Acculturation concept. Political Science: Dictionary-Reference Book

ACCULTURATION (English neologism - acculturation, from Latin ad - to and cultura - education, development) - the process of perception by one, usually culturally less developed, people or any part of it of any elements of material or spiritual culture or the entire culture of another people, usually more culturally developed. The term “acculturation” was introduced into scientific use in the 30s of the 20th century by US sociologists and ethnographers in connection with the study modern culture American Indians.

Acculturation (Ilyichev, 1983)

ACCULTURATION (English, acculturation, from Latin ad - to and culture - education, development), processes of mutual influence of cultures, perception by one people in whole or in part of the culture of another people, usually more developed. The term “acculturation” came into scientific use in the United States in the 1930s in connection with the study of changes in the culture of American Indians in the context of their forced assimilation by Americans of European descent. After World War II, the problem of acculturation of culturally backward peoples took a prominent place in the works of scientists in the United States, as well as India and Latin American countries.

Acculturation (NFE, 2010)

ACCULTURATION is a concept introduced in 1936 by American anthropologists (R. Redfield, M. Herskowitz and R. Linton) initially to characterize contacts between different cultures, and then to study those changes in culture that are caused by the contact of two or more autonomous cultures. Social and cultural anthropologists, not accepting the concept of closed cultures and civilizations, studied the processes of interaction different cultures. The concept of acculturation was put forward in opposition to such concepts as diffusion and assimilation of cultures.

Acculturation (TSB, 1969)

ACCULTURATION (English neologism - acculturation, from Latin ad - to and cultura - education, development), processes of mutual influence of cultures, perception by one people in whole or in part of the culture of another people, usually more developed. The term "acculturation" came into scientific use in the United States in the 1930s in connection with the study of modern American Indian culture. Later, US ethnographers also studied the acculturation of the peoples of Asia, Africa and Oceania, hiding under the term “acculturation” the forced assimilation of oppressed peoples.

National acculturation (Tavadov, 2011)

NATIONAL (ETHNIC) ACCULTURATION - the process and result of mutual influence of national cultures, consisting in the perception of one of them (usually less developed) elements of another culture. In this case, the first culture retains its own cultural model, but at the same time more or less fully masters the norms of another culture, as a rule, more widespread and more developed. The introduction of any cultural innovation into the life of the people, that is, the transformation of innovation into tradition, does not occur immediately.

ACCULTURATION (from the Latin ad - to and cultura - culture), the process of mutual influence of cultures during direct and long-term contact of their carriers both at the group and individual levels. The concept of “acculturation” has been widely used since the end of the 19th century in English and American anthropology to denote the unidirectional process of assimilation of one culture to another (W. H. Homes, F. Boas) or the transfer of individual elements of one culture to another (W. J. Magee).

In American anthropology in the 1920-30s (M. Mead, R. Lowy, M. Herskowitz, R. Linton and others), the issue of acculturation was developed mainly in connection with the study of the influence of the dominant culture on the indigenous population of America. The process of acculturation was described as “acceptance” or “rejection” of elements of the donor culture; it was noted that the receiving culture selects elements of the donor culture, adapting and changing or rejecting them. In the 1940-50s, the study of acculturation was supplemented by the problems of mutual influence of non-Western cultures (Japaneseization, Sinicization, etc.) and urbanization in complex societies. If previously researchers, under the influence of diffusionism and historical school Boas, focused on individual features of interacting cultures, then in the 1950s, in the traditions of functionalism, culture was viewed as complete system, similar to an organism, and acculturation is like the interaction of “organisms”. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, these models, which endow acculturation with the features of universality, automaticity and irreversibility, were criticized. It has been noted that the portrayal of indigenous peoples as passive recipients of the dominant culture leads to the justification of forced acculturation and marginalization of the indigenous population in the context of modernizing society. Thereby sanctioned government programs directed cultural changes for the purpose of national integration and assistance to “backward groups of the population.”

In the 1960s and 70s, American concepts of acculturation attracted the attention of Soviet ethnographers.

