Acculturation, according to Melville Herskovits, is the process by which culture is transmitted from one group to another, and the process in which individuals learn the customs, norms, and values of the group. The acculturation process in a consumer culture is not completely dissimilar to acquisition of norms and values in nonconsumer societies. Indeed, this process can be traced back as far as the Roman Empire, where the center of the empire acculturated non-Romans and Romans alike into Rome's cultural vortex, where extensive trading of consumer goods and services occurred.

In both ancient and modern times, the acculturation process has been precipitated by warfare and invasions in which stronger societies overpowered weaker societies, thus forcing vanquished societies to adopt the victors' languages, religions, and other cultural ...