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Psychology and Law
2024. Vol. 14, no. 3, 220–236
doi:10.17759/psylaw.2024140317
ISSN: 2222-5196 (online)

Determinants of Successful Social and Psychological Adaptation of Women Married to Foreigners

18

O.I. Mironova, L.A. Ruonala

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Abstract

This theoretical study is devoted to the current topic of the determinants of successful adaptation of women married to foreigners. As a result of the theoretical research the following determinants of successful social and psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners were identified: determinants associated with cultural context (traditions, attitudes, values of society, historical memory, communication norms, rules of women’s behaviour, characteristics of gender socialization of women), determinants characterizing the woman’s social status (age, education, place of residence, professional status, marital status, presence of children, characteristics of gender socialization, social capital and intragroup trust, access to resources), determinants reflecting relations of a couple (attachment type, characteristics of communication, satisfaction with the relationship, ideas about gender roles, behavioural norms in the family), determinants revealing the personal characteristics of a woman (self–concept, attitudes, values, motives, level of aspirations, time perspective).

General Information

Keywords: social and psychological adaptation of migrants; adaptation of women; marriage migration; determinants of social and psychological adaptation

Journal rubric: Interdisciplinary Studies

Article type: scientific article

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17759/psylaw.2024140317

Received: 05.06.2024

Accepted:

For citation: Mironova O.I., Ruonala L.A. Determinants of Successful Social and Psychological Adaptation of Women Married to Foreigners [Elektronnyi resurs]. Psikhologiya i pravo = Psychology and Law, 2024. Vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 220–236. DOI: 10.17759/psylaw.2024140317.

Full text

Introduction

The social and psychological adaptation of an individual is a characteristic of any self-regulating system as a reaction to constantly changing conditions of the environment. It can be successful when all elements such as integrity, direction, creative approach, understanding of goals, values and motives, willingness to change, are present, or it can be unsuccessful, if one of the elements of adaptation is absent for any reason.
Social and psychological adaptation is a necessary condition of an individual and a society functioning as a whole social entity since it presumes the inclusion of the individual into a social environment through acquiring status and a place in the social structure of a society [9].
A significant amount of research revealing the determinants of successful adaptation is devoted to the adaptation of schoolchildren, students, employees of companies, military personnel, labour migrants, displaced persons from places of hostilities, as well as the characteristics of migrants’ experience of covid restrictions [31; 42; 59].
Despite the fact that in the modern world there is a noticeable increase in the number of intermarriages, this topic remains poorly studied. Currently, research of marriage migration mainly considers this phenomenon as a social lift for women who cannot realize themselves in their home country [29]. At the same time, it remains unclear why some women choose this social elevator and others do not.
The available studies do not reveal important aspects of social and psychological adaptation such as the influence of personal characteristics of a woman on choosing a foreign spouse, the motivation of a woman to move from economically prosperous countries, women’s expectations related to a new country (including expectations from herself as an individual who could realize herself in these new conditions differently). There are, practically, no studies examining the complexity and integrity of the migration phenomenon.
At the previous stage of the research of the phenomenon under study, a model of successful social and psychological adaptation of women who married foreigners was presented [47]. The levels of social and psychological adaptation of the group being studied are the key element of this model, which allows us to consider this complex phenomenon from a variety of perspectives: from the collective level, the social level, the level of close relationships and the personal level [45].
All these levels relate to the integral concept of identity, which, according to many researchers, is central for understanding migration [53]. Currently, the phenomenon of identity is being actively developed by researchers, including the adaptation of migrants, however, its nature and dynamics remain insufficiently formulated.
This study, as part of foundational research on the successful socio-psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners, aims to clarify the components of each level of adaptation. The collected data will provide the basis for developing tools to carry out the empirical phase of the research.
Let us consider the determinants of successful social and psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners in accordance with the mentioned levels of adaptation.

