SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF PERSONAL ACCULTURATION IN AN INTERCULTURAL ENVIRONMENT

Abstract

This article examines the phenomenon of acculturation as a complex and contradictory process of intercultural interaction caused by globalization and the intensification of migration and communication processes. It analyzes the main theoretical approaches to understanding acculturation in foreign cultural studies, ethnology, and ethnopsychology, beginning with the works of R. Redfield, R. Linton, and M. Herskovits. Particular attention is paid to acculturation strategies—assimilation, separation, marginalization, and integration—and their psychological consequences for individuals and groups. The role of ethnic identity, ethnic tolerance, empathy, and intercultural communication in ensuring successful acculturation and adaptation of individuals in a different cultural environment is explored. It is argued that integration is the most productive acculturation strategy, contributing to the development of bicultural and multicultural personalities and the harmonization of intercultural relations.