ACCULTURATION PREFERENCES AMONG BANGLADESHI IMMIGRANTS IN LONDON AND MALMOE

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the acculturation preferences among first and second generation Bangladeshi immigrants in Malmoe and London. The sample comprised 22 immigrants (11 from London and 11 from Malmoe). Data were obtained through interviews and analyzed by use of Berry's (1997) four fold acculturation model and on the basis of a new classification developed by Lathi, Liebkind, Horenczyk and Schmitz (2002). This was a qualitative study and the results can not be generalized. In any case the results showed that integration was the most preferred strategy when using Barry's original model both in Malmoe and London. However, when Lathi et al's typology was used the tendency towards integration became pronounced in Malmoe .This tendency became more pronounced when one examined integration across five socio-cultural domains in a cross-generational perspective. Acculturation preference and integration strategies were more homogeneous in Malmoe than London, also when the generation dimension was taken into account.