Korean American Young Adults Research Articles

COVID-19, Racial Discrimination and Civic Engagement Among Filipino American and Korean American Young Adults

The COVID-19 pandemic provoked a spike in racial discrimination and hate crimes against Asians in the U.S. Although research substantiates the harmful impact of discrimination on health and mental health, limited research has examined how it influences civic engagement among Asian American young adults. Using cross-sectional data from the Midwestern U.S., this study investigated how the experience of anti-Asian racism was associated with civic engagement among Filipino Americans ( n = 260; M age = 22) and Korean Americans ( n = 340; M age = 21) during the pandemic. Results showed that Filipino American women reported more COVID-19 related racial discrimination than Filipino American men. Women, regardless of ethnicity, exhibited more civic engagement than men. Various forms of COVID-19 discrimination were associated with more civic engagement in both groups, except that assault was associated with less civic engagement among Korean Americans. The study results underscore the importance of providing tailored resources for targeted Asian American subgroups to promote continued civic engagement.

Korean American Mothers’ Experiences of the Transition from School into Adulthood for Their Child with Disabilities

In order to better understand how Korean American students with disabilities go through transitions and how education and services can more effectively target them, this study was designed to examine Korean American parents’ perceptions of transition experiences for their child with disabilities through collecting qualitative data. To achieve the purposes of the research, 9 mothers of Korean American young adults with disabilities aged 18–25 were interviewed. Overall, five themes emerged from the qualitative analysis: the importance and shortcomings of a transition program for students with disabilities aged 18–21, use of an ethnic informal organization, mothers’ readiness for the future, professionals’ negative attitudes, and transition planning. The findings were discussed to enhance the involvement of Korean American parents in the development of a long-range plan that will affect the postschool outcomes of their children with disabilities.

A Pilgrimage to the Motherland: Understanding Pilgrimage Experience as Embodied Religious Education for Korean American Youth and Young Adults

This article explores how pilgrimage shapes the ways in which Korean American youth and young adults develop their sense of intersectional identities by visiting their motherland. The coauthors begin by highlighting the limitation of Korean American churches’ emphasis on text-based education, suggesting how pilgrimage as a spiritual practice could be more implemented for more embodied and experiential learning. By analyzing the Trip to the Motherland program run by the Presbyterian Churches in Korea and North America, the article demonstrates how transnational pilgrimage enables young pilgrims to gain a renewed sense of intersectional identities, which integrates their racial, ethnic, and religious lives.

Using Narrative Inquiry for Exploring Biculturalism and Resilience in Korean American Young Adults in New York City

<i>This research is a qualitative and narrative inquiry to investigate how Korean American youth’s bicultural identity develops and to determine whether that bicultural identity serves a protective function in facing prejudice and discrimination and contributes to developing resilience. Data was collected through in-person interviews with t</i><i>en second-generation Korean youth in New York City. Their life story narratives were analyzed using over 20 coding categories. T</i><i>he findings showed that the Korean youth felt comfortable embracing both their Korean- and Americanness. </i><i>Their</i><i> bicultural identities evolved as they confronted racism, including American stereotypes and prejudices towards them, raising their awareness of their Korean and Asian identity. T</i><i>hey believed that biculturalism could be an asset as it could contribute to cultural flexibility and adaptation to the multicultural U.S. society. </i><i>This study has significance for public health in that (1) it takes a closer look at the issues of identity struggles and discrimination experienced by young people with a minority background as they grow up in the United States; and (2) it provides an opportunity to explore ways to help these youth by understanding their psychological and emotional difficulties and sufferings.</i>

‘I was scared at first, but not anymore’: interpersonal contact and attitudes toward people with intellectual and developmental disabilities among Korean American adolescents and young adults

The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore experiences of naturalistic interpersonal contact with persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and attitudes toward persons with IDD among Korean American adolescents and young adults. In interviews with 12 Korean American high school and college students, Korean American participants reported six common themes regarding their experiences of interpersonal contact with persons with IDD: 1) affective attitude, 2) behavioral attitude, 3) cognitive attitude, 4) communication with persons with IDD, 5) moments of having a positive attitude, and 6) comparisons of attitudes in the United States and Korea. Recommendations for research and practical implications are discussed.

Postschool outcomes for Korean American young adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities, and parental perceptions of transition planning

In the literature on young adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD), little research has been conducted regarding the perspectives of Korean American young adults with disabilities and their families. This study investigated the postschool outcomes of Korean American young adults (aged 18–25 years) with IDD, and their parents' perceptions of transition planning. The postsecondary employment outcomes of Korean American young adults with IDD were poorer than those of other groups of young adults with IDD. Korean American young adults with IDD were also less likely to be enrolled in higher education than were other young adults with IDD studied in past research. Many parents were dissatisfied with the transition planning for their children leaving high school. It is, therefore, important for professionals to ensure that Korean American parents are equipped with appropriate information related to their child's transition planning.

