The paper first proposes a general model for the study of acculturation in the Chicano community and then presents developing trends which are viewed as important to understanding la raza. In generating a theory of acculturation a (+) or (-) value was assigned to each link (for example, lower, middle, or upper class family background) of the model. From the model, 5 possible types of acculturating individuals can be conceptualized-- the acculturated individual with no disadvantaged background, from the middle or upper class; the principal structural acculturator, who overcame a disadvantaged background mostly through education or through high motivation and hard work; the intervening acculturator, who is a member of the subordinate community and who has been acculturated through intervening media sources and is aware of a better tomorrow; the deviant acculturator, who is acculturated but shows no signs of positive influences; and the unacculturated individual, who is unacquainted with the superordinate culture--a person who is either a recent immigrant or who has led an isolated rural experience. Trends in understanding la raza include a cultural explanation of what many Anglos believe of Chicanos, a criticism of the focus upon acculturation which attacks the "melting pot" theory because many groups cannot assimilate, and Chicano nationalism--a developing trend in which there is a conscious attempt to restore the self image of Chicanos in the Southwest. While degrees of acculturation have occurred, assimilation has been a rare thing. If there is truly to be a defense of integration, there must first be a change in the inequities of the system. (FF)