From 2020... Biculturals—who identify with at least two cultures—often frame switch, adapting their behavior to their shifting cultural contexts; are perceived as inauthentic, less likable, trustworthy, warm, competent

From 2020... The Cost of Being “True to Yourself” for Mixed Selves: Frame Switching Leads to Perceived Inauthenticity and Downstream Social Consequences for Biculturals. Alexandria L. West, Amy Muise, Joni Y. Sasaki. Social Psychological and Personality Science, August 12, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550620944049

Abstract: A growing population of biculturals—who identify with at least two cultures—often frame switch, adapting their behavior to their shifting cultural contexts. We demonstrate that frame switching biculturals are perceived as inauthentic by majority Americans and consequently seen as less likable, trustworthy, warm, and competent compared to biculturals who do not frame switch or a neutral control (Studies 1–3, N = 763). In Study 2, describing the bicultural’s behavior as authentic despite its inconsistency partly alleviated the negative effects of frame switching. In our preregistered Study 3, majority American women were less romantically interested in and less willing to date a bicultural who frame switched in his dating profiles (mediated by inauthenticity). The way biculturals negotiate their cultures can have social costs and create a barrier to intercultural relations.

Keywords: frame switching, authenticity, bicultural, multicultural, intercultural relations, intergroup relations