Acculturation Gap

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RUNNING HEAD: Acculturation Gap

Acculturation Gap

Geraldine Gaona

HDF 343

The University of Texas at Austin


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Acculturation Gap

The following pages discuss four research studies that empirically investigate the links

between acculturation gap and negative effects on child outcomes. Acculturation gap refers to

the extent to which the individual acculturation levels differ between parents and adolescents.

The study of acculturation gap is important for developing an understanding of how

acculturation gap impacts psychological, emotional, and academic outcomes in adolescents. This

paper will discuss descriptions of the measurements used, how acculturation gap is

conceptualized, conclusions about its positive or negative affects, and the most significant

features of the methodologies used in each of the research papers. Lastly, the paper will examine

conclusions about methodological weaknesses and suggestions for future research.

Bmaca-Colbert and Gayles (2010)

What were they trying to find out? Bamaca-Colbert and Gayles (2010) were

investigating which procedure among four different analytic measures best explained the

interaction between cultural orientation dissonance, family functioning, and adolescent

adjustment in sample of mother-daughter pairs of Mexican descent.

Who did they study? Their sample included daughters in the 7th

and 10th

grades and

their mothers. There were 159 early-adolescent girls, 160 late-adolescent girls, and 319 mothers

who participated in the study.

How did they do the study? Bamaca-Colbert and Gayles (2010) used the Bidimentional

Acculturation Scale for Hispanics to determine mothers and daughters language-related cultural

orientation. They used The Cultural Values Scale to measure mothers and daughters cultural

orientation with respect to values. The frequency of conflict was assessed with a modified

version of the Parent-Adolescent Conflict Scale. Daughters perceptions of their mothers


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supportive parenting was assessed with the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment. Daughters

depressive symptoms were measured with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression

Scale. Daughters anxiety states were assessed with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for

Children-Trait Version. They used for analytic procedures (two variable-centered approaches

and two person-centered approaches) for examining the interplay between culture orientation

dissonance, family functioning, and adolescent adjustment regarding acculturation, enculturation,

and familism. The measures used were difference scores, interactions, matched/mismatched

groups, and latent profile analysis (LPA). The two person-centered approaches,

matched/mismatched groups and LPA, yielded low matched, mismatched, and high matched

levels corresponding to acculturation, enculturation, and familism and five profile groups

(Cultural Orientation Dissonance Dyads (P1), Low Acculturated Daughter Dyads (P2), Familism

Matched Dyads (P3), Low Enculturated Dyads (P4), and Cultural Orientation Matched Dyads

(p5))respectively.

What did they find? The difference score analysis showed that higher levels of parent-

child conflict were related to higher levels of depressive symptoms, higher levels of maternal

supportive parenting were related to lower levels of depressive symptoms, and that higher levels

of conflict in daughters reports related to higher levels of anxiety. The Interactive Analytic

Procedure showed that higher levels of conflict were related to higher levels of depressive

symptoms, higher levels of maternal supportive parenting were related to lower levels of

depressive symptoms, and it exhibited a grade x familism interaction. Only 7th

graders showed

that mother-daughter familism was related to depression. It also revealed that for daughters with

average familism, a one-unit increase in mothers; familism level was related to a larger effect of

daughter familism on depressive symptoms. Effects of daughter familism on depressive


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symptoms were the greatest when mothers had high familism levels. Higher levels of conflict

and enculturation were linked to higher anxiety levels in this analytic procedure. The

matched/mismatched analytic procedure showed significant effects for maternal supportive

parenting and for the mothersreport of conflict. A significant enculturation group x mothers

report of conflict interaction was also revealed. The procedure indicated that links between

conflict and depressive symptoms were strongest for the mismatched enculturated group,

moderate in the matched high Enculturated group, and non-existent in the matched low

Enculturated group. There was a significant enculturation group x conflict interaction, and the

links between conflict and anxiety were only visible in the high matched enculturated group. The

LPA procedures significant results revealed that P1 had higher mean levels of depressive

symptoms than all the other groups, P2 had higher mean levels of depressive symptoms than did

P3, and that there was a significant cultural orientation by grade interaction. It also showed that

P1 had a higher mean level of depressive symptoms than those in all the other groups for the 7th

graders, daughters in P2 had higher mean depressive symptoms that those in P3 and P5, and 10th

graders in P1 had higher mean depressive symptoms than those in P3. Significant findings in this

procedure were a significant cultural orientation effect, P1 and P2 has higher mean levels of

anxiety than P3 and P5, and P4 had a higher mean level of anxiety than did P5.