Study

The analysis of studies and literature shows that in science there is currently no consensus regarding the content of the phenomenon of social and psychological adaption of migrants. There are practically no studies that comprehensively research changes happening to migrants in the process of integration into a new society.
The social and psychological determinants of successful adaptation of women married to foreigners have not been specifically studied in science. However, there is a significant amount of theoretical and practical research of the problem of social and psychological adaptation, which can form the basis for studying this topic.
The study of the determinants of successful social and psychological adaptation is based on the following developed concepts: concepts defining values and meanings (A.N. Leontiev, B.S. Bratus, V. Frankl, K.S. Albukhanova-Slavskaya, A.V. Brushlinsky, F.B. Berezin), conservation of resources theory (S. Hobfoll), concept of culture shock and acculturative stress (J. Berry), characteristics of gender socialization (L. Kohlberg, N. Chodorow, K. Horney, S. Boehm), attachment theory (J. Bowlby, D. Winnicott, M. Ainsworth, D. Stern, S. Hazan and F. Shaver, K. Rubin), compelled contacts (O. Mironova).
In addition to the key concepts, it is worth to mention self-concept, self-esteem, level of aspirations, tolerance for uncertainty and time perspective. These theories are not directly related to adaptation but are necessary for understanding what happens to migrants during the adaptation process.
The analysis of literature devoted to the study of the determinants of social and psychological adaptation in general showed that the available data can be distributed at the following levels: collective, social, close relationships and personal. Let’s take a closer look at them.
Collective level. At this level the focus is on such characteristics as stereotypes, attitudes, and values of both the host society and the migrants’ home country. It is the intercultural interaction that can highlight the existing contradictions in the unconscious attitudes and beliefs within where the psyche of the participants in intercultural communication was formed.
G.U. Soldatova, L.A. Shaigerova [20], having studied more than 40 modern western theories of intercultural communication, came to the conclusion that there are five groups of theories which focus on: 1) identity; 2) adaptation: the main role is given to personality characteristics; 3) the result of interaction: the main role is given to the intensity of intercultural contacts; 4) the process of developing intercultural competence, where one’s own culture is proposed to be considered in the context of other cultures and 5) integral theories, where both the social context and the results of achievements in the communication process are considered.
The authors discover a lack of clear understanding of the mechanisms underlying intercultural interaction, and the common problem of theories is insufficient attention to activity of a subject (a migrant) in the conditions of intercultural communication.
  1. Oberg [52] was the first who proposed to explain the difficulties arising in intercultural communication from the perspective of “cultural shock” which causes tension associated with the efforts necessary for achieving psychological adaptation; a feeling of loss including loss of friends, social status and property; changes in values and self-identity; unexpected fear caused by awareness of cultural differences; a feeling of inferiority and helplessness associated with the inability to cope with the new environment.
Modern science considers this process from the perspective of acculturative stress taking into account both negative and positive aspects of this process. The dissonance of social demands and the actual capabilities of migrants in an “alien” social and cultural environment, can naturally cause an active desire of migrants to overcome the arising difficulties, to achieve a comfortable existence and self-realization in the new conditions that motivates the migrants to start the adaptation process. However, these aspirations will not always go beyond fantasies and can become a “psychological refuge” where the migrant reduces the level of frustration.
The most important and difficult thing associated with acculturative stress, apparently, is not just a change in the rules, but unconscious communication between representatives of the local population and the migrant, who do not cognitively formulate the beliefs from which this communication originates.
The success of such interaction is associated with the interaction of ethno cultural competence among participants, i.e. the level of demonstrating knowledge, skills and abilities by a person allowing him to correctly assess the specifics and conditions of interaction, relations with representatives of other ethnic communities, to find adequate forms of collaboration with them aiming to maintain an atmosphere of agreement and mutual trust.
According to V.S. Vitkovskaya [7], the lack of constructive communications and interaction with local residents leads to the emergence of maladaptive feelings towards migrants — alienation, isolation, dispensability and uselessness. And even after time, when basic everyday issues are more or less resolved, migrants experience a “sense of loneliness”, “lack of friendly relations”, feeling like “strangers, needless, unwanted guests”, and as a result migrants end up in a “social vacuum”.
Let us take a closer look at what influences the success of the social and psychological adaptation of migrants. The collective level is associated with the mutual social expectations of the migrant and the host society, as well as the categories that form these expectations: cultural characteristics of the new and native country, the image of the host country, the image of oneself as a migrant, prejudices, stereotypes regarding the host culture and the culture of origin, attitude towards migrants in the host society, as well as the relationships between these categories [45].
One of the most developed topics is the influence of gender on adaptation. Most modern scientists are of the opinion that differences in the adaptation of men and women primarily depend on the characteristics of gender socialization, i.e. formed at the level of a large group of attitudes that are not subject to reflection and often not realized at all [25].
