Anna Kimura, PhD, Research Associate II at Vital Research, co-authored a significant new paper on a study that explored how Asian American parents approach conversations about race and racism with their children aged 6-12. The study, titled “Engaging or waiting: Variations in Asian American parents’ motivations and approaches to racial socialization during middle childhood and early adolescence,” is published in Developmental Psychology.
Key Findings
The research team conducted semi-structured interviews with a diverse sample of 68 Asian American parents across the United States and found that parents generally fell into two categories:
- Parents who actively engaged in conversations about race and racism. These parents often believed knowledge of race and racism would help their children cope with and respond to racial discrimination and/or believed it was important that their children know how to stand up for other racial-ethnic groups.
- Parents who preferred to wait to discuss race and racism with their children. These parents were often concerned that discussing race and racism might negatively affect their children’s well-being by hurting their self-esteem or making them overly fixate on race.
The study revealed important nuances in how parents approached these conversations based on parents’ generational status–whether they were immigrants or grew up in the United States. Parents’ own immigration and acculturation experiences can inform how they discuss the topics of race and racism with their children. In addition, a large proportion of families in the study included multiethnic and multiracial families, and findings revealed some differences in racial socialization approaches between parents with monoracial vs. multiracial children.
The study findings are noteworthy in demonstrating that many Asian American parents with young children are discussing race and racism with their children in developmentally appropriate ways. Importantly, parents’ decision to engage or wait to discuss race and racism with their children is based in their desire to support their children’s well-being and healthy development.
Vital Research’s Commitment to Culturally Responsive Research
This study exemplifies Vital Research’s commitment to understanding the experiences of diverse families and communities. Our staff members bring methodological and content expertise to conduct culturally relevant research and equitable evaluations on pressing issues affecting children and families from marginalized communities.
“This research highlights the importance of understanding the many nuances in how Asian American parents approach these challenging conversations with their children, all while striving to support their children as best they can,” noted Dr. Kimura. “At Vital Research, we seek to ensure our evaluation and research methodologies honor the diverse experiences of the communities we work with.”
About the Research
The study was conducted in collaboration with Rashmita Mistry, Amaesha Durazi, Frances Lobo, Stephanie Nguyen, J. Abigail Saavedra, Richard Lee, Virginia Huynh, Gabriela Livas Stein, and the Asian American Families Study Collaborative. The research was a collaboration between scholars at the University of California, Los Angeles, The University of Texas at Austin, Arizona State University, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, and California State University, Northridge.
For more information about the study, please see the full article in Developmental Psychology.
To learn more about Vital Research’s work in culturally responsive evaluation and research, please contact Manpreet Dhillon-Brar, PhD, Senior Researcher at Vital Research.