John Wesley Powell view of acculturation
John Wesley Powell termed acculturation as a psychological development that happens within an individual due to cultural interactions. It involved in definitions through various sociologists and in modern times; Acculturation is a journey of cultural, social, and psychological development that crops from balancing two distinct cultures, and at the same time, adapting to their heritage culture followed by society. An individual gets to embrace, gain, and regulate to another cultural system. Individuals from a controversial culture attempt to acquit themselves with the prevailing culture, like traditions, and still maintain their initial values. In this study, I intend to discuss levels, stages, and strategies of acculturation.
Acculturation occurs at two levels; group and individual levels. At a group level, it entails the collective embrace of values, arts, practices, foods and cuisines, clothing, and languages of other cultures. It occurs when immigrants move to a new place and adopt the phrases of that place or when foreign words find their way into a community. At times, leaders of a culture choose to embrace technologies and traditions of other cultures for progress and efficiency. At an individual level, it is somewhat similar to the group level, except intentions and circumstances are different. It occurs when the individual travels to foreign places with different cultures. They tend to incorporate acculturation, deliberately or not. It brings forth behavioral changes, psychological changes, and improvement in physical wellbeing.
Acculturation is accompanied by mixed feelings towards the transition of cultures, which occurs in five stages. First, is enthusiastic acceptance. It is initially exciting to engage with a new culture, and at times, people are too blinded to notice the flaws. Second, reservation and doubt. The realization that the new culture is not as perfect begins to kick in. The tension of the familiar aspects and the unfamiliar is a common occurrence, which takes a toll on an individual to the point of withdrawal. Third, is loath and criticism. Individuals who have visited a foreign place start to notice the flaws of the area; illiteracy in people, incompetence of workers, dilapidated infrastructure. During this stage, it is essential for the person to think of themselves as mere guests in someone’s home; otherwise it could all get very confusing. The fourth stage is the adjustment. The newcomer realizes that criticism is because of difficulties experienced in adjusting, and not from shortcomings of the other culture. The final stage is accommodation and evaluation. An individual becomes comfortable, makes friends, and starts to enjoy the lifestyle. All the steps are described from the perspective of individual levels of acculturation, but they can apply to the societal level.
Acculturation, according to an analysis by John Berry, occurs in four strategies used by individuals in response to a foreign culture. The first strategy is assimilation that covers individuals that view their original culture as unimportant and who desire to identify with a new culture and desert their former. The second strategy is integration, or in other words, biculturalism. Individuals that tend to retain their original culture and to learn from new cultures are said to be using a bicultural strategy. The third type of strategy is marginalization. It involves individuals who neither go by their original culture nor the foreign culture. The last strategy of acculturation is the separation, which includes persons that value their culture of origin and do not engage in learning foreign cultures.
In conclusion, acculturation is a process that almost every individual encounters at one point in time. Some may choose to go with the foreign cultures; others may decide to stick to their heritage cultures; others might decide to go by neither the heritage nor the foreign while others opt to go for both. It all depends on an individual’s desire, societal pressure, appreciation of their heritage, and circumstances. It is essential for one to choose a stand and acquit themselves with it in a way that they are most comfortable with so that they don’t confuse themselves. The process of acculturation tends to take place over a prolonged period, at times, it passes down to several generations. In some circumstances, physical force is applied to enforce the process of acculturation, which makes to occur at a more rapid rate.