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The field of acculturation spans a rich and broad spectrum of relevant topics, types of populations and geographic areas. It has, however, been slow in incorporating theoretical insights beyond the intergroup relations perspective, neglecting contributions from other social psychology areas, such as the socio-cognitive approach, and from disciplines such as cultural and personality psychology, and the social-network perspective. The main aim of this article is to inform and broaden the understanding of micro- and meso-level acculturation mechanisms (e.g., cultural frame switching, multicultural identity structure and dynamics, intra- and inter-personal interculturality). We argue that it is time for acculturation research to apply other methodologies, rely on new theoretical paradigms and move from predicting acculturation outcomes (e.g., psychological well-being) to modelling acculturation processes. The article closes with a discussion on potential future challenges and needed directions in the social psychological study of acculturation, interculturalism and migration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a social network approach to the study of multiple cultural identifications. We argue that social network theory and social network methodology are essential for a truly dynamic examination of how multiple cultural identifications develop and how they are negotiated. This article starts by defining some relevant concepts (i.e., cultural identification, Bicultural Identity Integration, social networks), and then goes on to integrate these concepts into a micro–meso‐level framework by discussing the bidirectional links between cultural identifications and social networks (i.e., their content and their structure). We, then, explicate how social and cultural psychology can gain theoretically and methodologically from social network analysis. Finally, we conclude with some recommendations for researchers who seek to include social networks in their approach, and also discuss general and specific policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examines how the social networks of immigrants residing in a European bicultural and bilingual context (Catalonia) relate to levels of adjustment (both psychological and sociocultural) and to bicultural identity integration (BII). Moroccan, Pakistani, Ecuadorian, and Romanian immigrants residing in Barcelona nominated 25 individuals (i.e., alters) from their habitual social networks and provided demographic (e.g., ethnicity), relationship type (e.g., family, friend, neighbor), and structural (who knew whom) information for each of these alters. Even after controlling for individual-level demographic and acculturation variables, the content and structure of immigrants’ personal social networks had unique associations with both types of adjustment and with BII. Specifically, the overall degree of cultural diversity in the network and the amount of Catalan (but not Spanish) “weak” ties (i.e., acquaintances, colleagues, neighbors) positively predicted these outcomes. Amount of interconnectedness between local coethnic and Catalan/Spanish alters also predicted sociocultural adjustment and BII positively. Finally, against a “culture and language similarity” hypothesis, Moroccan and Pakistani participants had social networks that were more culturally integrated, relative to Ecuadorians and Romanians. Results from this study attest to the importance of examining actual intercultural relations and going beyond individuals’ reported acculturation preferences to understand immigrants’ overall adaptation and cultural identity dynamics. Furthermore, results highlight the interplay between interculturalism experienced at the intrapersonal, subjective level (i.e., BII), and at the meso-level (i.e., having culturally diverse networks that also include interethnic ties among alters). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An adequate understanding of the acculturation processes affecting immigrants and their descendants involves ascertaining the dynamic interplay between the way these individuals manage their multiple (and sometimes conflictual) cultural value systems and identifications and possible changes in their social networks. To fill this gap, the present research examines how key acculturation variables (e.g., strength of ethnic/host cultural identifications, bicultural identity integration or BII) relate to the composition and structure of bicultural individuals' personal social networks. In Study 1, we relied on a generationally and culturally diverse community sample of 123 Latinos residing in the US. Participants nominated eight individuals (i.e., alters) from their habitual social networks and across two relational domains: friendships and colleagues. Results indicated that the interconnection of same ethnicity alters across different relationship domains is linked to cultural identifications, while the amount of coethnic and host individuals in the network is not. In particular, higher interconnection between Latino friends and colleagues was linked to lower levels of U.S. identification. Conversely, the interconnection of non-Latino friends and colleagues was associated with lower levels of Latino identification. This pattern of results suggests that the relational context for each type of cultural identification works in a subtractive and inverse manner. Further, time spent in the US was linked to both Latino and U.S. cultural identifications, but this relationship was moderated by the level of BII. Specifically, the association between time in the US and strength of both cultural identities was stronger for individuals reporting low levels of BII. Taking the findings from Study 1 as departure point, Study 2 used an agent-based model data simulation approach to explore the dynamic ways in which the content and the structure of an immigrant's social network might matter over time in predicting three possible identity patterns: coexisting cultural identifications, conflicting cultural identifications, and a mixture of the two. These simulations allowed us to detect network constellations, which lead to identification or disidentification with both cultures. We showed that distinct patterns of social relations do not lead to identity outcomes in a deterministic fashion, but that often many different outcomes are probable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]