Acculturation within the theory ethnic processes was usually considered one of the initial stages assimilation following cultural contact; its characteristics were the preservation of the features of the original culture while acquiring new ones. In this way, it differed from the so-called cultural assimilation, where the original culture was completely replaced by the borrowed one (S. A. Arutyunov, V. I. Kozlov).

Nowadays, the concept of “acculturation” is used mainly in cross-cultural psychology when studying the psychological consequences of acculturation stress. It is emphasized that acculturation is situational in nature and that the individual has at his disposal different strategies for interacting with the new culture. The belief has emerged that there is no single indicator that would adequately reflect the main value and behavioral changes associated with acculturation. The term “acculturation” is gradually falling out of use, being replaced by the terms “cultural hybridization”, “multiculturalism”, “marginalization” and so on.

Lit.: Tolstov S. On the problem of acculturation // Ethnography. 1930. No. 1-2; Red field R., Linton R., Herskovits M. J. Memorandum for the study of acculturation // American Anthropologist. 1936. Vol. 38. No. 1; Hallowell A. I. Sociopsychological aspects of acculturation // The science of man in the world crisis. N. Y., 1945; Acculturation: an exploratory formulation // American Anthropologist. New series. 1954. Vol. 56. No. 6; Bakhta V.M. The problem of acculturation in modern ethnographic literature of the United States // Modern American Ethnography. M., 1963; Gordon M. M. Assimilation in American life: the role of race, religion, and national origins. N. Y., 1964; Kozlov V.I. Dynamics of the population of peoples: Research methodology and main factors. M., 1969; Arutyunov S.A. Bilingualism and biculturalism // Soviet ethnography. 1978. No. 2; Acculturation: advances in theory, measurement, and applied research. Wash., 2003.

S. V. Sokolovsky.

Acculturation as a form of intercultural communication

Cultural contacts form the basis of communication between peoples, during which they become acquainted with foreign cultures. When studying the processes of interaction of cultures and cultural contacts, it is necessary to turn to the essence of the concept of acculturation and consider its definition and stages of development.

Acculturation(lat. ad - to and cultura education, development) is a process of interaction and mutual influence of cultures, changes material culture, customs and beliefs, which occurs through direct contact and mutual influence of different sociocultural systems.

Acculturation is both a process and a result mutual influence different cultures, in which all or part of the representatives of one culture adopt the norms, values and traditions of another. Typically, the process of acculturation is considered as a two-way process, in which both contacting cultures can simultaneously act as a donor culture and a recipient culture, although the degree of their influence on each other may not be the same. In addition, representatives of one culture can either fully accept the values of another, or reject them in whole or in part.

Often acculturation is also understood as the process of perception by one, usually culturally less developed people or some part of it, any elements of material or spiritual culture - or the entire culture of another people, usually culturally more developed.

The concept of "acculturation" originated in American ethnography and cultural anthropology in late XIX V. influenced by research into the processes of cultural change in tribes North American Indians. American ethnographers J. Powell and W. Homes used this term to refer to the process of assimilation and transfer of elements of one culture to another (1880). Further development studying the process of acculturation was found in the works of F. Boas, W. McGee, R. Lowy. Initially, the term was used to refer to the processes of assimilation occurring in Indian tribes as a result of their contact with the culture of white Americans, i.e. in a rather narrow sense.

In the 1930s There has been interest in a more systematic study of acculturation processes. The term "acculturation" has become firmly established in American anthropology. Acculturation was the subject of research by M. Herskowitz, M. Mead, R. Redfield, L. Spier, R. Linton, A. Malinowski. Initially, the phenomenon of acculturation was perceived by scientists as the result of long-term contact between representatives of different cultures, which led to a change in their original cultural models taking into account the significance of each of the interacting groups. It was widely believed that this mixed cultures, resulting in a state of cultural and ethnic homogeneity, with less developed culture is subject to greater influence from the more developed.

