Cultural Diversity Is More Than Group Differences: An Example from the Mexican American Community

Mexican-American and Anglo-American Mothers’ Beliefs and Values About Child Rearing, Education, and Language Impairment

“…Individual differences among Mexican-American families are likely to exist and these differences are a function of a number of variables, including acculturation (Gutierrez, Sameroff, & Karrer, 1988). Variability in beliefs and values exists within ethnic groups as a result of differing degrees of identification with native and mainstream cultures, often referred to as acculturation (Laosa, 1999;Rodriguez & Olswang, 2002). Acculturation is a key variable in understanding minority families (Garza & Gallegos, 1985;Negy & Woods, 1992;Olmedo, 1979) because it underscores the heterogeneity within culturally diverse groups and emphasizes how individuals are influenced by their surrounding cultures.…”