Acculturation strategies and psychological adaptation of two generations of the same ethnic minority group in different sociopolitical contexts

Abstract

This study examines the acculturation strategies and adaptation outcomes of two generations of the Russian ethnic minority in two post-Soviet republics, Estonia and Kyrgyzstan. Theoretical analysis suggests two possible alternative strategies of adaptation, namely integration and assimilation. These are based on their preferred way of acculturating and on the social capital (bridging and bonding) that they have accumulated. We expected that the preferred way of acculturating would depend on some contextual characteristics, such as cultural distance and the state policy towards the ethnic minority. In each of the two countries, the members of two generations of Russians were surveyed, including adults who were socialized during Soviet time and those whose socialization occurred after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The total sample (N = 687) included the following four subsamples: Estonian adult Russians (N = 234); Estonian young Russians (N = 152); Kyrgyz adult Russians (N = 150); and Kyrgyz young Russians (N = 150). The results allow us to conclude that in a cultural context that is culturally similar and with a restrictive sociopolitical climate (Estonia), the adaptation of an ethnic minority generation-to-generation changes from the strategy of assimilation to integration. In a context characterized by a larger cultural distance, and a more inclusive sociopolitical climate (Kyrgyzstan), the adaptation of an ethnic minority generation-to-generation goes in the opposite direction: from the older generation's attempts to integrate towards assimilation among the younger generation. However, both strategies lead to similar outcomes in terms of their level of psychological adaptation.