The Boat People and Achievement in America: A Study of Family Life, Hard Work and Cultural Values

Homo invictus: The indomitable species.

“…Two deal with refugees who have experienced and survived horrific violence. One is entided Against all odds: Holocaust survivors and the successful lives they made in America (Helmreich, 1992); another is The boat people and achievement in America: A story of family life, hard work, and cultural values (Caplan, Whitmore, & Choy, 1989). A third book is about people who have overcome die effects of a less dramatic, but perhaps also less isolated, trauma, extreme familial abuse.…”

Acceptance-based coping and the psychological adjustment of Asian and Caucasian Americans.

“…Conversely, the most salient value in Confucianism is harmony in relationships; the interest of the group often takes precedence over the interest of the individual (Caplan, Whitmore, & Choy, 1989). Behaviors such as self-control, self-discipline, suppression of both negative and positive emotions (Caplan et al, 1989), and being conciliatory and receptive (Tung, 1985) are valued as a result. Asians have been argued to be more likely to believe that avoidance of unpleasant thoughts prevents them from having "inappropriate emotions," and that the unwanted cognition can be controlled by the exercise of willpower and one's determination (Huang, 1991).…”

“…All emotions such as joy, fright, anger, grief, pensiveness, melancholia, and apprehension are viewed as complimentary: one emotion cannot exist without the other (Rhee, 1980). Conversely, the most salient value in Confucianism is harmony in relationships; the interest of the group often takes precedence over the interest of the individual (Caplan, Whitmore, & Choy, 1989). Behaviors such as self-control, self-discipline, suppression of both negative and positive emotions (Caplan et al, 1989), and being conciliatory and receptive (Tung, 1985) are valued as a result.…”