Upholding Familism Among Asian American Youth: Measures of Familism among Filipino and Korean American Youth.

Although it is one of the core cultural values of Asian American families and an influential determinant of youth development, familism remains under-studied among Asian Americans and, despite crucial within-group heterogeneity, lacks subgroup specificity. This study describes the ways in which two major Asian American subgroups of youth, i.e., Filipino Americans and Korean Americans, maintain traditional familism. Specifically, this study constructed six self-report subscales of familism utilizing underused and new survey items and tested their psychometric properties. Using data collected from Filipino American (n=150) and Korean American (n=188) adolescents living in a Midwest metropolitan area, the measures were examined for validity and reliability for each group and, when appropriate, for measurement invariance across the groups. The main findings are that the finalized scales demonstrated solid reliability and validity (e.g., content and construct) in each group and some invariance and that core traditions, in the form of familism values and behaviors, persevere among second-generation Asian Americans, although familism was more evident among Filipino American youth than in Korean American youth. In both groups, subdomains of familism were not as discrete as found among their parents, who were predominantly foreign-born first-generation immigrants. The finalized familism scales were associated differently with several correlates including acculturation variables and youth outcomes. The findings are discussed with a call for further empirical research of diverse ethnic groups and immigrant generations to more accurately account for how family process interacts with cultural origin and acculturation.

Advancing Understanding of Acculturation for Adolescents of Asian Immigrants: Person-Oriented Analysis of Acculturation Strategy Among Korean American Youth.

Acculturation strategy, a significant predictor of immigrant adaptation, has been under-studied with Asian Americans, in particular, Asian American youth. Using person-oriented latent profile analysis, this study identified acculturation strategies among Korean American early adolescents living in the Midwest. Two-hundred ninety-one families were interviewed in 2007 that included 220 youth (mean age 13, 47.7 % female), along with 272 mothers and 164 fathers (N = 656). They were re-interviewed in 2008 (N = 588). The study found three distinct acculturation strategies: separation (11.8 %, n = 26), integrated bicultural (66.9 %, n = 150), and modest bicultural (21.3 %, n = 44). Integrated bicultural youth reported the strongest sense of ethnic identity and the most favorable characteristics, providing empirical support for the benefit of biculturalism. The findings further suggest that separation may not be as detrimental as previously thought, and modest bicultural-biculturalism that is not fully developed-may in fact be less desirable among Korean American youth.

Race-Ethnicity and Culture in the Family and Youth Outcomes: Test of a Path Model with Korean American Youth and Parents.

This study examined the interplay of parental racial-ethnic socialization and youth multidimensional cultural orientations to investigate how they indirectly and directly influence youth depressive symptoms and antisocial behaviors. Using data from the Korean American Families (KAF) Project (220 youths, 272 mothers, and 164 fathers, N = 656), this study tested the relationships concurrently, longitudinally, and accounting for earlier youth outcomes. The main findings include that racial-ethnic socialization is significantly associated with mainstream and ethnic cultural orientation among youth, which in turn influences depressive symptoms (but not antisocial behaviors). More specifically, parental racial-ethnic identity and pride discourage youth mainstream orientation, whereas cultural socialization in the family, as perceived by youth, increases ethnic orientation. These findings suggest a varying impact of racial-ethnic socialization on the multidimensional cultural orientations of youth. Korean language proficiency of youth was most notably predictive of a decrease in the number of depressive symptoms concurrently, longitudinally, and after controlling for previous levels of depressive symptoms. English language proficiency was also associated with a decrease in depressive symptoms, implying a benefit of bilingualism.