Parent and child attitudes towards educational and occupational achievement as a function of acculturation

Abstract

As individuals and families move from India to Canada, they bring with them the values, attitudes, and beliefs they held in their native country. During the process of building new lives in a new country the immigrants are immersed in a culture different then their own. As the East Indian immigrant population has grown, so has the number of first-generation, Canadian born children of East Indian parents. The focus of this study was to identify the relationship between acculturation and attitudes held for both male and female children. In other words, this study looked at the relationship between cultural factors (as determined by the level of parental and child acculturation) within the family and attitudes toward occupational and educational achievement for male and female children. Results of this study found that East Indian parents placed significantly high importance on both academic success and occupational success for their sons and daughters. These expectations were understood and accepted by their children. Finally, the importance with which parents viewed educational and occupational achievements and their expectations for their children were not related to their level of acculturation, their Canadian or Asian cultural values, or their level of endorsed sex-role egalitarianism.