Learning Plan
Name and Neptun Code:
Maria Del Mar Abello Ordoñez-- D0MY3Z
Email:
Title of the Project:
Acculturation and stress of migration in Latin-American students in Budapest
Professor´s name
Miroslav Mavra
Theoretical and empirical background of the project or work plan
First definition of acculturation: “Acculturation comprehends those phenomena which result when
groups of individuals having different cultures come into continuous first-hand contact, with subsequent
changes in the original cultural patterns of either or both groups” (Memorandum for the Study of
Acculturation, 1936).
Limitations of Psychological Approach: …Psychologists created many cross-sectional measures that
reduced the phenomenon to a series of Likert scales about language proficiency, food, media and music.
Influenced by the sociological research on assimilation, the initial acculturation scales developed by
psychologists assumed a one-dimensional movement from the culture of origin to the host culture.
Strength of Anthropological approach: …Had a global perspective, moving beyond the study of
immigrants coming to a new country to focus on all situations of cultural contact. Anthropologists
understood that the meeting of cultural groups did not happen in a vacuum, and that the historical
diversity across groups shaped the acculturation processes. In line with Herskovits’ [10, 11] suggestions,
anthropologists emphasized the role of context and “real history” in understanding processes of
acculturation. Furthermore, anthropological formulations of acculturation have always highlighted the
importance of how different kinds of power affect acculturation processes. Therefore, an anthropological
program of acculturation research includes not only studying the groups that are undergoing
acculturation, but also looking at the process in relation to the impacts of the attitudes, actions and
policies of the broader society on how acculturation proceeds. In addition, anthropology has always
viewed acculturation as a complex process that is multidirectional and can lead to a wide range of
possible outcomes.
Justification of the project or work plan
Very little research has monitored and investigated early return in student samples. Most research on this
issue in fact focuses on international assignees or expatriate samples.
Failed international assignments can be financially costly for the sending organization (see Mendenhall,
Dunbar, & Oddou, 1987).
Research has explored and identified predictors of good or poor cultural adjustment in students (Zhang &
Goodson, 2011), but the link between adjustment and early return has rarely been examined directly.
Formulation of the research problem:
How the Latin-American people (specially students) deal with the stress of migration In Budapest? (this
question could change through the semester)
General Objective:
To discuss the process of acculturation and how the Latin-American people (specially students) deal with
