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Age-varying Associations Between Chinese American Parents’ Racial-ethnic Socialization and Children’s Difficulties During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Thu, April 8, 2:45 to 4:15pm EDT (2:45 to 4:15pm EDT), Virtual

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted family life as parents respond to various stressors, including increased xenophobia against Asian Americans due to the racialization of the COVID-19 pandemic (Gee et al., 2020). In particular, Chinese American families are experiencing high rates of racial discrimination during this pandemic (Cheah et al., 2020). Chinese American parents may engage in various racial-ethnic socialization (RES) practices, such as promoting children’s awareness of discrimination and cultural pluralism, to protect their children against the increased xenophobia. Parents’ RES can be an important resource for Chinese American youth, although certain RES may be detrimental to their adjustment (Atkin et al., 2018). Whether Chinese American parents’ levels of engagement in different types of RES may vary according to their children’s age and gender, and if the associations between parents’ RES and child adjustment differ across child age and gender are unknown (Wang et al., 2020). In this study, we examined Chinese American parents’ engagement in six types of RES and the associations between these RES and child difficulties across child age and gender during COVID-19.
Chinese American parents (N=500; 79.4% mothers; Mage=43.43; SD=6.48; 96% first-generation) with 4- to 18-year-old children (Mage=11.78; SD=4.07; 48% female; 77% second-generation) reported their demographics and engagement in six RES strategies: maintenance of heritage culture, awareness of discrimination, avoidance of outgroups, cultural pluralism (Juang et al., 2016), tendency to hide Asian background and degree to which they prepared their children for COVID-19 racial bias. Parents reported on their children’s total social-emotional and behavioral difficulties (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; Goodman, 1997).
Time-varying effect modeling (TVEM) was used to analyze the data, controlling for parent age, time in the U.S., and household SES. Chinese American parents used more awareness of discrimination with older children, whereas their use of other RES strategies remained constant across child age. Parents’ use of maintenance of heritage culture and cultural pluralism were correlated with fewer child difficulties, consistent with previous research (Tran & Lee, 2010). However, the negative association between maintenance of heritage culture and child difficulties was only significant at age 13 in the TVEM (Figure 1), indicating that Chinese American early adolescents may especially benefit from such practices. Although parents may engage in such practices to protect their children from exposure to COVID-19 racial discrimination, avoidance of outgroups and socializing children to hide their Asian background to avoid COVID-19 bias RES were associated with more child difficulties across all ages (Figures 1). Moreover, parents’ engagement in practices that promote awareness of discrimination and preparation for COVID-19 bias were associated with more child difficulties from child ages 11 to 16, with the associations peaking at age 14 (Figure 2), again highlighting developmental sensitivity during early adolescence. However, parents’ use of awareness of discrimination RES was associated with fewer difficulties for the oldest adolescents, potentially because of a greater capacity to understand this complex issue (Wang et al., 2020). We will discuss the implications of the findings for Chinese American families while considering developmental, racial-ethnic, and sociopolitical processes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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