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Redacted for Privacy J AN ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION OF Margaret M. Manoogian for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development and Family Studies on July 10, 2001. Title: Linking Generations: The Family Legacies of Older Armenian Mothers. Abstract approved: Redacted for privacy J. Walker Abstract approved: Redacted for privacy LeslieN. Families stay connected over time through the intergenerational transmission of legacies. Legacies help family members to articulate family identity, learn more about family history, and provide succeeding generations with information about family culture and ethnicity. This qualitative study examines how older mothers transmit family meanings, history, and culture to family members through legacies and how ethnic histories influenced this process. Thirty older Armenian American mothers residing in California were interviewed. A life course perspective provides the overarching framework for analysis. Participants described the legacies they received and those they planned to pass on to family members. Emphasis was given to those legacies thatsymbolized connection to family, underscored family cohesion, and accentuated Armenian cultural roots. Individual age, larger historical events, and the gendered construction of family life influenced both the receipt of legacies and those that 20th were passed on to family members. During the late19thand early centuries, Armenian families were forced to leave their native homeland. Because of these events, Armenian families passed few physical legacies on to family members. Legacies took on other forms such as stories, rituals, family gatherings, religious participation, cooking, and service to others. Women viewed their legacies within the context of motherhood and worked to ensure that certain legacies would be valued and remembered by future generations. Shaped by age, generational position, and ethnic identity, women expressed variation in types of legacies and the ways they planned to share them with family members. Women reported tension when certain legacies lacked meaning for their children (in-law) and grandchildren due to the influences of assimilation, intennarriage, changes in family and paid work patterns, and the characteristics and interests of adult children. A focus on legacies provides a useful lens for understanding how families transmit family identity, culture, and ethnicity to succeeding generations. Linking Generations: The Family Legacies of Older Armenian Mothers by Margaret M. Manoogian A DISSERTATION submitted to Oregon State University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Presented July 10, 2001 Commencement June 2002 Doctor of Philosophy dissertation of Margaret M. Manoogian presented on Julyi 2001 APPROVED: Redacted for privacy Co-Major Professor, representing Human Development and Family Studies Redacted for privacy Co-Major Professor, Human De1epment and Family Studies Redacted for privacy Headof'Department of Humim Development and Family Sciences Redacted for privacy Dean of the Grua(e School I understand that my dissertation will become part of the permanent collection of Oregon State University libraries. My signature below authorizes release of my thesis to any reader upon request. Redacted for privacy Margaret M. Manooan, Author ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am profoundly grateful to the wide circle of individuals who have helped me with this dissertation. This project began to take form in the conversationsand classes I had with other graduate students and faculty. I am appreciative of their continued encouragement to pursue a topic that required new exploration into the field of family studies as well as my own ethnic family experience. I am indebted to the 30 older Armenian women in this study. They opened their homes, delighted me with Armenian treats, and candidly shared their family experiences. Our conversations had a pronounced effect on me personally. My professors provided the right balance of support and challenge. Alexis Walker is the consummate academic and mentor. I have appreciated her extensive knowledge of families, her tireless efforts of guidance, and her honest appraisals of my work. My graduate career has been rewarding in large part due to her.Leslie Richards has offered more than could ever be asked by a graduate student. Possessing a keen mind and a caring heart, she has played a special role in helping me blaze my academic path. Anisa Zvonkovic, Karen Hooker, and Sally Bowman have offered many academic and professional opportunities that have benefited me tremendously. I extend my appreciation to two other committee members, Janet Lee and Barbara Cusimano, for their support over the years. I also want to acknowledge a smaller circle of women graduate students who at particular moments have fueled my intellectual curiosity, sustained my motivation to pursue an academic career, and listened when I was most desperate. In particular, I thank Marilyn Barlow, Debbie Coehlo, Lori McGraw, Diana White, and Joni Weatherspoon. Three organizations helped fund this research. I am thankful to the University Club Foundation, the JoAnne L. Petersen Program in Family Gerontology, and the Armenian General Benevolent Union. Any project of this size requires extended support from those with whom you are most intimate. My local Corvallis friends offered hours ofchild care and buoyed my spirits on numerous occasions. I am thankful to my family, especially Richard for supporting my vision, and Linda for offering her sisterly advice. My children, Brin and Elli, demonstrated continued good humor as we grappled with schedules and family time together. The spirit of my father was present throughout this project. I mourn that I could not ask him the questions that emerged from my explorations into Armenian American family life. Finally, my most ardent supporter was always near and became an active participant in this project. I am eternally grateful to be my mother's daughter. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: Introduction .1 CHAPTER 2: Literature Review ..............................................................................8 Theoretical Framework ....................................................................................8 LifeCourse...........................................................................................8 Gender Perspective ..............................................................................10 Generativity .........................................................................................12 Creating and Passing on Legacies.................................................................15 The Meaning of Possessions ..........................................................................17 FamilyStories................................................................................................23 Passing on Legacies ......................................................................................25 The Armenian American Context .................................................................29 Armenian Immigration to the United States ......................................32 Armenian American Women ............................................................36 Summary.....................................................................................................38 CHAPTER 3: Methodology ....................................................................................40 Participants ...................................................................................................41 SampleCriteria ................................................................................41 Description of the Sample ...............................................................44 Recruitment.................................................................................................47 Procedures...................................................................................................51 Interviews .........................................................................................51 Developing Rapport and Trust with Participants ............................53 Confidentiality................................................................................56 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) Data Analysis .58 CHAPTER 4: Legacies Received from Families .................................................... 61 Three Armenian Mothers and their Families...............................................62 Azniv............................................................................................... 62 Flora................................................................................................ 63 Audrey..............................................................................................64 The Legacy of Genocide and Family Stories .............................................. 65 Family Experiences of Genocide .................................................... 65 Transmission of Genocide Stories .................................................. 71 Family Stories and Their Meanings ............................................................. 81 Possessions and Legacies ............................................................................ 87 Loss of Possessions ......................................................................... 88 Possessions and Their Meanings ..................................................... 90 Valued Family Possessions and Siblings ........................................ 96 Rituals
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