How Is Use of Electronic Cigarettes Related to Conventional Cigarette Use? A Qualitative Study among Korean American Young Adults

ABSTRACT Given the growing popularity of e-cigarettes in the United States, there is a need to understand the relationship between conventional and electronic cigarette use among Korean American young adults. Thus, this study aimed to explore Korean American young adults’ experience of electronic cigarettes and its association with use of conventional cigarettes. This study employed an exploratory qualitative design. Individual interviews were conducted with 15 Korean American young adults aged between 18 and 25 years who reported having smoked at least one conventional cigarette per day for the past 6 months. Interview data were subjected to thematic analysis in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the interconnection between e-cigarette and conventional cigarette use. Data analysis revealed three themes involving reasons for buying, using, and stopping use of e-cigarettes, each of which had several sub-themes. Study results suggest that experience of e-cigarettes was related to conventional cigarette use. Thus, the experience of e-cigarettes as well as conventional cigarettes should be considered in designing smoking cessation interventions for Korean American young adults.

Personalizing Immigrant Sacrifices

This research explored Korean American (KA) young adults’ experiences related to their sense of indebtedness toward their parents and perceptions of how indebtedness affected their behavior toward parents. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 25 KA young adults from immigrant families. Most respondents narrated their sense of indebtedness to parents, verbally acknowledging appreciation for parents’ hardship and sacrifice; however, they differed in how much they internalized indebtedness, varying in level of personalization and perception of salience of indebtedness. Similarly, youth did not differ in how they described the role of their felt indebtedness in shaping their behavior toward parents (including filial responsibility, desire for success, and promoting positive interactions) but their motivations and interpretations of these behaviors differed depending on the degree of internalization of sense of indebtedness. Taken as a whole, findings suggest within-group variations in how KA young adults deal with collective cultural norms regarding intergenerational obligations and relationships.

Place Matters in Perceived Tobacco Exposure Among Korean American Young Adults: Mixed Methods Approach

A sequential mixed methods study was conducted to identify factors influencing perceived norms about smoking and to examine the association of acculturative contexts and normative beliefs among Korean American young adults (KAYA) who face increased risk of smoking. Content analysis of data from 67 participants in 10 focus groups in 2010 led to the development of an online survey in 2012 (N = 475). KAYA overestimated smoking prevalence, reporting Korean-owned businesses (KOB) as primary places of exposure. Our findings revealed that visits to KOB predicted perceived norms about smoking. Modifying perceptions about social norms and involuntary tobacco exposure may be critical in reducing smoking among KAYA. The study's limitations are noted.

The Relationship of Parental Attachment and Christian Spirituality with Intergenerational Conflict between Korean-American Young Adults and Their Parents

This empirical study had two main interests—relationships among Intergenerational Conflict (Intergenerational Conflict Inventory), Parent Attachment (Inventory of Parent Peer Attachment), and Christian Spirituality (Spiritual Assessment Inventory) and the mediation of Parent Attachment between Intergenerational Conflict and Christian Spirituality. This study defines Christian spirituality as the relationship with God (God-Relationship), measured by the SAI. Based on the self-report of 406 one and a half (1.5) and second generation Korean-American young adults in California, this study indicated three significant correlations among three factors: Intergenerational Conflict between Parent Attachment (p < .01), Parent Attachment between Christian Spirituality (p < .01), and Intergenerational Conflict between the subscales of Christian Spirituality such as Awareness, Disappointment, Realistic Acceptance, Instability, and Impression Management (p < .01). Significant effects of Parent Attachment (p < .01) on the prediction of the subscales of Christian Spirituality were found. Conversely, Parent Attachment (p < .01) and Instability (p < .05), one of the subscales of the SAI, predicted the effect on intergenerational conflict. Thus, parental attachment showed significant prediction on the subscales of Christian spirituality and intergenerational conflict. These results could induce developmental/psychological, cultural, spiritual, and biblical interpretations and suggest some implications for churches, parents, and young adults who are experiencing intergenerational conflict.

