by Derek Reveron
WHAT’S HAPPENING
- A study shows that people who are both bicultural and bilingual may change their personality unconsciously when they switch languages.
- Bicultural Latinos who speak English and Spanish change their cultural self-perception faster and easier than bilingual people who live in one culture, according to a study by researchers from Baruch College and the U of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Reuters.com 6.24.08). The women labeled themselves as more assertive when they spoke Spanish, and they saw Latina females in Spanish-language ads as more extroverted and self-sufficient.
- The study involved groups of bilingual Latina women with different levels of cultural identification.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO BUSINESS
- Bilingual-bicultural Latinos may have different buying behaviors when shopping with others and dealing with service staff that speak only Spanish, only English, or are also bilingual-bicultural.
RESOURCES
