Assimilation

Traditionally, assimilation is regarded as an unidirectional, irreversible and sequential process that captures the immigrants' gradual shift away from their culture of origin to incorporate the characteristics of the dominant mainstream society over several generations. When the generation has succeeded in incorporating all the traits and cultural practices of the mainstream society, it is considered to have achieved significant progress (Suarez-Orozco, 2000). However, this traditional conception of assimilation and acculturation belies the dynamic quality and the different dimensions of assimilation "economic, social cultural and political" (Skerry, 2000, p. 60). Essentially, immigrant groups may have assimilated in certain aspects of their life, while retaining their connection to their ethnic origins in others. In the remainder of this paper, the argument that immigrants can lead a successful life in mainstream society, while maintaining their cultural ties will be presented.

To understand the flaws in the traditional concep

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Category: Psychology - A