Exploring relationships between facets of self-esteem and drinking behavior among diverse groups of young adults

Theory and empirical evidence suggest that North American-based measures of self-esteem, which measure individualistic positive self-regard, may be less applicable to Eastern cultures. In the present exploratory study, we examined how different conceptualizations of self-esteem, as measured by the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale and the Collective Self-esteem (CSE) Scale, predicted drinking behavior among three groups of American college students (N=326) with varying ethnicities: White, Korean, and Chinese/Taiwanese. Hierarchical negative binomial regression was employed to evaluate these relations. Ethnic identity was controlled for in all analyses. Findings indicated that while global self-esteem was positively associated with drinking for the whole sample, ethnicity moderated this relationship such that global self-esteem was related to drinking for White participants but not for their Chinese/Taiwanese counterparts. In addition, while CSE did not associate with drinking for the whole sample, effects emerged for specific ethnicities. Specifically, private CSE was associated with less drinking for Korean and Chinese/Taiwanese participants. Depending on specific Asian ethnicity, public CSE served as a risk (Korean participants) or a protective factor (Chinese/Taiwanese participants) for drinking. Findings suggest that above and beyond ethnic identity, differential relationships between facets of self-esteem and drinking behavior may exist among White, Korean, and Chinese/Taiwanese young adults. Intervention and prevention programs should develop strategies to help Chinese/Taiwanese and Korean American young adults cultivate protective factors within domains of CSE.

Associations ofALDH2andADH1BGenotypes With Alcohol‐Related Phenotypes in Asian Young Adults

Associations of ALDH2 and ADH1B genotypes with alcohol use have been evaluated largely using case-control studies, which typically focus on adult samples and dichotomous diagnostic outcomes. Relatively fewer studies have evaluated ALDH2 and ADH1B in relation to continuous drinking outcomes or at different developmental stages. This study examined additive and interactive effects of ALDH2 and ADH1B genotypes on drinking behavior in a mixed-gender sample of Asian young adults, focusing on continuous phenotypes (e.g., heavy episodic and hazardous drinking, alcohol sensitivity, drinking consequences) whose expression is expected to precede the onset of alcohol use disorders. The sample included 182 Chinese- and Korean-American young adults ages 18 years and older (mean age = 20 years). Effects of ALDH2, ADH1B and ethnicity were estimated using generalized linear modeling. The ALDH2*2 allele predicted lower reported rates of alcohol use and drinking consequences as well as greater reported sensitivity to alcohol. There were significant ethnic group differences in drinking outcomes, such that Korean ethnicity predicted higher drinking rates and lower alcohol sensitivity. ADH1B status was not significantly related to drinking outcomes. Ethnicity and ALDH2 status, but not ADH1B status, consistently explained significant variance in alcohol consumption in this relatively young sample. Results extend previous work by showing an association of ALDH2 genotype with drinking consequences. Findings are discussed in the context of possible developmental and population differences in the influence of ALDH2 and ADH1B variations on alcohol-related phenotypes.

Implicit Social Cognition and Culture: Explicit and Implicit Psychological Acculturation, and Distress of Korean–American Young Adults

Abstract The present research investigated the influence of cultural values of parents and quality of parent–child relationships on psychological acculturation and distress of Korean–American young adults. The study utilized both explicit and implicit methods to assess ethnic and national attitude and identity and the predictive value of each method for the psychological distress. An implicit ethnic attitude measure was positively correlated with self–reported positive parent–child relationships and also predicted self–reported distress. The influence of negative parent–child relationships and parental traditionalism on distress was partially mediated by degree of discrepancy between implicit and explicit ethnic attitude among those who showed inconsistent responses on the two measures. The study demonstrated the utility of implicit psychological approach for culture and ethnic minority research.

THE SOCIOCULTURALLY CONSTRUCTED MULTIVOICED SELF AS A FRAMEWORK FOR CHRISTIAN EDUCATION OF SECOND-GENERATION KOREAN AMERICAN YOUNG ADULTS

This article proposes a new framework for theory and practice of Christian education for second-generation Korean American young adults using the literature of sociocultural constructionism and the multivoiced self. This framework can provide holistic nurture and future trajectories in which to encourage a reflexive, praxis-generating faith. The author calls for a fostering of authentic community in which young adults can engage in self construction and self integration through their narrative.

REFLECTIONS UPON METHODOLOGY: RESEARCH ON THEMES OF SELF CONSTRUCTION AND SELF INTEGRATION IN THE NARRATIVE OF SECOND GENERATION KOREAN AMERICAN YOUNG ADULTS

This article describes the rationale, methodology, and relevancy of research on themes of self-construction and self-integration in the narratives of second generation Korean American young adults. It also outlines the philosophical perspective on research as a constructive paradigm that understands reality as consisting of the meanings people imbue into their experiences according to their particular sociocultural contexts. Lastly, as a co-constructor of reality, the researcher conducted ethnographic interviews and participant observation among these young adults, attempting to describe their internalized voices, authorities, and values, to explore their construction of self, and to examine the role of the Korean American church in this process.