UNRAVELING ETHNIC DENSITY EFFECTS, ACCULTURATION, AND ADJUSTMENT: THE CASE OF RUSSIAN-SPEAKING IMMIGRANTS FROM THE FORMER SOVIET UNION

Abstract

There has been limited advancement in the empirical literature unpacking the ethnic density effect, a social ecological phenomenon that may help explain some of the conflicting findings in bidimensional acculturation research. In this study, we developed a brief measure of perceived ethnic density in a community sample of Russian-speaking immigrants (N = 269) in Montreal, Canada, finding it to be a superior predictor of distress to objective linguistic density. Acquiring social support partly mediated the relation between perceived ethnic density and lower distress. Furthermore, the relation between heritage acculturation and distress was double moderated by perceived ethnic density and time lived in the neighborhood. A person–ecology match involving heritage acculturation and ethnic density was related to better psychological adjustment for participants who had resided in their neighborhood for less than, but not more than, 2 years. Clinical and community research implications for using measures of perceived ethnic density and acculturation measurement are discussed.