What predicts interdependence with family? The relative contributions of ethnicity/race and social class.

Abstract

Objective: Interdependence with family is considered a core element of collectivistic cultures, and it is routinely endorsed by people of ethnic/racial minority backgrounds in the United States. In contrast, a preference for independence from family is characteristic of individualistic cultures, and of European Americans, who are considered prototypical of cultural individualism. Scholars have also theorized that socioeconomic factors play a role in shaping these patterns. We hypothesized and tested the possibility of a more nuanced and interactive pattern. Drawing from long-standing research on U.S. ethnic-minority cultures and recent research on social class, we expected that lower income would be least associated with family interdependence in foreign-born Latino/a Americans and most strongly associated with higher family interdependence in European Americans. Method and Results: In a prospective community study of a diverse sample of U.S. adults (N = 2,466), income interacted with ethnic/racial group to predict interdependence with family. In line with our predictions, income was not associated with family interdependence for foreign-born Latino/a Americans or African Americans, but lower income was significantly associated with higher interdependence with family in European Americans and, to a lesser extent, in U.S.-born Latino/a Americans. Conclusions: These findings provide novel evidence for the relevance of both ethnicity/race and social class-two aspects of culture-for family interdependence. They highlight the centrality of interdependence with family among foreign-born Latino/a Americans while showing that European Americans, a group considered most representative of cultural individualism, can also highly value interdependence with family. Public Significance StatementFamily is universally important, but we found that ethnicity/race and income, which are aspects of one's cultural context, were linked to how people in the United States think family relationships should be. Foreign-born Latino/a Americans, African Americans, lower income European Americans, and lower income U.S.-born Latino/a Americans reported that family members should be close and mutually obligated to one another and that people should include extended family in important decisions. These results show that cultural context shapes how people think family relationships should be.

Uncovering measurement bias: Differential item functioning by income in the Couples Satisfaction Index.

“…Underlying this divergent functioning may be differences in interpersonal orientation, reflected in the fact that individuals with fewer economic resources approach family relationships with interdependence, whereas those with ample resources emphasize individual outcomes such as the experience of positive emotion and reward (Hooker & Algoe, 2022; Stephens et al, 2014). Indeed, the fact that the magnitude of DIF increased from the middle-income to higher income groups (compared to the lower income group) aligns with prior work showing that family interdependence decreases as income rises (Hooker et al, 2023). Accordingly, concepts related to comfort, happiness, and rewards may reflect independent or self-focused approaches to romantic relationships, which do not adequately capture the indicators of relationship satisfaction of individuals with lower incomes.…”

“…Individuals experiencing lower incomes in America are, on average, characterized by strong social connections and interdependence relative to their more affluent counterparts (Hooker & Algoe, 2022; Hooker et al, 2023). In this vein, individuals experiencing lower incomes are more highly attuned to the perspectives and expectations of others (Stephens et al, 2014) and view their connection to others as a fundamental aspect of the self (Kraus et al, 2012).…”

“…In this vein, individuals experiencing lower incomes are more highly attuned to the perspectives and expectations of others (Stephens et al, 2014) and view their connection to others as a fundamental aspect of the self (Kraus et al, 2012). Individuals experiencing lower incomes tend to demonstrate higher interdependence with family in particular (Bianchi & Vohs, 2016), believing that family bonds and interests should be prioritized (Hooker et al, 2023). Specifically, many individuals experiencing lower incomes report a stronger commitment to fulfilling family obligations and including family members in decision-making than higher income individuals (Hooker et al, 2023).…”

“…Thus, these items may be less salient for capturing the relationship satisfaction of individuals who view their partnerships through an interdependent lens, as their evaluations of their relationship may be less intertwined with internal perceptions of happiness or self-interest (Fowers et al, 2016). Accordingly, these items may not accurately capture true levels of relationship satisfaction for respondents with lower incomes or may provide less information about the construct overall, as they require participants to frame their relationship in terms of its gratification of their self-interests, which contrasts with an interdependent motivation to serve the interests of the broader couple or family (Hooker et al, 2023). In turn, different levels of relationship satisfaction may be inferred to suggest lower income individuals are less satisfied than their more affluent peers within their relationship, when differences may be a result of inadequate measurement.…”

“…Individuals experiencing lower incomes tend to demonstrate higher interdependence with family in particular (Bianchi & Vohs, 2016), believing that family bonds and interests should be prioritized (Hooker et al, 2023). Specifically, many individuals experiencing lower incomes report a stronger commitment to fulfilling family obligations and including family members in decision-making than higher income individuals (Hooker et al, 2023). Such a responsiveness to the needs and behaviors of others may be born out of a need for protection against environmental threats (Stephens et al, 2014).…”