Subsequently, acculturation ceased to be considered as an exclusively group phenomenon; it began to be studied at the level of individual behavior. An important conclusion was made that in the process of acculturation each person simultaneously decides two the most important tasks: strives to preserve one’s cultural identity and integrates into another culture.

Important to remember

Modern, more broad concept Acculturation is as follows: it is a process of interaction between cultures, during which they change, they assimilate new elements, and the formation, as a result of mixing different cultural traditions, of a fundamentally new cultural synthesis.

There are four main forms (strategies) acculturation:

1) assimilation– a variant of acculturation in which a person fully accepts the norms and values of another culture, while abandoning his own norms and values;
2) separation– denial of foreign culture while maintaining identification with one’s own culture. In this case, representatives of the non-dominant group prefer the larger or lesser degree isolation from the dominant culture. If representatives insist on such isolation dominant culture, this form is called segregation;
3) marginalization is simultaneously a loss of identity with own culture and lack of identity with the majority culture. This situation arises due to the inability to maintain one’s own cultural identity (usually due to some external reasons) and the lack of desire to obtain a new identity (possibly due to discrimination or segregation from this culture);
4) integration – identification with both old and new culture. A situation often arises when emigrants arriving in another country are focused on assimilation, but as refugees, forced to leave their homeland for some external reasons, they psychologically resist severing ties with it, and the process of assimilation takes them much longer and more difficult.

As a result of interaction, cultures not only complement each other, but also enter into more difficult relationships. The real interaction of cultures reveals both positive (enrichment of cultures) and negative (their suppression, impoverishment - erosion) consequences.

The nature of acculturation is influenced by several factors:

degree of differentiation of the host culture: a society with developed systems of morality, law, artistic culture, aesthetics, philosophy, is able to adapt functionally acceptable innovations without undermining the basic spiritual structure;
duration of contact: exposure extended over time does not cause a state of shock and rejection, but addiction and gradual acceptance;
political and economic conditions of interaction: the situation of political and economic dominance or dependence largely determines the content of cultural communication.

Each of these factors modifies the process of acculturation, as a result of which it can take one of three forms:

1) cultural expansion;
2) cultural diffusion;
3) cultural conflict.

Let us consider these forms of acculturation in more detail.

Cultural expansion- this is the expansion of the sphere of influence of the dominant (national) culture beyond the original limits or state borders. At its core, this is a process of predominantly unidirectional intercultural communication.

Cultural diffusion- this is mutual penetration cultural traits from one society to another when they come into contact. In contrast to cultural expansion, which is predominantly unidirectional, cultural diffusion is a bi- or multi-directional process, depending on the number of interacting cultures that spread their values to other cultures. The mechanisms of cultural diffusion are migration, tourism, missionaries, wars, trade, trade exhibitions and fairs, scientific conferences, exchange of students and specialists, etc. As a result of cultural diffusion, peoples do not borrow everything from each other, but only what is close to their own culture, or what can have a certain benefit, is prestigious, and corresponds to their internal needs that their own culture cannot satisfy.

Cultural conflict- this is a collision of cultural subjects - bearers of different cultural values and normal. The reasons may be cultural differences between peoples or within a particular society, which may take the form of contradiction or even open conflict.

Case Study

An example of prestigious borrowing is fashion: one people or social group borrows not what they need from a utilitarian point of view, but what is considered prestigious. This happened, for example, with the fashion for jeans, which initially served the utilitarian functions of work clothes, and later became an element of fashion that has fans in almost all countries of the world.

Scientists identify several species cultural conflicts:

between different ethnic groups and their cultures (Russians and representatives of Caucasian ethnic groups, Armenians and Azerbaijanis);
religious groups, representatives of various religions or movements within individual religions (Orthodox and Muslims);
generations, carriers different subcultures(conflict between fathers and children);
various parts single regulatory system dominant culture (for example, within the same society groups may coexist that have different attitudes towards issues of allowing or preventing divorce, premarital sexual relations, abortion, etc.);
traditions and innovations in culture (such conflicts are inherent in rapidly changing societies, which include modern Russia);
various linguistic and cultural communities and their individual representatives (arise as a result of language barriers and interpretive errors).

