Acculturation strategies and attitudes and their relationship with the identification of descendants of migrants in the Catalan school context

Abstract

ABSTRACT The mass arrival of immigrants to Catalonia (Spain) in the last two decades has led to a change in the socio-demographic composition of a society which de facto is characteristically bilingual and bicultural. The acculturation process undergone by young descendants of migrants and how they identify in this context are essential in order to overcome the social challenges arising in different societies. We have carried out a mixed study in order to identify the acculturation profile of descendants of migrants in the context of Catalan schools, correlating these processes with identification by considering Catalan-Spanish group membership, identification with the culture, and identification with the language. A survey was completed by 212 young people of migrant origin (14–18 years old) in secondary education; as well as 9 life stories from them and 6 semi-structured interviews with teachers. These results suggest the development of complex acculturation strategies fitting a complex socio-cultural context where identification with Catalonia and Spain plays a key role in its construction.