Acculturation Of Immigrants

Introduction

When immigrants journey to a foreign land, they often find themselves unsettled and detached from their host countries, and may occasionally find themselves the target of malice and hostility. Setting foot onto a new land entails unfamiliarity, discomfort, and possibly even alienation. There is no doubt that uncertainty would ring clear in the minds of these immigrants, who are faced with the task of setting up a home in a land with cultures, religions, and a society that they barely understand. The uncertainty, though highest at this stage, declines with time as immigrants begin to understand the workings of the society and culture better as they learn to adapt to the new environment. This adjustment process is known as acculturation,

Communication, as part of an aspect in acculturation research will be examined. Studies and research of acculturation which trace back to as early as the 1930s, evidently show that acculturation is not a new concept born out of the increasing rate of immigration in recent decades, but instead, has been widely researched, though lacking in depth. It was found that there were a number of scholars who paid attention to the communication approach of acculturation, and that the choice of acculturation strategy raised little attention of the immigrants until in recent years.

Communication is an essential skill for immigrants to assimilate into a new culture. It is the fastest and most direct way to meet their needs, establish new relationships and build rapport within their community. Immigrants can only become acculturated when they become adept at communicating with the members of their new society, to which there are varying levels of mastery.

Definitions of

149).

Social Science Research Council (SSRC, 1954), formulated the definition of acculturation in 1954 as “…culture change that is initiated by the conjunction of two or more autonomous cultural systems, the processes of integration and differentiation, the generation of developmental sequences, and the operation of role determinants and personality factors” (p. 974).

Young Kim, an American politician, contributed the most comprehensive research in interpreting what is acculturation from a communication perspective. Communication is viewed as the key to the acculturation process. Hence, “acculturation occurs through the identification and the internalization of the significant symbols of the host society” (Kim, 1982, p. 378). With communication competence contributing to the acculturation process, it is evident that one must master communication in order to successfully acculturate into a society. Kim (1982)