Case Study

The most obvious examples of culture clashes come from real-life interactions with foreigners both in their own country and in their own. These kinds of conflicts give rise to many funny cases, anecdotal situations, funny stories, troubles, dramas and even tragedies. For example, for most people, nodding your head means an affirmative answer, but for a resident of Bulgaria, on the contrary, it means a negative answer.

Overcoming conflicts, increasing understanding between people belonging to different cultures, subcultures, nationalities, is associated with several important conditions: knowledge of the communication partner’s language, understanding of his lifestyle, national character, mentality.

Ushkanova R. D. Logical-semantic analysis of acculturation // Bulletin of the North-Eastern Federal University. M.K. Ammosova. 2010. No. 1. T. 7. P. 149–153.
Kravchenko A. I. Culturology: dictionary. M.: Academic project, 2000. P. 17.

When cultures interact, they not only complement each other, but enter into complex relationships, during which they mutually adapt by borrowing their best products. The changes caused by these borrowings force people of a given culture to adapt, adapt to them, mastering and using these new elements in their lives. As a result of this, a person more or less achieves compatibility with the new cultural environment. It is believed that both during the interaction of cultures and when a person adapts to the elements of a new culture, the process of acculturation occurs.

The concept and essence of acculturation

The study of acculturation processes began to be studied at the beginning of the 20th century. American cultural anthropologists R. Redfield, R. Linton and M. Herskowitz. At first, they considered acculturation as the result of long-term contact between groups representing different cultures, which was expressed in a change in the original cultural models in one or both groups (depending on the proportion of interacting groups). However, researchers gradually moved away from understanding acculturation only as a group phenomenon and began to consider it at the level of individual psychology, presenting the acculturation process as a change in value orientations, role behavior, social attitudes individual. Currently, the term “acculturation” is used to denote the process and result of the mutual influence of different cultures, in which all or part of the representatives of one culture (recipients) adopt the norms, values and traditions of another (from the donor culture). We can say that at the level individual person Acculturation is the process of acquiring the knowledge and skills needed to live in a foreign culture.

Research in the field of acculturation especially intensified at the end of the 20th century. This is due to the migration boom that humanity is experiencing and which is manifested in the ever-increasing exchange of students and specialists, as well as in mass relocations. According to some estimates, today more than 100 million people live in the world outside their country of origin.

Basic acculturation strategies

In the process of acculturation, a person is forced to simultaneously solve two problems - maintaining his cultural identity and inclusion in a foreign culture. The combination of possible solutions to these problems gives the basic acculturation strategies:

assimilation- a variant of acculturation in which a person fully accepts the values and norms of another culture, while abandoning his own norms and values;
separation- denial of foreign culture while maintaining identification with one’s own culture. In this case, representatives of the non-dominant group prefer a greater or lesser degree of isolation from the dominant culture. The strategy of isolation that members of the dominant culture insist on is called segregation;
marginalization- a variant of acculturation, manifested in the loss of identity with one’s own culture and lack of identification with the majority culture. This situation arises due to the inability to maintain one's own identity (usually due to some external reasons) and lack of interest in acquiring a new identity (perhaps due to discrimination or segregation from this culture);
integration- identification as old culture, and with the new one.

Until recently, scientists called best strategy Acculturation is complete assimilation into the dominant culture. Today, the goal of acculturation is considered to be the achievement of cultural integration, which results in a bicultural or multicultural personality. This is possible if the interacting majority and minority groups voluntarily choose this strategy: the integrating group is ready to accept the attitudes and values of a new culture, and the dominant group is ready to accept these people, respecting their rights, values, adapting social institutions to their needs.

Both the minority and the majority can accept integration only voluntarily, since this process represents the mutual adaptation of these groups, the recognition by both groups of the right of each of them to live as culturally different peoples.

