Acculturation and Stress

Abstract

In this study, a model of migration contingencies and acculturative stress was developed on the basis of the acculturation model of Berry et al. and a similar model by Beiser. The study aimed at determining to what extent sociodemographic characteristics, the social context, premigration traumatic experiences, post migration acculturative experiences, acculturation attitudes, and degree of acculturation predict acculturative stress in the refugee family. The two-generation sample consisted of 159 young refugees born between 1969 and 1976 and 121 of their parents or caregivers. The results suggest that acculturation attitudes and degree of acculturation exert different and distinct influences on acculturative stress depending on gender and generation. Acculturation attitudes predicted the stress symptoms of adult females only; for the others in the sample, degree of acculturation was more important.