Fitting in: How the intergroup context shapes minority acculturation and achievement

Abstract

Children of immigrants are at risk of underachieving in school with long-lasting consequences for future life-chances. Our research contextualizes the achievement gap by examining minority acculturation experiences in daily intergroup contact across different intergroup contexts. Acculturation researchers often find an adaptive advantage for minority youth with an integration-orientation (combining both cultures). But findings from Europe are inconclusive. Looking beyond individual differences in acculturation-orientations, this review shifts focus to the intergroup context of minority acculturation and achievement. We discuss longitudinal, multi-group, multi-level and experimental evidence of the up-and downsides of integration for minority inclusion and success in European societies. Our studies show that both (1) intergroup contact experiences and (2) intergroup ideologies affect achievementeither directly or through the interplay of (3) acculturation-norms, defined as shared views on acculturation in social groups, with individual acculturation-orientations. The findings suggest how schools can reduce achievement gaps through improving intergroup relations.

The Up‐ and Downside of Dual Identity: Stereotype Threat and Minority Performance

“…Another strength of our research is its experimental design and the use of test performance as an outcome measure. As most acculturation research is limited by over‐reliance on correlational evidence and by a restrictive focus on well‐being or attitudinal outcomes (Brown & Zagefka, ; Phalet & Baysu, ), we thus provide more stringent evidence of the real consequences of an “integration” strategy of acculturation.…”

“…Both social identity and acculturation research documents an adaptive advantage of dual identity (Berry, Phinney, Sam & Vedder, ; Makarova & Birman, ; Nguyen & Benet‐Martínez, ). While dual identities are associated with several social and cognitive benefits, recent findings also reveal psychological costs, particularly when the environment does not support dual identities (Brown et al., ; Brown & Zagefka, ; Phalet & Baysu, ). Not much empirical research, however, has addressed the question of which factors can make dual identities beneficial or harmful in a performance context (Baysu, Phalet, & Brown, ).…”

“…Dual identities or “being both” can also be psychologically demanding for minorities, however, if they have to maintain different social networks and negotiate different norms and expectations from minority and majority cultures (Phalet & Baysu, ). Inhabiting two social and cultural worlds implies that both minority and majority group members are relevant audiences of their identity performance who might deny their dual identity claims (Verkuyten et al., ).…”

“…Accordingly, minority adolescents who preferred a dual identity were most at risk of experiencing social rejection in school, when their minority peers stressed minority culture maintenance and when their majority peers valued mainstream culture adoption (Celeste et al., ). Acculturation research generally supports the idea that majority members are relevant audiences for minority members with dual identities, because the adaptive value of dual identities (or integration) also depends on whether the majority group accepts minority identities and cultures (Nguyen & Benet‐Martínez, ; Phalet & Baysu, ). In their meta‐analysis, for instance, Nguyen and Benet‐Martínez () found that an alleged adaptive advantage of dual identities was less clear‐cut in European countries, where the majority population commonly rejects dual identity claims by minorities (Verkuyten & Martinoviç, ).…”

Stressing similarities or ignoring differences? Shedding light into different forms of color-evasive ideology with pre- and in-service teachers

“…Color-evasiveness is also a multifaceted ideology with different meanings across intergroup contexts (Neville et al 2000). Compared to multiculturalism, implementation of color-evasive ideology in the school context is associated with negative outcomes for ethnic minority students (Phalet and Baysu 2020). However, findings of research on color-evasiness conducted outside the United States are inconclusive, leading to conflicting evidence.…”