What can they conclude from the study? The researchers concluded that results did

indeed change depending on the procedure used and that LPA was the best analytic procedure

used for explaining the interactions between cultural orientation, family functioning, and

clarifying how adolescent adjustment changed as a function of mother-daughter cultural

orientation dissonance and family functioning.

Costigan and Dokis (2006)


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What were they trying to find out? Costigan and Dokis (2006) were investigating the

magnitude of parent-child acculturation differences among immigrant Chinese families in both

acculturation and enculturation domains in British Columbia (BC), Canada. They were also

wanted to add to the literature of past studies on acculturation gap by evaluating three aspects of

adjustment and using multidimentional and orthogonal assessment of accultuation.

Who did they study? They had 89 father, 91 mother, and 91 child participants. The

children ranged in ages from 9 to 15.

How did they do the study? The researchers identified public and private domains for

acculturation. They took independent self-reports of accultuation from mothers, fathers, and

children. They used the interaction analysis method between parents and childrens

acculturation reports in regression analyses. Canadian and Chinese behavioral practices (public

domains) of acculturation were assessed with a modified version of the Acculturation Rating

Scale for Mexican Americans-II. Private domains of acculturations were assessed with measures

of ethnic cultural values and host culture values of importance. Chinese values were assessed

with the Asian Value Scale. Canadian values were assessed by examining the parents views of

the appropriate amount of adolescent independence. Parent-child intensity of conflict was

measured with the Issues Checklist. Childrens depressive symptoms were measured with the

Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Childrens achievement motication was

measured with the Value of Academic Success Scale.

What did they find? They found that higher conflict intensity was related with higher

feelings of depression and lower achievement motivation and higher feelings of depression was

related to lower achievement motivation. The following discussion contains significant findings

from their research. As childrens chinese language use increased intensity of conflict would


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decrease but only when moms also had high Chinese language use. As childrens chinese

language use increased, feelings of depression decreased but only when moms also had high

chinese language use. As chilrens chinese language use increased, depression would increase

but only when moms had low chinese language use. As childrens chinese language use

increased, achievement motivation increased but only when moms also had high chinese

language use. As childrens chinese media use increased, intensity of conflict would decrease but

only when moms also had high chinese media use. As childrens chinese media use increased,

achievement motivation would increase but only when dads also had high Chinese media use. As

childrens chinese values increased, intensity of conflict decreased but only when dads also had

high chinese values. As childrens chinese values increased, feelings of depression decreased but

only when dads had high chinese values as well. As childrens canadian media use increased,

achievement motivation increased but only when moms also had high canadian media use.

What can they conclude? They concluded that parents level of engagement in the

Chinese culture was predictive of adjustment levels, whereas parents level of engagement in

Cadian culture was not. They also concluded that egative outcomes can occur but not intense

enough to have detrimental affects on the children.

Kim and Park (2011)

What were they trying to find? Kim and Park (2011) are trying to find a significant

relationship between acculturation gap and distress. They wanted to see if mother-adolescent

acculturation discrepancies would be associated with adolescents internalizing and externalizing

symptoms and if parent-child communication would moderate the gap-distress relationship.

Who did they study? The researchers had 77 Korean-American mother-adolescent pairs

from the Midwest. The children were between 11 and 15 years of age.


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How did they do the study? The researchers employed the difference score approach

and the interaction term approach to look at how acculturation gap leads to depressive internal

and external symptoms. Adolescent and mother self-reports were used to examine levels of

acculturation and enculturation. Parent-adolescent communication and internalizing and

externalizing symptoms were measured with the adolescent self-reports. Levels of acculturation

and enculturation in mothers and adolescents were measured with the Asian American

Multidimensional Acculturation Scale. Parent-Adolescent communication was assessed with the

Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale. It measured the youths perceptions of the

communication quality with their mother and father. The Youth-Self Report assessed

adolescents internalizing and externalizing symptoms.

