Racial and Ethnic Differences: Sociocultural and Contextual Explanations

Abstract

With the increasing focus on racial and ethnic diversity in studies of adolescence, this review highlights trends in this research over the past decade. Not only is the sheer number of studies incorporating diverse youth increasing, this research has penetrated many areas of the study of adolescence. Some of this research has attempted to recognize and also capture the contextual and/or sociocultural processes that may explain racial and ethnic diversity or differences among youth in the United States and other countries. Research examining sociocultural and contextual processes underlying racial and ethnic differences is especially evident in the areas of parenting and family socialization. A considerable amount of research on ethnic minority and immigrant youth has also been conducted on their ethnic identity and acculturation, including processes of ethnic identity development, discrimination experiences, and the role of ethnic identity and discrimination in relation to adolescents' well-being. The theoretical implications of this research will be addressed in terms of what we have learned from studying diverse youth and how this focus has contributed to our theories of adolescence.

Proverbs of the Tatar People as Part of Ethnic Identity

“…The concept "ethnic identity" has the analytical term status (Anderson & Lee 2005;Kasinitz, Mollenkopf, Waters & Holdaway, 2008;Phinney & Ong, 2007;Chao & Otsuki-Clutter, 2011;Karabulatova, 2013& Kiang, Witkow, Baldelomar, & Fuligni, 2010. It is realized as social identity component of personality and considered base for creation of ethnic consciousness, certain system of behavioural and typical personal distinctive features by means of which the individual is recognized as the member of group (Torres & Ong, 2010;Mugtasimova et al, 2014;.…”

Exploring Adolescent-parent Relationships in Asian American Immigrant Families: An Ecological Perspective

“…For example, in a study that examined Korean American adolescents and their parents' perception of parental control, both adolescents and parents reported that the parents tend to be moderate to firm in their behavioral control (Kim, 2005). In general, research finds that authoritarian parenting, or high rates of parental control, is more prevalent among AA families compared to European American families (Chao & Otsuki-Clutter, 2011;Fuligni, Hughes, & Way, 2009;Smetana & Chuang, 2001). Moreover, Asian parents tend to hold later expectation for their adolescent children's autonomy compared to non-Latino White parents (Feldman & Rosenthal, 1991;Fuligni et al, 2009), which may be at least partially due to their cultural values of collectivism and filial piety.…”

“…Hence, immigrant parenting practices may involve constant negotiation between values and norms of the host and heritage cultures (Bornstein & Lansford, 2010). The most common parenting style adopted by AA parents is authoritarian parenting, characterized by high involvement in their children's lives and strict regulation of their children's behaviors (e.g., Chao & Otsuki-Clutter, 2011;Farver et al, 2007;Nguyen, 2008). For example, in a study that examined Korean American adolescents and their parents' perception of parental control, both adolescents and parents reported that the parents tend to be moderate to firm in their behavioral control (Kim, 2005).…”

Mothers', fathers' and children's perceptions of parents' expectations about children's family obligations in nine countries

“…Individuals’ perceptions of these obligations are important because they shape the ways family members interact and because they affect psychological construals of the family. Perceptions of family obligations are a potentially meaningful way to characterize cultural values, going beyond social address models that compare groups based on ethnicity or national origin to understand what factors might underlie such group differences (Chao & Otsuki-Clutter, 2011). Given that the theoretical importance of family obligations has been advanced in diverse countries and cultural contexts, the present study examines mothers’, fathers’, and children’s perceptions of parents’ expectations regarding children’s family obligations in 13 cultural groups in nine countries that vary in terms of sociodemographic, psychological, and contextual factors that might be related to family obligations.…”