Abstract
This paper explores factors associated with intergenerational differences in home-based acculturation (HBA) and the attitude of Chinese college students and their parents toward intercultural marriage with a focus on China’s cultural context where parents have a strong influence on child’s decisions. In two related studies, we recruited a total of 749 Chinese college students and parents (387 in Study 1 and 362 in Study 2; all are living in China) to participate in the survey. The results indicate that (a) online intercultural contact is positively associated with HBA; (b) HBA is a strong predictor of attitude of intercultural marriages by Chinese parents and college students and the socioeconomic status has a divergent effect on the two groups; and (c) Chinese college students and parents differ in terms of their HBA and online intercultural contact. Findings from the research add knowledge to our understanding of the impact of globalization and digitalization on acculturation and Chinese residents’ perspectives on intercultural marriage.
Highlights
Globalization and digital technology have led to frequent intercultural and cross-cultural contact among people
Building upon and extending the findings of previous studies on cultural adaptation and acculturation theories, this study investigates how acculturation could happen in a person’s home cultural context and how it is associated with intercultural marriage expectations and online intercultural contacts
The results showed that homebased acculturation (HBA)-US and the frequency of online interaction with Americans were positively correlated (r =.50, p < .01)
Summary
Globalization and digital technology have led to frequent intercultural and cross-cultural contact among people This is partly responsible for a worldwide increase in the number of intercultural marriages (Daneshpour & Fathi, 2016; Piper & Ball, 2001; Zhou, 2017). They often focus on marriage itself, and view it as a separate and independent entity, rather than considering it as stages of relationships that could be influenced by certain factors that existed prior to the marriage and will lead to different outcomes These studies are often set in a context where one spouse leaves the home culture and enters an unfamiliar new culture. B. Zhang et al, 2005)
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