Acculturation

Acculturation is the way people change when two different cultures meet. It is a deep process of social and cultural transformation. This happens when people move to a new place or when a new culture arrives. People might pick up new habits or social norms from the group around them. They can do this without losing their own special traditions. This balancing act can lead to a mixed society. Some places might see cultures blend together smoothly. Other places might see cultures pull apart into different pieces.

This process works on many different levels. At a group level, it can change religious practices and health care. It often changes the food people eat and the clothes they wear. It can even change the language a whole community speaks. On an individual level, it is a way of learning a second culture. This is different from enculturation, which is learning your first culture. People might change their daily behaviors to fit in. These changes can affect how they feel physically and mentally. This process usually takes a very long time. It can span many different generations.

Scholars have studied this idea for a long time. Active academic study of acculturation began in 1918. In that same year, W.I. Thomas and Florian Znaniecki wrote a study. They looked at Polish immigrants living in Chicago. They found three different personality types in their research. Some people were "Bohemian" and left their old culture behind. Others were "Philistine" and kept their old culture but did not join the new one. A third group was the "creative-type" who did both.

Many famous thinkers have shared their own theories. In 1936, Redfield, Linton, and Herskovits gave a widely used definition. Later, in 1964, Milton Gordon wrote about seven stages of assimilation. Assimilation is when people conform to a majority group. Young Yun Kim also wrote about how people adapt to new cultures. She viewed it as a multi-staged process of change. However, some experts disagree with these views. Eric M. Kramer developed his Cultural Fusion theory in 2011. He argues that learning is an expansion rather than unlearning.

To understand these changes, we can look at how people communicate. Eric Kramer uses a theory called Dimensional Accrual and Dissociation. He explains that different groups use different communication styles. Some groups use "idolic" communication with strong emotional ties. For example, some in India view a statue of Ganesh as truly sacred. Other groups use "symbolic" communication, like a Christian crucifix. This object represents something sacred but is not the thing itself. Finally, some use "signalic" communication, which is less emotional. These different ways of seeing the world help us understand cultural contact.