Parenting in acculturation: two contemporary research designs and what they tell us

Massive population transfers are common today. To understand how immigrants negotiate variation and adjustment as they settle in a new culture, researchers have explored acculturation, the changes that individuals and groups undergo as a result of contact with a culture not their own. Parents have crucial roles to play in acculturation. Parenting is instantiated in cognitions and practices, and cognitions and practices of parents are multifaceted and influenced by many factors, including parents' own individual characteristics, their children, and their cultural experiences. This article describes, evaluates, and illustrates two unique research designs that are used today to study acculturation of parenting cognitions and practices. In one design, parenting in acculturating cultures in the same culture of destination are compared; in the second design, parents in a culture of origin, parents from that culture of origin acculturating to a new culture, and parents in that culture of destination are compared. Acculturation is one of the most prominent individual-difference constructs in contemporary psychology, and understanding parents' cognitions and practices is fundamental to understanding parenting and acculturation.