Acculturation and Adaptation in a New Society

Exploring Polish migrants' adaptation to life in the UK: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

“…Berry, 1992;Ward, Bochner, & Furnham, 2001). For the participants, the perceived gains of migration, that is, greater opportunities for self-actualisation, may offer sufficient defence against the experiences of disconnection, though the potential psychological distress associated with the sense of disconnection remains valid and would be worthy of further exploration.…”

“…Additionally, internal factors, such as personality and one's ability to adapt, are also relevant (Bhugra, 2004). Berry (1992) conceptualises the adjustment experience as a process of acculturation, during which migrants adopt one of four possible 'strategies': integration, assimilation, separation or marginalisation.…”

“…Factors affecting adaptation to a new culture may include external factors such as social status, poverty, cultural differences, how a person (or group) is received by the resident society, language problems, social support, employment, finance and housing (Berry, 1992;Littlewood & Lipsedge, 1989). Additionally, internal factors, such as personality and one's ability to adapt, are also relevant (Bhugra, 2004).…”

Changing the acculturation conversation: indigenous cultural reclamation in Australiaand Aotearoa/New Zealand

“…At the individual level, experiences of acculturative stress, identity confusion, racist incidents, poor health, decreased wellbeing, and over representation in the criminal justice system are all reported (see for example, Baxter, Kingi, Tapsell, Durie, & McGee, 2006;Berry, 1970;Bodkin-Andrews, Ha, Craven, & Yeung, 2010;Cawte, Biancki, & Kiloh, 1968;Dudgeon, Wright et al, 2014;Gracey, 2000;Kvernmo, 2006;O'dea, Patel, Kubisch, Hopper, & Traiandes, 1993;Parker & Milroy, 2014;Shannon, 2002;Snowball & Weatherburn, 2006). As Berry (1992;2013) proposes, acculturation, when occurring involuntarily and in an unsupportive environment, is unlikely to result in positive outcomes. The relative power imbalance between Indigenous peoples and their non-Indigenous counterparts is also illustrated in the way that the existing literature thus far has predominantly mirrored the dominant group's interpretation of the acculturation experience of Indigenous peoples.…”

“…Acculturation needs to be viewed as not happening in a vacuum, but rather as a result of changing, multifaceted, multidimensional socio-cultural-political environments where complex intra-and inter-group relations operate and where the processes of acculturation touch every facet of life and each person within the context (Berry, 1992;Darlaston-Jones et al, in press;Dudgeon & Walker, in press;Rosa & Tavares, 2013). Acculturation, as Berry contends, occurs both at the societal and individual levels, and involves various factors and processes (Berry, 1980;1997;2009;2013).…”