American Hmong high school students: An ethnographic study of communication and cultural adaptation
Author(s):
Findlay, Michael Shaw
Format:
Thesis
Degree granted:
Ph.D.
Publisher:
Ann Arbor : University of Oregon, 1992.
Pages:
311
Language:
English
Abstract:
This study examines the relationship between communicative events (both speech and extralinguistic forms of communication) and cultural adaptation for a small population of American Hmong high school students and their educators. The Hmong are a Southeast Asian tribal population that have immigrated to the United States in sizable numbers (presently between 70,000 and 80,000) and have had to adapt to various aspects of North American life. This particular study focuses on Hmong student/educator adaptation as a function of the mitigation of communication barriers existing in an American high school. Dimensions and operant conditions of both speech and extralinguistic events are described and subsequently analyzed through "discourse analysis." Results show that Hmong students, teachers, teachers' aides (both Hmong and non-Hmong), and administrators, have developed specific strategies for overcoming communication barriers; yet, despite the existence of these strategies in some situations,obstacles still remain.