On a Way Toward Integration

Russian-Speaking Immigrant Adolescents in Finland

Abstrakti

This article explores both state and process facets of psychological acculturation among Russianspeaking immigrant adolescents in Finland. The phenomenon of acculturation is considered with special reference to changes over time, ethnic identity, and acculturation attitudes. The acculturation attitudes of the Russianspeaking adolescents are compared with the acculturation preferences expressed by their native Finnish peers. The results show that immigrants continually work at the meanings they give to their own ethnic belonging. In addition, the study demonstrates that both the host national and the Russian-speaking adolescents preferred an integration to other acculturation options. This was most clearly visible among the immigrants who had lived longer in Finland and who had therefore reached the fourth stage of the ethnic-identity exploration process.