The present study makes use of several assumptions. It was considered that the cultural heritage of a group can be classified into two broad categories: the intrinsic culture, which includes the basic cultural traits and constitutes the core of a group's identity, and the extrinsic culture which includes the more peripheral traits. Assimilation takes place when the basic cultural traits are lost or substituted by others under conditions of culture contact. It was assumed that in order to understand the process of assimilation of a particular group of second-generation immigrants in a particular country, the basic cultural background of their parents must be taken into account. Further, it was assumed that the adults of the minority among whom the child is growing up must be placed into their historical context and their experiences as members of a particular time have to be taken into consideration. Finally, it was considered that unless the second-generation immigrants. are studies as members of a particular social network, the understanding of their course of assimilation will be incomplete. The group chosen for this research was the Ukrainian minority in Britain. Since the Ukrainians have been a minority nation in their own country without, however, losing their ethnic identity, some basic factors of their political and social history are provided as a possible explanation for this phenomenon. In addition, a summary of the social and psychological effects of the Second World War on the Ukrainian group is provided. Some of the basic social problems encountered by Ukrainians in their initial years in Britain, and their way of coping with them are described. The contemporary social structure and the distinctive Ukrainian way of organizing their ethnic life is discussed in detail. Particular attention is given to the institutions designed to promote the retention of ethnicity among young Ukrainians. Further, the extent to whtch second-generation Ukrainians adhere to their basic ethnic patterns of behaviour and the extent to which they identify themselves with their group, was stud~d inasample of children and adolescents. In addition, several hypotheses regarding the factors which promote the retention of ethnicity were tested. Among the factors found to be significantly associated with the retention of ethnicity are the following: absence of intermarriage with the natives, provision of an ethnically meaningful environment in the family, and organized ethnic education and recreation. Finally, parent-child relations, attitudes towards the ethnic group, and attitudes towards the majority were explored and studied in relation to the factors responsible for the retention of an ethnic identity.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:389801 |
| Date | January 1968 |
| Creators | Gorodeckis, Marina |
| Publisher | Royal Holloway, University of London |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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