The significance of the topic for gender socialization in this study is undeniable. However, it is difficult to assess the content and the level of this influence due to the fact that this issue is becoming tendentious and the answer to it can lose its validity. It is necessary to evaluate the influence of this factor avoiding extremes, i.e. taking into account both the complexity and integrity of this term.
On the one hand, differences in the social and psychological adaptation of men and women are influenced by environmental factors that can and should be taken into account, reducing the imbalance in responsibilities and access to resources. It is worth noting that restrictions on access can be not only factual (such as statutory bans in a number of countries around the world), but also cultural, forming an internal attitude.
Based on the model of conservation of resources by Hofboll [30], it can be assumed that gender differences are expressed in the characteristics of the use of resources that leads to differences in social and psychological adaptation. It is likely that women themselves may, because of self- inhibiting beliefs, have fewer resources than men. Men can also support these beliefs, by “confirming from the outside” the gender-determined difference in claims. It all leads to the fact that a woman generally experiences more stress than a man in a similar situation with a similar set of proclaimed prospects.
In accordance with the studies, women often place higher demands on themselves than men that may lead them into a situation of limited opportunities. It means that to use a resource it is insufficient to just have an access to this resource but it is necessary to have an affirmation allowing to use this resource.
This strategy also occurs in marital relationships. In marriage men and women tend to exhibit different strategies at a young age. Women are more in control of their emotions, while men do not control them consciously. Women’s productive strategy is directed to the external world, including the material world, while men are more likely to show passive avoidance and are prone to a more positive perception of their personality traits, which can be baseless. At the same time, women can show demonstrative arrogance, and men can show antipathy [10].
In addition to internal beliefs associated with gender socialization, women in a new country may face a specific attitude from the host society. As C. Mohanty notes [48], there is a paternalistic attitude of women of the dominant culture towards migrant women from third world countries. This social group is defined as religious (“not progressive”), family-oriented (“conformist”), legally incompetent (“unaware of their rights”), illiterate (“ignorant”), domestic (“undeveloped”). This is how the third world difference is brought about.
There may also be prejudices against first world women moving into traditional cultures, but such studies have not been found.
When moving to a new society, because gender socialization in different countries is more diverse compared to a male socialization, a female migrant, firstly, accumulates stereotypes, norms and rules that are applied separately to each of the categories: a woman, a migrant, her country birth, with children or childless , employed or unemployed, etc., while she may discover attitudes unknown to her, which were considered the norm in the country of origin, finds herself in a situation of multiple conflict - old and new, conscious and unconscious attitudes, cognitive dissonance.
Another important moment which is significantly represented in modern studies: a female migrant is in a more vulnerable position in the labour market and this is especially noticeable with low qualified professions, it is more difficult for a woman to look for a job, a woman is more vulnerable to abuse of economical and/or sexual character; women with a high level of education when migrating are much more likely to find themselves [39; 55]. moving down the social-economic ladder.
In addition, in comparison to a man, a woman of reproductive age faces a number of challenges related to childbearing: if there are children, the woman spends more efforts on their adaptation; if there are no children, then a woman has to either forgo childbearing in favour of adaptation, or be fulfilled in parenthood, but “pause” the processes associated with integration into society. Modern researchers observe the reproductive choice of women who moved to a new country [24; 50], but there are no studies of this choice and their impact on the mental state of a woman.
Thus, being female can be a challenge in a new culture. Only recently the issue of gender in migrant adaptation studies has begun to be considered as a key aspect of adaptation, and not as one of the equivalent factors influencing the adaptation [40]. This means that it is not possible to draw conclusions regarding women’s adaptation based on studies that do not examine gender differences or have a male sample.
Differences in strategies for coping with stress in men and women are likely to be reflected in the success of adaptation in a new country and are associated not only with the personal characteristics of migrants, but also with the cultural context where both migrants and representatives of the host society are formed.
The main determinants of social and psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners at the collective level will be: the content of the norms and rules of the host country, the content of the norms and rules of the country of origin, expectations regarding themselves and people through the scope of belonging to the group being studied to female, motherhood, level of education, nationality of her parental family, professional status, etc.
Social level. Within this level the determinants associated with such characteristics of adaptation as age, education, financial status, the size of residence, presence of children, family composition, characteristics of social communication have been studied. Both domestic and foreign scientists have worked on this issue.
 A considerable part of research has focused on the impact of such characteristics as having a job and education [55], comprehension of the local language [43; 49], financial aspects [29; 36], age [32; 36], ethnicity [21; 34].
This study is aimed at going beyond a statistical analysis of the studied groups. The results of these studies are understandable and clearly show that middle – aged men with a higher education and relevant work experience in the developed country adapt better than other groups of migrants. But psychological and social features of adaptation of the groups we are studying remain unclear.