However, members of the non-dominant group are not always free to choose an acculturation strategy. The dominant group may limit choice or force certain forms acculturation. Thus, the choice of the non-dominant group may be separation. But if separation is forced - it arises as a result of discriminatory actions of the dominant majority, then it turns into segregation. The non-dominant group may choose to assimilate, indicating a willingness to accept the idea of a "melting pot" of cultures. But if they are forced to do this, then the “cauldron” turns into a “pressure.” It is very rare for a minority group to choose to be marginalized. Most often, people become marginalized as a result of attempts to combine forced assimilation with forced segregation.

At the same time, integration corresponds to positive ethnic identity and ethnic tolerance, assimilation - negative ethnic identity and ethnic tolerance, separation - positive ethnic identity and intolerance, marginalization - negative ethnic identity and intolerance.

Acculturation as communication

The basis of acculturation is the communication process. Just like local residents acquire their own cultural characteristics, i.e. In the same way, visitors undergo inculturation through interaction with each other, and visitors become acquainted with new cultural conditions and master new skills through communication. Therefore, the process of acculturation is the acquisition of communication abilities in new culture.

Any communication, including personal communication, has three interconnected aspects - cognitive, affective and behavioral, as communication takes place! - processes of perception, processing of information, as well as actions aimed at objects and people surrounding a person. In this process, the individual, using the information received, adapts to the environment.

The most fundamental changes occur in the structure of cognition, in the picture of the world through which a person receives information from environment. It is on differences in the picture of the world, in the ways of categorizing and interpreting experience, that differences between cultures are based. Only by expanding the sphere of acceptance and processing of information can a person comprehend the system of organization of a foreign culture and adjust his cognitive processes to those inherent in the bearers of a foreign culture. A person defines the mentality of “outsiders” as difficult and incomprehensible precisely because he is unfamiliar with the cognitive system of another culture. But a person has the potential to expand his knowledge about cognitive system foreign culture, and how more people learns about a foreign culture, the greater his ability to learn in general. The opposite is also true: the more developed a person’s cognitive system, the greater the ability to understand another culture he demonstrates.

To develop fruitful relationships with representatives of a foreign culture, a person must not only understand it on a rational level, but also on an affective one. You need to know what emotional statements and reactions are acceptable, since every society has adopted a certain criterion of sentimentality and emotionality. When a person is adapted to a different affective orientation, he can understand the reasons for humor, amusement and delight, anger, pain and disappointment as well as the locals.

Decisive in a person’s adaptation to a foreign culture is the acquisition of technical and social behavioral skills for action in certain situations. technical skills include skills that are important for every member of society - language proficiency, the ability to shop, pay taxes, etc. Social skills usually less specific than technical ones, but more difficult to master. Even bearers of culture, who naturally “play” their social roles, very rarely can explain what, how and why they do. However, through trial and error, a person constantly improves behavior through the formation of algorithms and stereotypes that can be used automatically without thinking.

Full adaptation of a person to a foreign culture means that all three aspects of communication occur simultaneously, coordinated and balanced. People adapting to the conditions of a new culture usually feel underdeveloped in one or more of these aspects of communication, resulting in poor balance and coordination. For example, one may know a lot about a new culture, but not have contact with it on an affective level; if such a gap is large, there may be an inability to adapt to the new culture.

Acculturation results. The most important goal and result of acculturation is long-term adaptation to life in a foreign culture. It is characterized by relatively stable changes in individual or group consciousness in response to environmental demands. Adaptation is usually considered in two aspects - psychological and sociocultural.

Psychological adaptation represents the achievement of psychological satisfaction within the framework of a new culture. This is expressed in good health, psychological health, and a clearly formed sense of personal or cultural identity.

Sociocultural adaptation lies in the ability to freely navigate a new culture and society, solve everyday problems in the family, at home, at work.

Since one of the most important indicators of successful adaptation is employment, job satisfaction and the level of one’s professional achievements and, as a consequence, their well-being in the new culture, researchers began to identify economic adaptation.

