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When Might the Two Cultural Worlds of Second Generation Biculturals Collide?

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When Might the Two Cultural Worlds of Second Generation Biculturals Collide? WHEN MIGHT THE TWO CULTURAL WORLDS OF SECOND GENERATION BICULTURALS COLLIDE? ABSTRACT Second generation youth often identify with two cultures (heritage and Canadian). Although these biculturals usually negotiate their lives between two cultural worlds with ease, there are situations where conflicts may arise because of an incompatibility between the norms associated with each culture. Our research has identified some key points where bicultural conflicts can occur for second generation Canadians. econd generation youth in Canada are the children of parents who immigrated to Canada from another country. Although there is a tremendous amount of diversity among individuals Swithin this second generation, they often share the feature of being bicultural. Culture can be defined by the norms and standards of a group that will delineate the appropriateness of behaviour. Bicultural individuals, therefore, have psychological access to two sets of cultural norms that may be tied to geography, ethnicity and/or religion. In the case of second generation Canadians, our research culture, social identity and intergroup relations. that pertain to multicultural societies, namely, His University. at research York focuses on issues Richard N. Lalonde is a professor of Psychology RICHARD N. LALONDE focuses on their heritage culture and their Canadian culture. Heritage norms are typically acquired from parents, extended family and the ethnic community to which parents belong. The basis of “Canadian” norms is much broader because they are acquired through the infrastructure of Canadian society (e.g., schools, media, social services), the neighbourhoods in which they live and from many of their peers. Moreover, Canadian norms are acquired through either a majority English-language or a majority French-language context, while heritage norms may be acquired through a completely different language. Cultural conflict is likely to occur when heritage and Canadian norms offer incompatible behavioural prescriptions. These conflicts can be experienced at different levels in the lives of second generation youth. At the group level, they may experience discrimination because they have been perceived as not “fitting in” on the basis of criteria such as skin colour, accent or type of dress (e.g., Giguère et al. 2007). This is an example of an intergroup conflict because it involves an interaction between individuals, where some individuals are responding to others on the basis of group categories. Our recent studies have focused mainly on cultural norm conflicts that are experienced at the Benjamin Giguère is a Ph.D. student in Personality and BENJAMIN GIGUÈRE Social Psychology His University. at research York interests and cross-cultural psychology. cross-cultural and relations intergroup influence, intersect the fields social of interpersonal level or the intrapersonal level. Interpersonal conflicts for second generation youth may occur with parents or peers. Intrapersonal conflicts are experienced within the individual and are well captured by the experience of “feeling torn between two cultures.” In terms of their daily interactions, second generation Canadians do not constantly experience cultural conflicts. This is not surprising given that there are more similarities between the norms of cultural groups than there are differences (see Schwartz and Bardi 2001). Moreover, the cultural identity of bicultural individuals is contextually driven and usually only one culture will be salient in a particular situation. For example, immigrant children’s behaviour may be largely determined by their heritage culture when they are with their family and by “Canadian” culture when they are at school. Clément and Noels (1992) have referred to this phenomenon as “situated identities.” A conflict between the two sets of cultural norms of the bicultural individual is more likely to be evidenced when the two cultural identities of bicultural individuals are simultaneously salient to the individual, when these identities evoke two sets of norms that are incompatible and when the individual feels some commitment to each set of norms. Finally, a conflict is more likely to occur in a situation that begs the individual to follow only one of the two sets of norms. It should be noted from the outset that most of our research has focused on the adult children of South Asian and Chinese immigrants. We have focused on children of Eastern immigrants to Canada primarily for three reasons. First, they compose by far the largest immigration population in Canada. Second, these groups come from Eastern cultural backgrounds, which have been described Canadian Diversity / Diversité canadienne 58 as collectivistic and are often guided by clear (i.e., well- ethnic, religious and linguistic backgrounds of their defined) and tight (i.e., with little room for digression) multicultural Canadian peers. norms (see Triandis 1995). Canada, on the other hand, is Cultural norms will influence not only what we look a Western and individualist culture and its norms are for in a life partner but also how we look for a potential often less prescriptive. Finally, we have focused on young mate. In Western cultures, marriage is seen as the union of adults because they are at a developmental stage where two individuals. Although family approval is desirable, they are more likely to face the challenge of resolving young adults are expected to find their partners without incompatible norms (Phinney 1990). their parents’ assistance. Marriage in Western cultures Our research aim has been to understand some of is assumed to be a consequence of a couple’s feelings the psychological mechanisms surrounding normative or romantic love. In contrast, in many Eastern cultures, conflict. Most of our work is based on samples of young marriage is seen as the alliance between two families adults who are attending university, and their responses (Dion and Dion 1993), and in some cases they may be may be somewhat less varied than the responses that arranged. Although children’s selection of a marriage would be obtained from broader random sampling. partner is desirable, obligations and duties may be more Within our research program, we have argued that the important than personal preferences. Young adults from realm of close relationships (dating, sex and marriage) is some Eastern cultures may be expected to respect their one area where there is the potential for cultural conflict parents’ desires regarding the choice of a spouse, and love for bicultural individuals of Eastern may be better conceptualized as descent. It is generally recognized a state that may follow marriage that the norms of interactions in A conflict between the rather than one that precedes it relationships are primarily defined (Goodwin and Cramer 2000). and transmitted by culture (Berscheid two sets of cultural So what happens to the 1995), and reviews of the literature norms of the bicultural children of immigrants who on immigrant families have indi- develop two sets of norms that offer cated that the issue of dating and individual is more likely some incompatible behavioural relationships can be associated with to be evidenced when prescriptions regarding preferable considerable tension, particu larly traits in a mate and the nature and for the daughters of immigrants the two cultural meaning of the union with a life (e.g., Hynie 1996). For second identities of bicultural partner? These young adults know generation Eastern immi grants, what their family would like and in a Western culture in particular, individuals are expect in their intimate relation - close relationships are typically simultaneously salient ships but also know of the choices associated with two distinct, and and expectations of their Western often contradictory, sets of norms to the individual, when peers. Given that family is the (see Tang and Dion 1999). these identities evoke primary carrier of heritage culture For the remainder of this paper two sets of norms that for the children of immigrants, the we will focus on two related domains expectations of the family should of interpersonal relationships where are incompatible and play a role in their mate preferences. there is a potential for interpersonal when the individual A first step in our research program and intrapersonal conflict for second was to determine if heritage culture generation youth. feels some and family expectations played a commitment to each greater role in the preferred mate Cultural norms of partner attributes of second generation selection and preferred set of norms. youth of Eastern cultural back - mate attributes grounds compared with the An important decision facing expectations and preferences of the majority of young Canadians is what type of person their European Canadian peers. they would like to have as a life partner. Research by Buss Our first set of studies in this area (Lalonde et al. et al. (1990) has demonstrated tremendous cross-cultural 2004) focused on second generation South Asian consistency in the attributes that men and women Canadians. We expected that these young adults would be desire in a mate across 33 different countries. Individuals aware of two different sets of cultural norms regarding across cultures prefer a partner who will be kind and mate selection and that they would still be influenced by considerate, and our findings with young adult Canadians their heritage culture although they lived in a Western concur with those of Buss (Hynie et al. 2006, Lalonde et al. culture.
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