Cultural change and adaptation: A critique of four articles

Abstract

These four articles represent a unique set of empirical work on Asian American children and their parents. Their focus is on the cultural context of the family and how it interfaces with socialization processes in our larger society. Specifically, the articles examine how family values and practices are congruent or in variance with socialization activities commonly found in American schools. Shared among the articles is the thesis that immigrant families, as they become socialized into American society, make adjustments in their ways of doing things regarding the education of their children. Each of the articles identifies different forms of “adjustments” that are having positive impacts on the lives of the children, juxtaposed with traditional family values that are more resistant to change. And then of course, there are those adjustments in the socialization process that have detrimental effects on children’s lives. Shoho’s article, “A Historical Comparison of Parental Involvement of Three Generations of Japanese Americans in the Education of Their Children,” examines differences in parent involvement in schools across three generations of Japanese Americans in Hawaii. Using parent oral histories and historical documents, he found that third-generation Japanese American families (i.e., Sansei), although more economically stable, are less involved in their children’s schools than second-generation (i.e., Niseis) families were. The consequences of decreased Sansei parent involvement in the education of Yonsei (fourth-generation) children is resulting in more social misbehavior and educational underachievement than previously experienced by Japanese American families. By stressing educational excellence, the strong belief systems of Asians and Asian Americans encourage East Asian students to persist through difficulties and remain committed to school. “Educational Socialization in Korean American Children: A Longitudinal Study,” by Y. Elsie Choi, Janine Bempechat and Herbert P. Ginsburg, looks at the relationship between beliefs in one’s academic abilities and personal effort. The