Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 2004, 45, 269–278 © 2004 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations/Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA. ISSN 0036-5564. Blackwell Publishing, Ltd. Acculturation strategies, coping process and acculturative stress ANKICA KOSIC University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Italy Kosic, A. (2004). Acculturation strategies, coping process and acculturative stress. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 45, 269–278. Using structural equation modeling, this study examines the influences of motivational factors (Need for Cognitive Closure – NCC – and Decisiveness), coping strategies and acculturation strategies on levels of acculturative stress. Two groups of immigrants in Rome (Croatians n = 156 and Poles n = 179) completed a questionnaire that included scales for the various factors. Although our initial hypothesized model was not confirmed, a modified model showed that the motivational factors of NCC and Decisiveness indirectly influence acculturative stress. The modified model with good fit indices indicated that the relationship between NCC and Decisiveness are mediated by coping strategies and acculturation strategies. Specifically, NCC is associated positively with avoidance coping, which in turn is negatively associated with the host group relationships and positively with the original culture maintenance. The last two dimensions predicted lower levels of acculturative stress. Decisiveness was positively associated with the problem-oriented coping and, negatively, with emotional and avoidance coping. Key words: Acculturative stress, acculturation strategies, coping, immigrants. Ankica Kosic, Department of Social Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Via dei Marsi 78, 00185 Rome, Italy. E-mail: anna.kosic@uniroma1.it IMMIGRANTS’ ADAPTATION During the last 10 years the number of immigrants of differ- ent ethnic groups moving towards industrialized Western countries has grown dramatically, reflecting the political and economic instability of their home countries. Some events, such as political changes in Eastern Europe and Asia, are characterized, in many cases, by political instability, ethnic antagonism, secession and conflict for political independ- ence. These perturbations forced many people to leave their country in the hope of finding a place that can offer them opportunities for a secure, peaceful and better life. One of such places is Italy, where some of these immigrants have come for a short time in order to improve their financial situation and then to return to their homeland, while others have sought for a more permanent residence in Italy. In adjusting to a new culture, immigrants may experience some degree of difficulty which may cause them significant distress, a situation commonly referred to as acculturative stress . Acculturative stress is caused by the difficulties experienced in the process of acculturation and is inversely related to the psychological and physical well being (Berry, 1998; Berry & Kim, 1988; Berry, Poortinga, Segall & Dasen, 1992). A number of researchers have attempted to identify predictive factors that may explain the level of acculturative stress. The studies on immigrants’ acculturation, led by Berry and his associates (Berry, Kim, Minde & Mok, 1987; Berry, Kim, Power, Young & Bujaki, 1989; Berry et al. , 1992; Sam & Berry, 1995) and also others (e.g., Liebkind, 1996; Ward, 1996; Ward & Kennedy, 1993a, 1993b, 1994; Ward & Rana, 1999), emphasize the significant role of a great number of factors. These factors can broadly be divided into two groups: (a) features of the original and host society (cultural, economic, political, social), and (b) indi- vidual characteristics. Among the individual characteristics, potential influence is exercised by a number of demographic variables (e.g., age, gender, marital status, education, length of sojourn, etc.; Beiser, Barwick & Berry, 1988; Beiser, Johnoson & Turner, 1993; Carballo, 1994), characteristics of the personality (e.g., self-esteem, locus of control, etc.; Ward & Kennedy, 1993a, 1993b) and socio-cognitive and motiva- tional factors (coping strategies, acculturation strategies, social support, and the need for cognitive closure; Berry, 1997; Kosic, 2002a; Taft, 1986; Zheng & Berry, 1991). Surprisingly, few attempts have been made to analyse the way in which these factors may relate to acculturative stress, particularly empirical integrative models that take into account different variables and analyze causal relationships between them. The aim of this study is to analyze the relationships between some motivational variables, socio-cognitive variables and acculturative stress. In this study we assume that Need for Cognitive Closure and Decisiveness as motivational factors (Kruglanski, 1990) have important ramifications in the pro- cess of immigrants’ acculturation. NEED FOR COGNITIVE CLOSURE The Need for Cognitive Closure (NCC) refers to individuals’ desire for an answer on a given question and an aversion toward ambiguity (Webster & Kruglanski, 1994). The authors suggest that the motivation towards closure varies along a continuum from high NCC at one end to high need to avoid closure at the other end. According to Kruglanski and Webster (1996) different situational antecedents of NCC may exist (e.g., noise, fatigue, temporal pressure, etc.). They argue that the NCC exists as a stable individual dimension