The adaptation process may not lead to a mutual correspondence between the individual and the environment, and then it will be expressed in resistance, in an attempt to change one’s environment or to change mutually. Therefore, the range of adaptation results is very large - from very successful adaptation to a new life to complete failure of all attempts to achieve this.

The results of adaptation depend on both psychological and sociocultural factors, which are quite closely interrelated. Psychological adaptation depends on a person's personality type, events in his life, and social support. The effectiveness of sociocultural adaptation is determined by a gay person’s knowledge of culture, the degree of involvement in contacts and intergroup attitudes. Both of these aspects of adaptation are successfully implemented provided that the person is convinced of the benefits of the integration strategy.

ACCULTURATION

the process of changing material culture, customs and beliefs that occurs directly. contact and mutual influence of different socio-cultural systems. The term A. is used to denote both this process itself and its results. Close to it in meaning are terms such as “cultural contact” and “transculturation”.

The concept of A. began to be used in America. cultural anthropology in the late 19th century. in connection with the study of the processes of cultural change in the tribes of North America. Indians (F. Boas, W. Holmes, W. McGee, R. Lowy). Initially, it was used in a narrow sense and primarily denoted the processes of assimilation occurring in Indian tribes as a result of their contact with the culture of white Americans. In the 30s This term is firmly entrenched in America. anthropology, and A. processes have become one of the main. the more empirical research and theory analysis. A. was the subject of field research by Herskowitz, M. Mead, Redfield, M. Hunter, L. Spier, Linton, and Malinowski. On Tue. floor. 30s There has been interest in more systematic studying acculturation processes. In 1935, Redfield, Linton and Herskowitz developed a standard model for the study of A. They defined A. as “a set of phenomena that arise due to the fact that groups of individuals possessing different cultures, are included in the permanent immediate. contact, during which changes occur in the original cultural patterns of one of the groups or both of them.” Analytical analysis was carried out. the difference between the recipient group, the original cultural patterns of which undergo a change, and the donor group, from the culture of which the swarm is the first to draw new cultural patterns: this model was convenient for empirical studies. studies of cultural changes in small ethnic groups. groups due to their collision with the West. industrial culture. Redfield, Linton and Herskowitz identified three main ones. type of reaction of the recipient group to the situation of cultural contact: acceptance (complete replacement of the old cultural pattern with a new one, gleaned from the donor group); adaptation (partial change in the traditional pattern under the influence of the culture of the donor group); reaction (complete rejection of the cultural patterns of the “donor group” by intensified attempts to preserve traditional patterns unchanged). This analysis scheme had a beneficial effect on the empirical research. research and received further development.

Herskowitz’s works explored the processes of combining cultural elements of contacting groups, as a result of which fundamentally new cultural patterns emerge (studies of syncretism in black cultures of the New World, in particular syncretic religious cults). Linton and Malinovsky analyzed the negative reaction of “primitive cultures” to the situation of contact with the West. industrial culture (Linton introduced the concept of “nativist movements” for this purpose; Malinowski used the term “tribalism”). Linton developed a typology of nativist movements (“Nativist Movements”, 1943).

Important theory Linton’s work “A.” was important for A.’s research. in the seven tribes of the Amer. Indians” (1940), where two types of conditions were identified in which A. can occur: 1) free borrowing of elements from each other by contacting cultures, occurring in the absence of military-political. domination of one group over another; 2) guided cultural change, with which it is dominant in the military or political. In relation, the group pursues a policy of forced cultural assimilation of the subordinate group.

Until the 50s. the study of A. was limited to the study of changes in traditions. crops under the influence of Western civilization; starting from the 50-60s. There has been a noticeable expansion of research. prospects: the number of studies devoted to the interaction and mutual influence of sudden cultures and "processes such as Spanishization, Japaneseization, Sinicization, etc., characteristic of certain cultural regions (J. Foster, J. Phelan, etc.); A. research methods were applied to the study of the urbanization process in complex societies (R. Beals). If previously the main focus was on the influence of the “dominant” culture on the “subordinate” one, now the reverse influence has also become the subject of research (e.g. African musical forms to modern recorded music). The explicit or implicit identification of A. with assimilation gave way to a broader understanding of A. as a process of interaction between cultures, during which they change, assimilate new elements, and form as a result of mixing different cultural traditions a fundamentally new cultural synthesis.