As it is known, all the social roles studied in the above research are formed in society and affect the behavioural scenarios where communication takes place. However, firstly, a woman finds herself in a new social context where these roles may have different content. And, secondly, after migration practically all contacts of a woman are classified as forced. As a result, a woman experiences irritability [27; 45].
Below the determinants, associated with social communication namely from the viewpoint of increase of irritability due to a drastic change in the content of social and role behaviour, will be considered. Even a slight change in these roles in a situation, when a woman migrated to a new country and immediately found a job and met friends, affects the content of communication since a woman gets a new social role – a role of a migrant.
Along with the changes of the ideas about what it is like to be a woman, a wife, a mother, a specialist in a new society, a woman has to face the fact how these roles are perceived by the local society through the lens of migration. This attitude is expressed at both the cognitive and unconscious levels, and these levels can vary significantly.
A woman now finds herself in a situation of not just interpersonal, but also interethnic communication, and all her social roles become secondary, and the primary one is belonging to a social group of migrants.
It makes sense to consider the features of adaptation at this level from the viewpoint of social capital. Having moved to a new country, a woman faces the necessity of changing her role behavior since all the social capital acquired over her whole life remains in the native country. The social capital in the new country is practically zero. The acquisition of social capital is associated with the fact that it is necessary to form new role behaviors but the woman may not understand how this is done in the new society.
In cross-cultural contacts, due to the inconsistencies between traditions, cultural norms and expectations, tension can be accumulated at all stages of establishing contact and create additional difficulties at self-realization. In accordance with the theory of psychological contact proposed by L.B. Filonov, each participant of communication takes care of creating a “common fund” including the best characteristics, attitudes, positions, principles, motives which everyone can utilize in the communication [2].
But, before moving on to this task a woman needs to establish a sufficient number of acquaintances, where all parties (both the woman and other people) are ready to create this common fund.
The aspects of the migrant’s position are associated with the fact that she ends up to be a “blank slate”, which even in everyday communication can lead to amusing or not always pleasant situations. And, given the difficulties of adaptation, the formation of a “common fund” may take a significant amount of time.
It is worth noting that the group being studied does not have a pronounced external motivation to form new social contacts, since it, unlike labour migrants, not only does not get a job, but can spend considerable time validating its education. In addition, given the requirements of many countries for the economic stability of a spouse, a woman may not feel pressure regarding the necessity to support herself.
The development of the “common fund” is influenced by such determinants as social access practices, migrant phobia, attitude towards migrants in society (good refugees, bad migrants), social capital.
Social capital is aimed at obtaining a common product and is associated with freedoms, equality of payment, and economic independence. Individual social capital is a predictor of entrepreneurial ability (intentions and actual business). People with a high level of social and psychological capital are better adapted and have a higher level of subjective welfare, and its accumulation is impossible without belonging to different social groups and intragroup trust [15; 23].
At the social level the development of trust can be associated with the formation of common norms, values and rules, both in society as a whole and intra-personally. However, it should be noted that there are practically no studies qualitatively examining the influence of stereotypes and values on the adaptation of migrants, and they are mainly limited to small national samples [54; 58].
The “common fund” for a woman married to a foreigner is most often formed only in interaction with her husband and his close circle, i.e. with those people where a woman can experience more trust, that makes the situation paradoxical: in order to adapt, a woman must be in society, but in order to enter society, a woman must be successfully adapted.
Depending on the leading coping strategies, a woman can go into isolation and avoid socialization, increase communication with her native country, control her behaviour excessively and form a false identity, get into conflict with her husband and/or his environment.
In addition, due to the difference in communication culture and communication barriers, people around a migrant – woman may not be perceived by her as authorities. At the same time, a woman may experience rejection and resistance to communication and related activities necessary for integration, that, in its turn, leads to the need to follow role behaviour. And the behaviour of the migrant-woman herself and her attempts to cope with the difficulties associated with the situation of forced contacts can be considered as inadequate, incomprehensible and unpredictable.
The level of an individual’s experiencing her social deprivation and isolation depends on the social parameters of the society that accepts her, as well as the migration policy of the host country in general [19].
One of the most important parts of this policy is the presence or absence of programs for migrants in the country that teach the language, the basics of culture and values of the host society, and the aspects of access to services, education and healthcare. The presence and accessibility of such programs improves the adaptability of migrants.
The migrant context places a woman who moved for marriage in conditions different from the context of economic and political migrants, as well as those whose families are monocultural. The group being studied is situated in better financial and living conditions, but adaptation is connected with a specific communicative situation. In addition, the motive for moving may vary. It is obvious, that labour migrants have the ideal of financial wealth, while political migrants have the ideal of security and the realization of freedoms. The studied group migrates to a new country in hopes of emotional well-being [21; 51].
