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Children of immigrants represent one in four children in the United States and will represent one in three children by 2050. Children of Asian and Latino immigrants together represent the majority of children of immigrants in the United States. Children of immigrants may be immigrants themselves, or they may have been born in the United States to foreign-born parents; their status may be legal or undocumented. We review transcultural and culture-specific factors that influence the various ways in which stressors are experienced; we also discuss the ways in which parental socialization and developmental processes function as risk factors or protective factors in their influence on the mental health of children of immigrants. Children of immigrants with elevated risk for mental health problems are more likely to be undocumented immigrants, refugees, or unaccompanied minors. We describe interventions and policies that show promise for reducing mental health problems among children of immigrants in the United States.
Studies of Asian American parenting have primarily focused on first-generation immigrant parents. Few studies have examined the experiences of second-generation Asian American adults who now have children of their own. The purpose of this qualitative study, then, is to better understand the values, practices, and concerns of second-generation Asian American parents regarding ethnic and racial socialization. The sample included 34 Asian American parents from seven different cities across the United States. Using interviews and a focus group, the results show that (a) place, specific contexts, and transitions were important to second-generation parents’ motivation behind ethnic and racial socialization, (b) parents are reactive and proactive, especially with regard to promoting an awareness of discrimination, in the racial socialization of their children, (c) parents engage in predominantly proactive ethnic socialization when passing on heritage culture, which they believe is important, but also difficult to do, (d) in contrast to ethnic socialization, passing on American culture and passing on important values (that they did not see as solely “American” or “Asian”) came easily, and (e) parents consider the intersection of race and culture with religion and disability when socializing their children. Our findings highlight unique aspects of how second-generation Asian American parents engage in ethnic and racial socialization in an increasingly socially diverse world.