Is It Possible to Speak English Without Thinking American? On Globalization and the Determinants of Cultural Assimilation

Alberto Chong

No 4454, Research Department Publications from Inter-American Development Bank, Research Department

Abstract: Based on research in linguistics and psychology I use language speech as a reflection of acculturation. I use individual and city-level data from the Lake Ontario area in Canada and study the determinants of cultural assimilation. I focus on education, age, income, and in particular, on some variables typically discussed when globalization issues come up, such as immigration, television viewing, borders, and residence history of the individuals. I find that actual contact does matter as a determinant of cultural homogenization. Virtual contact appears to be irrelevant. This finding is robust to changes in specification and to different empirical methods.

Date: 2006-03
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Related works:
Journal Article: Is it possible to speak English without thinking American? On globalization and the determinants of cultural assimilation (2008)
Working Paper: Is It Possible to Speak English Without Thinking American?: On Globalization and the Determinants of Cultural Assimilation (2006)
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