Thus, the determinants of successful adaptation of a woman who migrated to a new country due to marriage will be associated with the social characteristics of the woman, such as age, education, financial status, size of residence, presence of children, family composition; understanding the specifics of communication in situations of forced contacts; access to resources provided by the state and society (including knowledge of the language, the availability of educational programs to study the language, confirmation of professional status or the opportunity to acquire a new profession under a special program, the opportunity to receive medical and psychological assistance, etc.); differences in the content of social and role behaviour in the country of origin and the new country, as well as attitude towards these differences; social capital and intragroup trust.
Level of close relations. The study of this level is associated with the experience of a woman’s previous relations and type of attachment to significant others, the characteristics of the marriage choice of women who choose foreigners as a partner, expectations from relationships and marital satisfaction.
This issue is practically not considered by modern scientists. The main focus of the studies is related to the migration of women from economically non-prosperous countries to more prosperous ones to help their parental family. For this purpose, women may get married to men from rural areas or those who need medical care.
These studies do not provide answers to logical questions in such a situation about how exactly men and women feel in a marital relationship, why even in poor countries not all women are oriented towards foreign marriage, how to explain a woman’s migration from an economically favourable country to a less wealthy one, what specific features of interethnic communication in marriage influence the successful adaptation of women.
The digitalization of marriage choice and interpersonal communication is of the greatest interest to modern scientists. In modern realities meeting foreigners has become much easier thanks to online applications and dating sites. There are specialized forums for those who want to meet foreigners, and in 2013 dating through the internet surpassed all other traditional methods of forming romantic relationships in the United States [56].
Digitalization of communication according to research is associated with the level of self-esteem, irrational attitudes regarding body image, aggression, risky sexual behaviour, an attempt to circumvent the restrictions of offline communication, and type of attachment. Such communication has an ambivalent character and can negatively affect the communicative qualities of communication participants and their motivation [59].
Of course, not all marriage migrants met their partners through the internet, but all of them used digital communication tools in the period before moving. Digital communication cannot fully reveal a person and introduce partners to how they are used to behave in everyday interactions.
Apparently, it is the type of attachment to significant others that is an important determinant of the success of adaptation in the social group under study. The study of women who migrated to a new country due to marriage revealed a significant percentage of anxious-avoidant attachment type in the sample [44]. It is likely that avoidant behaviour contributes to women experiencing difficulties in building warm, trusting relationships in their home country, and anxiety prevents them from being satisfied with the state of loneliness and enables them to remain in a relationship, since the formation of intimacy occurs in conditions of long-distance communication.
This assumption indirectly confirms the connection between the most pronounced of all studied groups’ tendency to caution and selectivity in establishing close relationships and such a character trait as being adaptable to accept others. Women with a secure attachment type adapt most successfully to a new country. A low level of anxiety is associated with respondents’ ability to take responsibility, experience emotional comfort, and treat others positively. In addition, a secure type of attachment is associated with overall success in life [8; 33].
It is logical to assume that the successful adaptation of a marriage migrant will be influenced by satisfaction with the marriage as the main motive for migrating. In the conducted empirical study of the characteristics of social and psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners it was satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the marriage (and not the type of ethnic identity as in other groups of migrants) that formed the woman’s behaviour in a new country [16].
The studied group of women is characterized by high expectations of themselves in interpersonal communication, an external locus of control, a cautious attitude towards attempts to get closer and build friendly, intimate relationships, a tendency towards avoidant behaviour and a high level of anxiety.
It is worth noting that choosing a partner from a different culture and maintaining a long-distance relationship likely has a specific motivation structure, including the satisfaction of special needs and expectations associated with the woman’s personality and previous, not always successful, experience.
The choice of cultural context for migration is probably related to the woman’s desire to overcome the difficulties that arose in relations with her countryman. As noted by S.V. Koludarova [12] and S.Yu. Sivoplyasova [18], Russian women can strive to realize feminist rights by choosing members of western culture as partners, and those who feel the need for traditional gender roles move to the east.
It can be assumed, there is a special narrative for women who choose foreigners as partners. This narrative is associated with the idea that “I can’t find the right man in my culture, because I’m different, I can’t be happy here.” This idea can be based on observation of relationships in the family and environment, and the experience of previous relationships.
The question remains about what happens to a woman’s experience of belonging to different groups (family, team, culture, etc.) if she, consciously or not, chooses to build relationships in conditions of “non-belonging” to these groups in her country of origin and specific “trans-memberships belonging” to social groups in the new country.
