Acculturation Scales: Asian American Multidimensional Acculturation Scale

The Asian American Multidimensional Acculturation Scale (AAMAS) is a measure of acculturation based on orthogonal assessment of three different cultural dimensions, which comprise four specific acculturation domains. Advancements in acculturation theory have established the desirability of a bidimensional approach to the measurement of acculturation, one that takes into account orientation to both the culture of origin and the host culture, thereby challenging the zero-sum assumption of a unidimensional approach in which acculturation to one culture comes at the expense of the other. The AAMAS is based on a multidimensional approach that includes orthogonal assessments of acculturation to the Culture of Origin (AAMAS-CO) and to European American culture (AAMAS-EA). The AAMAS further extends acculturation theory with the addition of a third cultural dimension, a pan-ethnic Asian American cultural dimension (AAMAS-AA), which is unique to the AAMAS. This dimension assesses the formation of a shared Asian American identity and culture, which is of increasing significance for Asian Americans.

The items on the AAMAS were adapted from the Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation Scale (SL-ASIA) and converted to a multidimensional format by asking respondents to rate each item according to three referent groups: (1) their Asian culture of origin, (2) other Asian American cultures, and (3) mainstream European American culture. The primary strengths of the AAMAS include its ability to provide a more complex assessment of Asian American acculturation along cultural and domain-specific dimensions, as well as its ease of administration and use across different ethnicities. The primary weakness of the measure is that, like the SL-ASIA, the AAMAS is primarily a measure of behavioral acculturation. The AAMAS is intended primarily as a research measure, and to date, the predominant application has been for this purpose.