In a longitudinal study of acculturation in Germany, a total sample (N 364)
of immigrant and nonimmigrant elementary schoolchildren were tested in regard to
achievement related personality variables, such as self-concept, anxiety, and peer
relations. The participants belonged to one of four subgroups: (1) nonimmigrants
from the Western region of Germany; (2) nonimmigrants from the Eastern region; (3)
German-speaking immigrants from the former German Democratic Republic; and (4)
immigrants with poor German language skills from the former USSR. Migration did not
seem to lead to a global decrease of self-concept or to an increase of general
anxiety. However, the immigrant children did differ in their self-concept in the
German language and in test anxiety from the nonimmigrant children. The chosen
parameters proved to be fairly stable over time in the German-speaking groups and in
the immigrant group with poor German language skills, the self-concept was more
stable with a longer stay in Germany. Overall, comparing the immigrants with the
nonimmigrants: (a) an acceleration in the development of self-evaluations; and (b)
an interruption in the gradual stabilisation of the personality became apparent.
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