Thus, the determinants of this level include: conscious and unconscious motivation for choosing a foreign partner; features of attachment to people close to the woman and the experience of close relationships; features of interpersonal communication in a couple, including the stage of “long-distance relationships”; expectations from marriage; marital satisfaction.
Personal level. The study of this level is associated with personality characteristics as features of the self-concept, attitudes, values, motives, etc.
As a theoretical analysis of studies on the researched topic showed, a large number of articles are devoted to mental health symptoms associated with migration (depression, PTSD, anxiety disorders) [26; 37]. As for the psychological well-being of migrants, this topic is practically not covered, and research is mainly of a local character.
Predictors of the subjective well-being of migrants, which are mainly of a social rather than a personal nature, are being studied. One can note a number of studies examining coping strategies among refugees, labour migrants and asylum seekers [38; 41]. Currently, the personal characteristics of migrants and their connection with adaptation in a new country are not sufficiently studied.
Meanwhile, all the studied levels of social and psychological adaptation are directly related to the personal characteristics of migrants.
As noted by N.M. Lebedeva and A.N. Tatarko [15], the formation of a social capital is determined through relationships in society and is associated with psychological characteristics of the individual such as reflexivity, tolerance, stress resistance, empathy, predictability, etc.
V.V. Karlov [11] points out the underestimation of the study of frustration in the context of interethnic tension. I. A. Novikova established a connection between communicative tolerance and intercultural adaptation [17].
Despite the lack of research related to the study of personal factors in the social and psychological adaptation of migrants, one can turn to fundamental studies on personality theory and identify those aspects that are directly related to the context of migration.
The concepts of domestic scientists L.S. Vygotsky, A.N. Leontyev, S.L. Rubinshtein, B.F. Lomov, K.A. Abulkhanova-Slavskaya, A.V. Petrovsky, E.V. Shorokhova and others represent adaptation as a unity of personal and external environmental factors influencing each other. Adaptation to the external environment is influenced by subjective (personal) and objective factors.
  1. Frankl [28] highlights the values of the individual: creativity, experiencing relationships. A.G. Asmolov [3], B.S. Bratus [5] identify value-semantic components of personality, including value orientations, personal meanings and attitudes.
A number of authors (V. Frankl, B.S. Bratus, K.A. Abulkhanova-Slavskaya, A.V. Brushlinsky) consider “values” and “personal meaning” as identical concepts. V. Frankl [28] argues that a person gains a purpose in life by experiencing certain values. B. S. Bratus [5] defines “the general purposes of his life realized and accepted by a person” as personal values. Values external to a person, declared, not provided with corresponding semantic and emotionally experienced life values do not, in fact, have a direct relationship to the semantic sphere for the individual.
Similar positions are held by G.L. Budinaite and T.V. Kornilova [6], who emphasize that along with awareness of meanings, a decision about their acceptance or non-acceptance is also necessary. A necessary condition for the formation of personal values is the individual’s internal acceptance of conscious meanings.
  1. Akimenko [1] identifies five structural components of personality adaptation: value orientations, “self-concept”, communicative-dialogical characteristics, individual personal and individual volitional characteristics — stress resistance, satisfaction with the conditions of activity, communication and relationships, intelligence.
Studying the adaptation of a teacher to activities, I.V. Konoryukova et al. [13] connects the success of this process with external factors (such as stress-inducing and the level of salaries — it refers to the social level) and internal factors (a system of ideas about oneself as a subject of professional activity and personality).
T.E. Sheina [22] associates the success of adaptation with a balanced time perspective. O.P. Krolevets [14] connects the concepts of failure with such predicates as a low level of aspirations, learned helplessness syndrome, inappropriately high aspirations in the absence of abilities, excessive optimism in a situation of failure. B.Yu. Berezin and N.E. Zykina [5] highlighted the connection between procedural motivation and social and psychological adaptation.
  1. Tamam [57] notes a positive correlation between the success of psychological adaptation and intercultural communication with tolerance for uncertainty, openness to new experiences and empathy.
Determinants of this level are of particular importance for women who migrated to a new country due to marriage, as they most often find themselves in a situation of external well-being. On the one hand, they may lack motivation for external achievements — they do not need to get any job to make a living. On the other hand, such a situation can stimulate avoidant types of behaviour in difficult situations, which, without a doubt, include migration.
In a situation of dependence on the husband and the loss of their social status, they acquired in their homeland, women often “merge” with the demands of female gender socialization in its most distorted form, as if “paying” for their well-being, because of which a woman can deny herself the ability to use the resources at her disposal, if she considers them not belonging to her personally, but belonging to the family.
In addition, motivation to overcome internal difficulties can take on the image of a cargo cult. Instead of overcoming real problems, some women, especially if they are prone to experiencing guilt, solve “virtual difficulties”, denying themselves the usual standard of living, demanding from themselves outstanding achievements in school and everyday life.
To overcome these specific difficulties, a woman’s intrapersonal characteristics are of great importance, as well as the level of awareness regarding the specific ways of coping in a moving situation inherent in her social group, the woman’s willingness and ability to see, recognize and overcome these difficulties.
Thus, the determinants of successful adaptation at the personal level include: values and meanings, self-concept, the presence of adequate self-esteem and level of aspirations, tolerance to uncertainty, stress resistance, time perspective.

