A Structural Model of Acculturation and Well-Being Among Immigrants from the Former USSR in Finland

Abstract

Abstract. In this study we tested an integrated model of the relationship between immigrants' linguistic acculturation, socioeconomic status (SES), perceived discrimination, social support networks, general health status, and psychological well-being. A nationwide adult probability sample (N = 2360) included Finnish repatriates and Russian and Estonian immigrants from the former Soviet Union, Russia, and Estonia. In the total sample, linguistic acculturation was directly and negatively related to psychological well-being. Increased acculturation also influenced well-being indirectly through an increase in perceived discrimination. Although acculturation also increased the use of ethnic and host support networks, the effect of these social support networks on well-being depended on the stress level. Particularly, the direct effect of acculturation on well-being disappeared and was instead mediated by social support networks when examining the more vulnerable subsamples of the study, i.e., women and those who perceived substantial discrimination. Higher levels of SES were linked to better well-being through increased health status. It was concluded that the acculturation process plays a dual role in psychological functioning and that it is important to ensure more directly not only immigrants' cultural but also their socioeconomic integration.