Experiences in the Bubble: Assimilation and Acculturative Stress of Chinese Heritage Students in Silicon Valley
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Many students of Chinese heritage experience schooling in Silicon Valley – a high-stakes, resource-rich area with distinctive social and educational dynamics – in an atmosphere that can appropriately described as a bubble. This study uses semi-structured, open-ended, qualitative interviews with nine participants who reflected on their experiences attending high schools in the Silicon Valley region, while also describing their experiences as students at higher education institutions. I interpret the findings through the lenses of segmented assimilation theory and social capital theory. Although they easily establish social networks with other ethnic Asians in majority-Asian population high schools, the norms of intense competition and high expectations are a source of stress. Due to an insular ethnic environment, some participants find difficulty adapting to a comparatively diverse post-secondary social dynamic, resulting in acculturative stress. Ethnic Chinese students can create social capital beyond their ethnic group via participation in school- and community-based extracurricular activities, and via participation in religious communities, while simultaneously aiding in identity formation.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Date created | July 2013 |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Liu, Tommy Tsz Fan |
|---|
Subjects
| Subject | Chinese American students |
|---|---|
| Subject | Silicon Valley |
| Subject | Stanford Graduate School of Education International Comparative Education |
| Genre | Thesis |
Bibliographic information
| Related item | |
|---|---|
| Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/vt831ft1731 |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Collection
Graduate School of Education International Comparative Education Master's Monographs
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- Contact
- liutommy@alumni.stanford.edu
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