Lit.: Watch V.M. The problem of acculturation in modern times. ethnographic US literature // Modern. Amer. ethnography. M., 1963; Redfield R., Linton R., Herskovits M.J. Memorandum for the Study of Acculturation // American Anthropologist. 1936. Vol. 38. No. 1; Hallowell A.I. Sociopsychological Aspects of Acculturation // The Science of Man in the World Crisis. Ed. by Linton R. N.Y., 1945; Worsley P. The Trumpet Shall Sound: A Study of “Cargo” Cults in Melanesia. L., 1957; Herskovits M.J. African Gods and Catholic Saints in New World Negro Belief // American Anthropologist. New Series. Menasha, 1937. Vol. 39. No. 4; Hogbin H. Social Change. L, 1958; Foster G. Culture and Conquest: America's Spanish Heritage. N.Y., I960; Polgar S. Biculturation of Mesquakie Teenage Boys // American Anthropologist. Menasha, 1960. Vol. 62. No. 2; Acculturation in Seven American Indian Tribes. Gloucester, 1963.

V. G. Nikolaev

Culturology. XX century Encyclopedia. 1998 .

Acculturation

(from lat. education, development)

the process of mutual influence of cultures, as a result of which the culture of one people fully or partially perceives the culture of another people, usually more developed, is considered as a variety of processes of assimilation and ethnic consolidation.

☼ the process of changing material culture, customs and beliefs that occurs directly. contact and mutual influence of different sociocultural systems. The term A. is used to denote both this process itself and its results. Close to it in meaning are terms such as “cultural contact” and “transculturation”.

The concept of A. began to be used in America. cultural anthropology in the late 19th century. in connection with the study of the processes of cultural change in the tribes of North America. Indians (F. Boas, W. Holmes, W. McGee, R. Lowy). Initially, it was used in a narrow sense and primarily denoted the processes of assimilation occurring in Indian tribes as a result of their contact with the culture of white Americans. In the 30s This term is firmly entrenched in America. anthropology, and A. processes have become one of the main. the more empirical research and theory analysis. A. was the subject of field research by Herskowitz, M. Mead, Redfield a, M. Hunter, L. Spier, Linton a, Malinowski (see Malinowski). On Tue. floor. 30s There has been interest in more systematic studying acculturation processes. In 1935, Redfield, Linton and Herskowitz developed a standard model for the study of A. They defined A. as “a set of phenomena that arise due to the fact that groups of individuals with different cultures enter into permanent direct interaction. contact, during which changes occur in the original cultural patterns of one of the groups or both of them.” Analytical analysis was carried out. the difference between the recipient group, the original cultural patterns of which undergo a change, and the donor group, from the culture of which the swarm is the first to draw new cultural patterns: this model was convenient for empirical studies. studies of cultural changes in small ethnic groups. groups due to their collision with the West. industrial culture. Redfield, Linton and Herskowitz identified three main ones. type of reaction of the recipient group to a situation of cultural contact: acceptance (complete replacement of the old cultural pattern with a new one, learned from the donor group); adaptation (partial change in the traditional pattern under the influence of the culture of the donor group); reaction (complete rejection of the cultural patterns of the “donor group” with intensified attempts to preserve traditional patterns unchanged). This analysis scheme had a beneficial effect on the empirical research. research and received further development.

Herskowitz’s works explored the processes of combining cultural elements of contacting groups, as a result of which fundamentally new cultural patterns emerge (studies of syncretism in the black cultures of the New World, in particular syncretic religious cults). Linton and Malinovsky analyzed the negative reaction of “primitive cultures” to the situation of contact with the West. industrial culture (Linton introduced the concept of “nativist movements” for this purpose; Malinowski used the term “tribalism”). Linton developed a typology of nativist movements (“Nativist Movements”, 1943).

