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As it is expected, the lack of language mastery of the host country along with the exposure to a whole new set of values, norms and communication ways expose immigrant

to various levels of stress and depression (Delander, Hammarstedt, Mansson, & Nyberg, 2005; Masgoret & Ward, 2006).

Various authors (Chiswick, 1991; Hayfron, 2006; Kossoudji, 1988; McManus, Gould, & Welch, 1983) have reported that the ability to effectively speak the host country’s language is a determining factor of the immigrant’s positive adaptation in labour and social contexts. Good communication skills are necessary for the performance of daily tasks in the new country, such as establishing new interpersonal relationships with individuals from the mainstream society or looking for job opportunities. An effective knowledge of the dominant language helps immigrants to adjust to the host society as this process promotes the understanding and exchange of cultural values among individuals of different ethnic backgrounds. In this way, successful communication skills are basic components of an integration strategy.

Immigrant’s knowledge of the host language is also correlated with better professional offers and higher incomes. Delander et al. (2005) indicated, as a result of their study with minority immigrants in Sweden, that learning the dominant language functioned as “an instrument to attain something that is important for the integration process, such as to create opportunities for individuals to support themselves and to participate in social life” (2005, p. 25). Because of the lack of efficient English knowledge, most Latin American immigrants analysed by Stone, Morales and Cortés (1996) encountered serious difficulties in finding and securing a job in Australia. Their research reinforced the notion that English language skills are closely related to immigrants’ occupational status (McManus et al., 1983; Pendakur & Pendakur, 1998). Moreover, immigrants’ chances to learn the dominant language, especially for women, are closely related to their educational

background, immigration policies, family and childcare support provided in the new country, and effective communication between immigrants and the language services providers organized by the Government.

In this way, even if the host society presents high levels of job vacancies, immigrants’ employability and earning levels will greatly depend on their level of language mastery. Apart from the fact that most job offers are advertised in the dominant language, most employers highly prefer candidates who can successfully speak it. As expected, a poor language mastery will not only exclude immigrants from higher-paying jobs but also will facilitate a general social and labour segregation and stigmatization (Chiswick & Miller, 1995). Statistical data demonstrated the positive rewards of language mastery in the labour market: Australian Census in 1986 showed that English-language fluency is related to up to 6.4% higher earnings among immigrants from non English-speaking backgrounds (Hugo, 1989, 1991 ).

The knowledge and confidence in the host country’s language has impacts on many aspects of immigrants’ lives. Learning the dominant language has shown to have close relations to identity change, cultural assimilation and psychological adaptation. As previously mentioned, immigrants’ positive attitude towards learning the dominant language seems to be a powerful ingredient in order to reach the ideal integration strategy indicated by Berry (1997).

However, this process is not always linear and, as Clément, Noels and Deneault (2001) pointed out, a positive attitude towards one specific acculturation strategy does not necessarily guarantee that it will achieved. The authors conducted a research with four

institution. These four groups were constituted by Francophone majority students (from Quebec), Francophone minority students (from Ontario), Anglophone majority students (from Ontario) and Anglophone minority students (from Quebec), all sharing the same campus.

Based on Berry’s strategies of acculturation, Clément et al. (2001) confirmed that the majority (over 80%) of the students fell into the separation strategy. Apart from the analysis of the students’ ingroup and outgroup identification, the authors observed the significance of language acquisition and its impact on students’ identity choices. The results of this section strengthen Lambert’s (1963; 1978) concept of subtractive and additive bilingualism.

According to Lambert (1963), the phenomenon of additive bilingualism frequently takes place when individuals from a dominant language group learn the language of a minority group. This process facilitates identification and adjustment with the minority group without greatly affecting individuals’ previous identity and social values. The opposite occurs when a minority group learns the dominant language. In this case, the process of subtractive bilingualism often takes place. For these individuals, mastering skills in the dominant language impacts on their acculturation process and identity choices. Lambert indicates that individuals from minority groups frequently experience some level of erosion of their ingroup identification, decrease the mastery of their own language and tend to follow an assimilation pattern of acculturation.

The results of Clément et al. (2001) research reinforce the gains that result from inter-group contact and the relevance of a second-language learning. However, the benefits

from this were mainly observed among individuals from a dominant culture. Anglophone students were the only ones to present additive bilingualism, with signs of an integrative identity process of both cultural backgrounds, impacting positively on their adjustment process. An assimilation pattern was observed among Francophone minority students, presenting a tendency of losing proficiency in their own language as their knowledge of English increased. It seems that the chances for individuals from minority groups to retain identification with their own ethnic background while adapting to a dominant society are somehow restricted, not being able to fully benefit from integration in a multicultural society