Ka. Noels et R. Clement, COMMUNICATING ACROSS CULTURES - SOCIAL DETERMINANTS AND ACCULTURATIVECONSEQUENCES, Canadian journal of behavioural science, 28(3), 1996, pp. 214-228
Past research has consistently documented the relations between intere
thnic contact, language behaviour and identity on Be one hand, and the
relations between interethnic contact and psychological adjustment on
the other. This study combines these two lines of research through a
consideration oi: the influence of ethnolinguistic vitality on these v
ariables' interrelations. The participants included 285 English-Canadi
an and 243 French-Canadian students at a bilingual university who orig
inated from high and low ethnolinguistic vitality contexts. The result
s of analyses of variance showed that vitality and native language gro
up membership influenced the extent of ethnic identification, intereth
nic contact, and self-confidence in the second language, but did not a
ffect the levels of psychological adjustment. Path analyses supported
a model in which Linguistic self-confidence mediated the relations bet
ween interethnic contact and identity and adjustment, although the pat
terns of relations differed depending upon the vitality of the group.
It is suggested that one reason why ethnolinguistic vitality is an imp
ortant moderator of cross-cultural adaptation is because it implies gr
oup differences in the experience of interethnic contact and linguisti
c self-confidence.