Conclusions

The determinants of successful social and psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners were comprehensively examined in this article.
As a result of the theoretical study, the following determinants of successful social and psychological adaptation of women married to foreigners were identified: determinants related to the cultural context (traditions, attitudes, values of society, historical memory, communication norms, rules of women behaviour, characteristics of gender socialization of women), determinants characterizing the social status of a woman (age, education, place of residence, professional status, marital status, presence of children, features of gender socialization, social capital and intragroup trust, access to resources), determinants reflecting relationships in a couple (type of attachment, characteristics of communication, satisfaction with relationships, ideas about gender roles, norms of behaviour in the family), determinants revealing the personal characteristics of women (self-concept, attitudes, values, motives, level of aspirations, time perspective).
In modern research migration is studied from the perspective of the social level. Despite the large number of studies concerning the study of personal characteristics of social and psychological adaptation, there is practically no research of the specifics of these processes among migrants. There are significant gaps in the study of the collective level and the level of close relationships. The determinants associated with these levels were obtained as a result of critical re-evaluation of studies similar in topic to the problem being studied.
As a review of studies on adaptation shows, at present in psychological science there is no understanding of the system and hierarchy of determinants that influence the adaptation of migrants. In one respect, the accepted theories cannot provide answers to the questions raised in this study; alternatively, the variety of identified determinants associated with the adaptation of migrants reveals the fact that knowledge on the topic under study is fragmentary, not structured and not conceptualized. We can say that the topic being studied contains more questions than answers.
Currently, migration as a phenomenon needs to be rethought and clarified, taking into account new realities associated with the digitalization of everyday life and post-non-classical scientific rationality. This will allow us to go beyond the instrumental approach to the study of migration and rethink the philosophical and social and psychological foundations of this phenomenon.
Despite the fact that the identified determinants of successful adaptation of women who married foreigners are directly related to identity, the phenomenon of migrant identity itself was not considered in this article. This topic requires a separate, in-depth theoretical and empirical study and is of particular interest both from the standpoint of studying migrants and personal adaptation in general, which can be presented as a prospect for further research.

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Information About the Authors

Oksana I. Mironova, Doctor of Psychology, Docent, Professor, Department of Psychology Faculty of Social Sciences, HSE University, Professor, Department of Psychology and Human Capital Development Faculty of Social Sciences and mass communications Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4822-5877, e-mail: mironova_oksana@mail.ru

Lidiya A. Ruonala, MA in Psychology, Independent Researcher, Sweden, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6838-3373, e-mail: lydia.ruonala@gmail.com

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