Intercultural Communication Skills : How Non-native Speakers Acculturate to the Midwest

Abstract

According to the Migration Policy Institute, roughly 1.8 million people migrate to the United States each year as refugees, immigrants, and students. These individuals try to adapt to their new surroundings by becoming acculturated to their host country. Research has shown that communication skills play a vital role in the acculturation process. More specifically, the majority of research has shown that language proficiency is a major aspect of one's process. However, specific communication skills, such as self-disclosure and communicative adaptability have not been sufficiently studied as they relate to acculturation. This study asks how communicative adaptability of non-natives and self-disclosure to the host population are related to acculturation.