Adaptation vs. Assimilation

Family adaptation is an essential process for families who are immigrating to a new place.  It's a long process of learning new culture, customs, languages, and navigating a new society in order to have "goodness of fit" in their new enviornment.  A families cultural values, can assist as a buffer to adaptation in that it will create cohesion within the family and allow "togetherness".  Families who can maintain their values while in the midst of change and new environment will have a better coping environment than those who don't.  How the family perceives the barriers to adaptation will be key in their wellbeing.  For instance, the way a family views their children learning english in school could either be seen as helpful and important to the rest of the family also learning or it could be perceived as a threat to losing their own language.

Some helpful policies to help immigrant families to adapt are TANF (Temporary assistance for needy families), public school programs also require schools to teach the children english, theres also day labor facilities which are places for families to wait for more permanent work while temporarily working for fair wages.  There is also enclaves in various places that families can choose to live in that provide some comforts of home and familiarity while still adapting to the new culture.

Assimilation is more about families learning the new language, or changing things they once did one way according to their culture, but are now doing it a different way "assimilating" to the new culture.  Adaptation is more becoming accustomed to the new culture, not necessarily changing the way they have done things in their past environment, but learning the ways of the new society they live in, in order to navigate it better for goodness of fit.            

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