural transformation initiated by contacts between different cultures.

Acculturation takes place as societies experience the transforming impact of international cultural contact. The global trend towards modern economic organization and developed market economies has been accompanied by a process of cultural transformation. A key change is towards a transformation of economic organization, the great majority of individuals come to generate their income through employment or running businesses, rather than from economic bonds with family and community. In the modern world, there is great ease of international communication and interaction between cultures, but sociologists have generally focused attention on the global impact of the capitalist western world on other societies.

While each society experiences a unique process of cultural and economic transformation, there are some common trends that appear to be linked to the development of complex market economies, a wage employment system and urbanization.

Individuals experience acculturation when their social roles and socialization are shaped by norms and values that are largely foreign to their native culture. Educational and occupational experiences are the primary agents of the individual's acculturation process. Some sociologists use the term to refer simply to the process of learning and absorbing a culture, making it synonymous with socialization, but ‘enculturation’ is a more appropriate word for that meaning.

Acculturalization, Acculturational - Acculturation

Acculturate, Acculturize - cause to undergo acculturation

Acculturative - involving or producing acculturation

"Black Elk Speaks" and "Bread Givers": Acculturation
A 5 page paper which discusses two forms of acculturation that appear in "Black Elk Speaks" translated by John Neihardt. These conditions are then compared to similar realities presented in "Bread Givers" by Anzia Yezierska. No additional sources cited. - sociologypapers.com/categories/229-004.html

Bibliography:

G. Peterson, J.A. Cobas, H. Balcazar, and J. Amling. "Acculturation and Risk Behavior among Pregnant Mexican American Females: A Structural Equation Model." Sociological Inquiry 68 (November, 1998):536-556.

J.A. Cobas and Jorge Duany. Cubans in Puerto Rico: Ethnic Economy and Cultural Identity. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 1997.

H. Balcazar, G. Peterson, and J.A. Cobas. “Acculturation and Health-related Risk Behaviors Among Mexican American Pregnant Women.” American Journal of Health Behavior (November-December 1996):425-433.

J.A. Cobas, H. Balcazar, M.B. Benin, V.M.Keith, and Yinong Chong. "Acculturation and Low Birthweight Infants among Latino Women: A Reanalysis of HHANES Data with Structural Equation Models." American Journal of Public Health 86 (March,1996):394-396

Two Different Worlds: Acculturation Stress and Adaptation among Cuban and Nicaraguan Families - spr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/13/3/435
Andres G. Gil, University of Connecticut 
William A. Vega, University of California-Berkeley 
This is a study of acculturation and acculturation stress among Cuban and Nicaraguan adolescent males and their parents. The sample consisted of 674 Cuban-American and 211 Nicaraguan-American 6th and 7th grade adolescents and one of their parents. Hypotheses predicting group differences in acculturation stress were tested. Analyses were bivariate and multivariate, using parent and adolescent data. Findings indicated important differences in acculturation stress for different cohorts of immigrants within the two ethnic groups as well as differences between the subsamples. Important differences were also found between adolescent and parental acculturation stress, with more recent immigrants among the adolescents experiencing more language conflicts, while parents reported more long-term language conflicts. Adolescent and parental acculturation-related stressors and acculturation levels were strongly associated with lower levels of family cohesion, increased parent/child acculturation conflicts, adolescent self-esteem and adolescent perceived teacher derogation. The differences and similarities found between the Cuban and Nicaraguan groups, parents and adolescents, are discussed with a focus on the importance of the family as a coping source for the stresses associated with immigrant adaptation. 

Acculturation and smoking behavior in Asian-American populations 
Grace X. Ma, Yin Tan, Jamil I Toubbeh, Xuefen Su, Steven E. Shive and Yajia Lan 
her.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/19/6/615
Abstract: The relationship between acculturation and smoking behavior was examined in four Asian-American groups that included recent immigrants and US-born Koreans, Chinese, Vietnamese and Cambodians residing in the Delaware Valley of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The study was part of a community-based, comprehensive cross-sectional study designed to assess a broad array of knowledge, attitudes and behaviors on tobacco use and tobacco-related cancer issues in the target multi-ethnic and multi-lingual Asian-American community. The sample of 1374 respondents was selected using a stratified-cluster proportional sampling technique, with a response rate of 83%. Findings indicated that acculturation had a variable effect on smoking behavior: more acculturated youth and less acculturated male adults had higher smoking rates than the less acculturated youth and the more acculturated male adults. Smoking rates for all females were generally lower than those of males regardless of acculturation status; however, acculturated adult females had a higher smoking rate than the less acculturated. 

Acculturation and Psychological Well-Being among Immigrant Adolescents in Finland 
A Comparative Study of Adolescents From Different Cultural Backgrounds - http://jar.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/15/4/446
Karmela Liebkind, Inga Jasinskaja-Lahti, University of Helsinki, Finland 
This study investigated the effects of acculturation on the psychological well-being of immigrant adolescents. The respondents were 11 to 20 years old, originally from the former Soviet Union, Turkey, Somalia, and Vietnam, and now living in Finland (N = 588). To gain an understanding of the complexity and specificity of the relationship between acculturation and psychological well-being, a large range of existing psychological well-being scales measuring acculturative stress, behavioral problems, self-esteem, life satisfaction, and sense of mastery were used as dependent variables. Most indices of psychological well-being were clearly and negatively related to perceived discrimination, and some of them were also positively related to second-language proficiency. In addition, the adolescents’ experiences of parental support and adherence to traditional family-related values promoted their psychological well-being. However, the impact of this adherence was found to depend on both the specific aspect of well-being measured and the specific family-related values in question. 