What did they find? The researchers discovered that when parent enculturation was

high, youth externalizing symptoms would increase but only when youth enculturation was also

high. They also found that as enculturation gap increased, youth internalizing symptoms would

also increase but only when father-adolescent communication was low. They were also able to

see that adolescents perception of communication with their fathers significantly moderated the

relationship between the enculturation gap and internalizing symptoms.

What can they conclude from the study? The researchers concluded that poor father-

adolescent communication had negative impacts for youths internalizing symptoms and that

under different conditions of father-child communication, different effects were seen. They also

concluded that depending on the selection of methodologies and theoretical frameworks, the

acculturation gap could affect the sensitivity of an association between acculturation gap and

child distress. They also were able to see that even with no gap, it was not as protective as

expected.


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Kim, Chen, Li, Huang, and Moon (2009)

What were they trying to find out? Kim, Chen, Li, Huang, and Moons goal was to

look at the discrepancy between parent and child acculturation and at the discrepancy between

parent and child heritage orientation and their affect on child outcomes in Chinese Immigrant

Families. They also wanted to establish the impact that acculturation discrepancy has parenting

practices (parental support) and how the level of support, in turn, affects adolescent depressive

symptoms.

Who did they study? The researchers had a sample of 388 father-child pairs with foreign

born-father and 399 mother-adolescent pairs with foreign-born mothers.

How did they do the study? They used a bidimentional view of acculturation. They

assessed parent-child relationships as a function of affect and behavioral and communicative

parenting by monitoring and inductive reasoning. They measured acculturation using a broader

behavioral acculturation measure. They assessed acculturation with the Vancouver Index of

Acculturation. They assessed parenting through measures adapted from the Iowa Youth and

Families Project. They assessed adolescent depressive symptoms with the Center for

Epidemiologic Studies of Depression Scale. They assessed their experience of discrimination

with a scale developed by Kessler and colleagues. Fathers and mothers answered questions about

family income and highest level of education attained. The acculturation scores for mothers,

fathers, and children were assessed separately. Acculturation levels in both Chinese and

American orientations were designated as low, medium or high

What did they find? They found that if fathers and their children are discrepant in their

American orientation, fathers are less likely to use monitoring and inductive reasoning, and

children would be more likely to experience depressive symptoms. They also found that


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supportive parenting mediates between acculturation gap and depressive symptoms only in

father-child relationships.

What can they conclude from the study? They concluded that generational dissonance

is not limited to economic prospects, but may also relate to adolescent adjustment problems in

other areas, especially depressive symptoms. They concluded that paternal parenting mediates

the relationship between father-child acculturation divergence and adolescent depressive

symptoms even when factors such as socioeconomic status, their sense of discrimination,

parents length of time in the United States, and when adolescent age and sex were controlled.

Using hierarchical regression analyses of the interaction terms, 3 dependent variables were

predicted (intensity of conflict, feelings of depression, and achievement motivation).


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References

Bmaca-Colbert, M. Y., & Gayles, J. G. (2010). Variable-centered and person-centeredapproaches to studying Mexican-origin motherdaughter cultural orientation dissonance.

Journal of Youth And Adolescence, 39(11), 1274-1292. doi:10.1007/s10964-009-9447-3

Costigan, C. L., & Dokis, D. P. (2006). Relations between parent-child acculturation differences

and adjustment within immigrant Chinese families. Child Development, 77, 1252-1267.

Kim, M., & Park, I. K. (2011). Testing the moderating effect of parentadolescentcommunication on the acculturation gapdistress relation in Korean American families.

Journal of Youth And Adolescence, 40(12), 1661-1673. doi:10.1007/s10964-011-9648-4

Kim, S. Y., Chen, Q., Li, J., Huang, X., & Moon, U. J. (2009). Parent-child acculturation,

parenting, and adolescent depressive symptoms in Chinese immigrant families.Journal

of Family Psychology, 23, 426-437.

Acculturation Gap

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