Assimilation

Classical Assimilation Theory

Most 20th-century research on immigration focused on the issue of assimilation, mainly in urban settings. The first theory of assimilation that was put forward during the early part of the 20th century was the notion of “straight-line” assimilation. Using the first wave of mass immigration to the United States as their starting point, these social scientists posited that assimilation was a natural process that entailed new immigrants to a country gradually giving up their traditional cultural and behavioral traits and adopting those of their new country. With each successive immigrant generation, ties to the old country are weakened while ties to the receiving country increase until these immigrants finally “melt” into mainstream society. The definition conflated two different processes—acculturation and adaptation—into one. The assumption was that immigrants needed to shed certain values and behaviors before they could become fully American and could fully participate in U.S. society.

This melting pot philosophy frowned on hyphenated identities as a sign of conflicting loyalties, and there were fears that the United States would unravel into a mess of squabbling national groups unless all immigrants adopted a unifying “American” identity on arrival. The message to immigrants was that they needed to be Americans and nothing else.

Later scholars refined straight-line assimilation theory slightly, arguing that race, language, and social class could affect the speed of assimilation. They believed that racial/ethnic minorities might have a harder time gaining parity in social mobility even as differences in economic opportunity due to language or culture disappeared. However, these scholars saw [Page 105]race and other factors as simple interaction effects that could hasten or slow down but not fundamentally alter the upward direction of straight-line assimilation.

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