Adaptation of second-generation Turkish Americans in the U.S.A.: extending differential adaptation theory to the offspring of immigrants

Abstract

ABSTRACT Contributing to the attempts to explore communication and adaptation, this study centers on the lived experiences of second-generation Turkish Americans as they navigate a space that is shared among the culture of their origins and the U.S. culture into which they are born. By extending differential adaptation theory (DAT) to the offspring of Turkish immigrants, this qualitative study illustrates how the U.S. shapes the agency these offspring immigrants have in communicating their cultural identity. Twenty-two second-generation Turkish Americans were interviewed about communication challenges from a DAT lens. Findings suggest that U.S.-born children of Turkish immigrants take on differential means of adaptation in communicating cultural identity held in their names and access to their cultural groups. The experiences of offspring immigrants demonstrate how differential adaptation contrasts with differential adaptation experiences of their immigrant parents. Finally, limitations to this study are explored and offer a call to the continuation of cultural adaptation research.