Social identification and acculturation in the Basque Autonomous Community

Basque origin undergraduates in four universities of the Basque Autonomous Community (BAC) completed the Host Community Acculturation Scale (HCAS) in three life domains: marriage, culture, and work. Undergraduates with a strong Basque identity (N = 308) and those with a strong dual Basque-Spanish identity (N = 219) completed the HCAS towards the co-national Spanish minority and “devalued” Moroccan immigrants residing in the BAC. Results indicate that (1) undergraduates have a preference for individualism and integrationism towards Spanish co-nationals and Moroccans; (2) Strong Dual identifiers endorse individualism and integrationism more than Strong Basque identifiers towards Spanish co-nationals; (3) Strong Dual identifiers favored Spanish co-nationals over Moroccan immigrants in their acculturation orientations, whereas Strong Basque identifiers endorsed more welcoming acculturation orientations towards Moroccans than towards Spanish co-nationals; and (4) undergraduates endorsed more individualism, integrationism, and assimilationism in the work domain, while they endorsed more segregationism and exclusionism in the culture domain. Results are discussed using the Interactive Acculturation Model.

Research highlights
► All undergraduates show a preference for individualism and integrationism.
► Strong dual identifiers are more welcoming of Spanish co-nationals than Strong Basque identifiers.
► Strong Basque identifiers favored Moroccan immigrants over Spanish co-nationals.
► Individualism, integrationism, and assimilationism are favored in the work domain.
► Segregationism and exclusionism are favored in the culture domain.