Making Meanings, Meaning Identity: Hmong Adolescent Perceptions and Use of Language and Style as Identity Symbols

Abstract

Using qualitative interview data gathered from 28 Hmong adolescents, we examined the meaning ascribed to language and style and how language and style behaviors are used to distinguish identity. We found that the participants used language and style to define their own ethnic group membership and cultural identities. Moreover they inferred meaning from these identity behaviors to discern which peer groups are desirable (those who wear American style clothing and are bilingual) and which are of low social status (“fobby” style clothing and monolingual). The cultural identity symbols used by participants reveal heterogeneity among Hmong adolescent peer groups and evolving definitions of what it means to be Hmong in America.

Shifting Practices, Shifting Selves: Negotiations of Local and Global Cultures Among Adolescents in Northern Thailand

“…The practices examined in this study are both intertwined with adolescent identities and conceptions of self, and susceptible to change as a result of globalization (Ferguson et al., ; Jensen et al., ; Nguyen & Brown, ). Examining discourses surrounding dietary and linguistic practices has thus afforded a window into the nature of adolescent conceptions of self in relation to local and global cultures, and in relation to social others.…”

“…Cultural practices such as language (including what languages are and are not spoken, and with whom) and food consumption (including what, when, and with whom one eats) underlie conceptions of self and identity. These practices are relevant for this study given both their link to self and identity (Jensen, Arnett, & McKenzie, 2011;Nguyen & Brown, 2010;Valentine, 1999) and their potential to dramatically transform as a result of globalization (Bogin et al, 2014;Ferguson et al, 2017;Heller, 2003).…”

“…Psychologists have in recent years increasingly highlighted the culturally situated nature of human development. Scholars of identity (Berry, Phinney, Sam, & Vedder, 2006;Nguyen & Brown, 2010), morality (DiBianca Fasoli, 2017;Jensen & McKenzie, 2016;Miller, 2005), cognition (Correa-Ch avez & Rogoff, 2009), and intelligence (Sternberg, 2014) have foregrounded the role of culture in shaping fundamental developmental processes. This article points to the role of cultural change in shaping adolescent practices, framings of self, and negotiations of social hierarchies encountered in their everyday lives.…”

A Global Cypher: The Role of Hip Hop in Cultural Identity Construction and Navigation for Southeast Asian American Youth

“…Often perceived as “perpetual foreigners” (Said, ), SEAA youth are often in the position of proving their American‐ness to others, including peers within their same ethnic group. They do so by adopting cultural symbols such as dress and language to demarcate identity status (Nguyen & Brown, ). Demonstrating their engagement with the most popular form of music may help facilitate others’ impressions of their willingness to adapt to U.S. culture.…”

Constructing “Hmong American Youth”: A Critical Discourse Analysis of 25 Years of Academic Literature on Hmong American Youth

“…Bogenshutz, 2013), education (S. Lee, 2001;McNall, Dunnigan, & Mortimer, 1994), and cultural and language loss (Bosher, 1997;Nguyen & Brown, 2010). Research on Hmong American youth have impacted practice (Xiong, Detzner, Keuster, Eliason, & Allen.…”