Important theory Linton’s work “A.” was important for A.’s research. in the seven tribes of the Amer. Indians” (1940), where two types of conditions were identified in which A. can occur:

1) free borrowing of elements from each other by contacting cultures, occurring in the absence of military-political. domination of one group over another;

2) guided cultural change, with it being dominant in the military or political. In relation, the group pursues a policy of forced cultural assimilation of the subordinate group.

Until the 50s. the study of A. was limited to the study of changes in traditions. crops under the influence of Western civilization; starting from the 50-60s. There has been a noticeable expansion of research. prospects: the number of studies devoted to the interaction and mutual influence of sudden cultures and processes such as Spanishization, Japaneseization, Sinicization, etc., characteristic of the department. cultural regions (J. Foster, J. Phelan, etc.); A. research methods were applied to the study of the process of urbanization in complex communities (R. Beals). If earlier the main attention was focused on the influence of the “dominant” culture on the “subordinate” one, now the reverse influence (for example, African musical forms on modern Western music) has also become the subject of research. Explicit or implicit identification of A. with assimilation gave way to a broader understanding of A. as a process of interaction between cultures, during which they change, assimilate new elements, and form a fundamentally new cultural synthesis as a result of mixing different cultural traditions.

Lit.: Vakhta V.M. The problem of acculturation in modern times. ethnographic US literature // Modern. Amer. ethnography. M., 1963; Redfield R., Linton R., Herskovits M.J. Memorandum for the Study of Acculturation // American Anthropologist. 1936. Vol. 38. No. 1; Hallowell A.I. Sociopsychological Aspects of Acculturation // The Science of Man in the World Crisis. Ed. by Linton R. N.Y., 1945; Worsley P. The Trumpet Shall Sound: A Study of “Cargo” Cults in Melanesia. L., 1957; Herskovits M.J. African Gods and Catholic Saints in New World Negro Belief // American Anthropologist. New Series. Menasha, 1937. Vol. 39. No. 4; Hogbin H. Social Change. L, 1958; Foster G. Culture and Conquest: America's Spanish Heritage. N.Y., I960; Polgar S. Biculturation of Mesquakie Teenage Boys // American Anthropologist. Menasha, 1960. Vol. 62. No. 2; Acculturation in Seven American Indian Tribes. Gloucester, 1963.

V. G. Nikolaev.

Cultural studies of the twentieth century. Encyclopedia. M.1996

Big Dictionary in cultural studies.. Kononenko B.I. . 2003.

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- (lat. acculturare from lat. ad to and cultura education, development) the process of mutual influence of cultures (exchange cultural characteristics), perception by one people in whole or in part of the culture of another people. At the same time... ... Wikipedia

- (English, acculturation, from Latin ad to and culture education, development), processes of mutual influence of cultures, perception by one people in whole or in part of the culture of another people, usually more developed. The term "A." entered the scientific usage in the USA in... ... Philosophical Encyclopedia

- [Dictionary foreign words Russian language

Convergence Dictionary of Russian synonyms. acculturation noun, number of synonyms: 2 mutual influence (3) ... Synonym dictionary

acculturation- and, f. acculturation f. , English Adaptation of an individual or group to changing environmental conditions. It was an intensive process, supported from above by the acculturation and proliferation of ideas, knowledge, organizational methods production and research... ... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language

- (English acculturation from Latin ad to and cultura education, development), the process of mutual influence of cultures, the perception by one people, in whole or in part, of the culture of another people... Big encyclopedic Dictionary

- (from Latin ad about, with and cultura education, development) English. acculturation; German Akkulturation. 1. The process of mutual influence of cultures, when in the course of direct contact the technologies, patterns of behavior, values, etc. of a foreign culture are assimilated, which ... Encyclopedia of Sociology

- (English acculturation, from Latin ad to and cultura education, development) the process of mutual influence of cultures, the perception by one people, in whole or in part, of the culture of another people; concept characterizing the process of interaction and interpenetration... ... Political science. Dictionary.