Adapting a Measure of Acculturation for Cross-Cultural Research 
Felicitas A. Dela Cruz, DNSc, RN, Azusa Pacific University 
Geraldine V. Padilla, PhD, American Cancer Society, California Division 
Elaine O. Agustin, BSN, RN, Methodist Hospital of Southern California 
Although Filipino Americans are projected to become the largest Asian American ethnic group in this millennium, no acculturation measure existed for this group. This article describes a systematic and replicable process used in adapting and modifying A Short Acculturation Scale for Hispanics (ASASH) for use with Filipino Americans. It depicts the multiple and iterative steps of translation and back translation to produce A Short Acculturation Scale for Filipino Americans (ASASFA) in English and in Tagalog—the Philippine national language. Also, it describes the methods undertaken for the measures to achieve linguistic and cross-cultural validity through content, technical, experiential, semantic, and conceptual equivalence. With the dearth of linguistically and culturally valid measures for immigrant populations, the adaptation of valid measures developed for other cultures remains a viable option. 

Acculturation and the Mental Health of Latina Women in the Women, Infant, and Children Program - aff.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/21/1/46
Antonia Cordero, University of Connecticut, West Hartford, cordero@uconnvm.uconn.edu 
Brenda Kurz, University of Connecticut, West Hartford, kurz@uconnvm.uconn.edu 
Studies have reported discrepant findings about the relationship between acculturation and mental health, often because of inattention to interethnic group differences. This 2003 exploratory study of various Latina ethnic groups attending the Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) Program compared five measures of acculturation and mental health status/utilization. The subgroups differed on language, immigration/migration history, and the prevalence of anxiety attacks and depressive syndrome. The prevalence of anxiety attacks was the highest among those who spoke primarily Spanish, the prevalence of the depressive syndrome was the highest among those with more traditional beliefs, and the use of mental health services was the highest among those with less traditional beliefs. Implications for practice are discussed. 

Relations of Depression, Acculturation, and Socioeconomic Status in a Latino Sample - hjb.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/19/2/230
Israel Cuellar, University of Texas-Pan American 
Robert E. Roberts, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston 
This study investigated the relations among depression, acculturation, and socioeconomic status (SES) in a young-adult Latino sample. Data were obtained from 1,271 Latino first-year college students; 89% self-labeled as either Mexican American or Hispanic, and 11% as Mexican National. Symptoms of depression were compared for various acculturation levels, and bicultural groups with controls for SES and gender. The Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-II (ARSMA-II) was used to assess acculturation characteristics. Clinical depression and symptoms of depression were measured using the DSD26 Symptom Scale for assessment of depressive symptoms and major depression. Variance in depression scores was found to be influenced more by gender and SES than by acculturation or ethnic identity status. Assimilated Mexican Americans reported significantly fewer symptoms of depression than their more traditional counterparts. Ethnicity and acculturation per se were not found to lessen or increase riskfordepression, but SES associated with ethnicity wasfound to directly affect depression scores. 

Acculturation, Drinking, and Intimate Partner Violence among Hispanic Couples in the United States: A Longitudinal Study - hjb.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/26/1/60
Raul Caetano, Suhasini Ramisetty-Mikler 
Christine McGrath, University of Texas School of Public Health, Dallas Regional Campus 
This article examines the 5-year association between acculturation, drinking, and maleto-female partner violence and female-to-male partner violence among Hispanic couples in the United States. A national representative sample of Hispanic couples 18 years of age or older was interviewed in 1995 and 2000. Both members of the couple were independently interviewed. Differences in prevalence rates of male-to-female partner violence and female-to-male partner violence, incidence, and recurrence across acculturation groups are not significant. Drinking is associated with acculturation among women. Couples with mixed acculturation level (high-medium) are less at risk for maleto-female partner violence. An increase of five standard drinks per week in men’s drinking decreases the risk of female-to-male partner violence by 10%. Acculturation level at Time 1 is not associated with male-to-female partner violence and female-to-male partner violence status 5 years later. 

Gang Membership and Acculturation: ARSMA-II and Choloization - cad.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/49/4/627
D. A. Lopez, California State University, Northridge 
Patricia O'Donnell Brummett, California State University, Northridge 
Choloization, a staple in gang research on Latinos, asserts that gang members are less acculturated than non-gang members. However, the concept has not been subjected to a quantitative analysis. Using a sample of Latino incarcerated youths from Los Angeles County (N = 370), the veracity of the concept of choloization using the ARSMA-II Acculturation Scale is examined. It was hypothesized that gang members have more of a Mexican orientation than non-gang members. The hypothesis was supported, providing empirical evidence for choloization. The authors suggest that the findings can assist in delinquency intervention but caution that the results can also further disenfranchise Latino gang members.