Multiculturalism and acculturation: views of Dutch and Turkish–Dutch

TLDR

The study compared Dutch majority and Turkish–Dutch minority views on multiculturalism and acculturation orientation of Turkish migrants. Multiculturalism was assessed with an adapted Multicultural Ideology Scale and acculturation orientation was examined across multiple life domains. Dutch respondents were largely neutral toward multiculturalism, whereas Turkish–Dutch respondents were more positive; Dutch favored assimilation over integration, while Turkish–Dutch preferred integration in public and separation in private, highlighting substantial differences between majority and minority attitudes. © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Abstract

Abstract The psychological component of immigration in the Netherlands was studied by comparing views on multiculturalism and acculturation orientation of Turkish migrants between Dutch majority ( N =1565) and Turkish–Dutch minority ( N =185) members. Multiculturalism was measured with an adaptation of the Multicultural Ideology Scale (Berry & Kalin, 1995); acculturation orientation was investigated in different domains of life. The results revealed that Dutch on average had a neutral attitude towards multiculturalism in the Netherlands while Turkish–Dutch showed a more positive attitude. Regarding the acculturation strategies, Dutch adults preferred assimilation above integration of Turkish migrants in all life domains. Turkish–Dutch adults made a distinction in public and private domains: integration was preferred in public domains, and separation in private domains. In public domains both cultural groups agreed that Turkish migrants should adapt to the Dutch culture. In private domains there was no agreement at all in the views of Dutch and Turkish–Dutch. These results suggest that the views on acculturation and multiculturalism differ substantially for majority and minority group members. Implications are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.