Acculturation

Conceptual Origins and the Prevailing Assimilation Model

Acculturation has been defined by Robert Redfield and colleagues as the “phenomenon that occurs when two independent cultural groups come into first hand contact over an extended period of time, resulting in changes in either or both groups” (1936, p. 149). References to acculturation by social scientists in the 1940s included that of Mischa Titiev titled “Enculturation.” Enculturation was described as the process of teaching a child to be a member of the society in which he or she will live, whereas acculturation was described as the process of incorporating aspects of the mainstream (host) culture into each individual's repertoire of behaviors.

Despite a clear emphasis in the original definitions on cultural exchange and mutual influence, the majority of early theory, research, and practice on acculturation focused on unidirectional cultural change. This is best represented in the assimilationist model, where the minority traditional culture is assumed to conform over time to the majority culture, and the majority culture remains static. It was thought that external acculturation, such as changing food habits and styles of clothing, as well as learning and/or adapting to the majority language, tended to take place first, followed by internal acculturation, or the adoption of cultural beliefs, values, and more complex patterns of behaviors. Assimilation models assumed that, over time, [Page 942]behavior patterns, attitudes, and beliefs of an immigrant population would come to resemble more closely those of the culture they entered than those of the culture they left behind. The process of acculturation then included dropping, modifying, and adopting cultural traits and was thought to occur at different rates over several generations for every person individually. From this perspective, acculturation also could be assessed in terms of the distance from the culture of origin to the majority culture, reflecting either movement toward acculturation or movement away from the majority culture. Also, it was thought that acculturation could be conceptualized primarily from consideration of factors such as place of origin, language preferences, and preferences for social contacts. The assimilation model of acculturation also was reflected in the philosophy that the United States had been founded on the notion of “the melting pot.” This perspective suggested that multiple immigrant groups could be welcomed and integrated into the general U.S. society, while slowly breaking all ties to their past culture and not affecting their new society. In other words, immigrants would gradually conform into the existing society norms, values, language, and all other elements characteristic of U.S. culture, while the U.S. culture itself remained uninfluenced by their entry.

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