EAST MEETS WEST: DEVELOPING A BICULTURAL IDENTITY IN EAST ASIAN AMERICAN YOUTH By CHRISTOPHER W. CHEUNG A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2017 © 2017 Christopher W. Cheung 2 To my wife, parents, and grandmother 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I want to give thanks and praise to my God, who has given me the strength and blessings throughout my doctoral studies. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Dr. Jacqueline Swank, my doctoral committee chair. It is because of her mentorship, leadership, patience, and guidance that I can complete my dissertation and my PhD degree. I also want to give thanks to Dr. Maria Coady, Dr. David Miller, Dr. John Super, and Dr. Amatea for their contributions for serving on my dissertation committee. I also want to recognize leaders of the Chinese Baptist Church of Miami, Chinese Baptist Church of Coral Springs, and Korean Baptist Church of Gainesville for their support and love. They welcomed me into their church and were instrumental to make it possible for me to conduct my dissertation study. I also like to thank all the parents of participants for allowing me to work with their children and being supportive of the research. To my friends at the University of Florida, I want to thank you for helping me through my many years in the program. I cherish your support, energy, and encouragement. I would like to especially thank Kathryn Williams, Sandi Logan, and Debolina Ghosh for being there with me through doctoral journey. Finally, to my family, I want to give my deepest and heartfelt thank you for supporting me, loving me, and challenging me. To my wife, Debbie Choi, thank you for your love, patience, laugh, support, and being my motivation. To my parents, Chi Ping Cheung and Li Mei Lai, thank you for your unconditional love and support. To my uncles and aunts, thank you for your prayers, hospitality, and encouragement. To my in-laws, thank you for your support and welcoming me to your family. Lastly, thank you to Thumper for keeping me motivated and happy at all times. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... 4 LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ 8 LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... 9 LIST OF TERMS ........................................................................................................... 10 ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER 1 EAST MEETS WEST: AN INTRODUCTION .......................................................... 17 East Asian American Youth in the U.S.: An Overview ............................................ 17 East Asian Culture ............................................................................................ 19 Generational Status .......................................................................................... 21 Socio-Historical Context ................................................................................... 22 Background of Current Study .................................................................................. 23 Statement of The Problem ...................................................................................... 26 Significance of the Study ........................................................................................ 27 Research Hypothesis .............................................................................................. 28 Research Hypothesis One ................................................................................ 28 Research Hypothesis Two ................................................................................ 28 Research Hypothesis Three ............................................................................. 29 Research Hypothesis Four ............................................................................... 29 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................... 29 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE .................................................................................... 31 Identity Development Models .................................................................................. 33 Erik Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development ........................................ 33 Marcia’s Ego-Identity Status Model .................................................................. 35 Personal Identity and Well-Being ............................................................................ 40 Criticism of Early Identity Research ........................................................................ 41 Contemporary Understanding of Identity Development .......................................... 43 Cultural Identity ....................................................................................................... 44 Ethnic Identity ................................................................................................... 46 Overview of Acculturation ................................................................................. 57 Cultural Identity and Well-Being .............................................................................. 76 Assimilation or Integration ................................................................................ 78 Reconsidering Assimilation Theory. ................................................................. 79 Integration as the preferred acculturation strategy. .......................................... 82 5 Bicultural Identity Development .............................................................................. 83 Acculturation-Based Intervention Programs ............................................................ 86 Social skills training .......................................................................................... 86 Hero/heroine modeling ..................................................................................... 87 Bicultural effectiveness training ........................................................................ 87 Entre Dos Mundos/Between two worlds ........................................................... 89 Considerations in Developing a Bicultural Identity .................................................. 91 Bicultural Development and EAA Youth.................................................................. 94 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................... 95 3 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................. 101 Sample .................................................................................................................. 101 Study Design ........................................................................................................ 101 East West Connection: A Bicultural Intervention ................................................... 102 Procedures ........................................................................................................... 103 Setting and Context .............................................................................................. 104 Treatment Fidelity ................................................................................................. 105 Instruments ........................................................................................................... 106 Bicultural Self-Efficacy Scale .......................................................................... 106 Asian American Multidimensional Acculturation Scale ................................... 108 Asian American Family Conflicts Scale .......................................................... 109 Student Life Satisfaction Scale ....................................................................... 111 Demographic Questionnaire ........................................................................... 111 Research Question and Research Hypotheses .................................................... 112 Research Hypothesis One .............................................................................. 112 Research Hypothesis Two .............................................................................. 112 Research Hypothesis Three ........................................................................... 112 Research Hypothesis Four ............................................................................. 112 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................ 113 Ethical Considerations .......................................................................................... 114 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................. 115 4 RESULTS ............................................................................................................. 118 Demographics ....................................................................................................... 118 Reliability Check ..................................................................................................