The Role of Sex and Gender in Acculturation Strategies

Background/rational: Migrant women and men prefer different acculturation strategies while developing their activities in the receiving countries. Gender norms play an important role, and it is easier for women than for men to be accepted by the host societies.

Methods: The aim of this presentation is twofold: 1. to analyze the differences between women and men regarding the acculturation strategies; 2. to study the relationship between the gender norms and the acculturation strategies.

Participants: 273 Romanians living in Spain.

Instruments: Conformity to Feminine/Masculine Norms Inventory and Vancouver Index of Acculturation.

Results: Selected results of our analyses show that women score higher on the Mainstream scale (in this study, Spanish culture) but there are no differences regarding the Heritage scale (Romanian culture). Several positive and negative correlations were found between Mainstrean and Heritage scales and feminine/masculine gender norms.

Conclusions: Such findings show that sex differences draw attention to the fact that men and women differ in acculturation strategies, but ignores the differences within the group of men and women. Moreover, feminine/masculine gender identity is important with regard to adopting the mainstream customs or maintaining the heritage ones.

Action/Impact: There are different acculturation paths for women and men in the Spanish society and women seem to take greater advantage by adopting the mainstream culture. There is a need to address both sex and gender differences in acculturation studies to provide better services to immigrant women and men.