Cultural Differences in Self-Esteem: Ethnic and Gender Variations in the Adaptation of Recent Immigrant Asian Adolescents
Author(s):
Zady, Madelon F; Portes, Pedro R
Format:
Book section
Publisher:
University Press America, 2000.
Language:
English
Abstract:
A cultural-historical perspective is adopted to explore cultural, gender, & ethnic differences in self-esteem among 5,264 second-generation immigrant children from 77 different Asian or Middle Eastern nationalities enrolled in grades 8 & 9 at 42 different schools in Dade (Miami) & Broward (Fort Lauderdale) counties in FL, & San Diego, CA. Focus here is on children from four southeast Asian groups: Vietnamese, Laotian, Cambodian, or Hmong. Questionnaire data are drawn on to examine sociodemographic & psychosocial factors related to self-esteem, as well as patterns in these relationships across Asian subgroups & by gender. Results indicate that the self-esteem of these youth is different than that of children in the overall immigrant population, though there are subtle between-group differences across subgroups. Parent-child conflict & depression nearly universally lower self-esteem, but there are important mediating factors that differ across Asian groups & by gender. 4 Tables, 55 References. K. Hyatt Stewart