Perceived Ethnic Racial Socialization, Ethnic Identity, and Social Competence Among Asian American Late Adolescents

This study extends the research on parental ethnic-racial socialization to Asian American late adolescents (N = 166). The authors specifically examined the factor structure, frequency, and correlates of a perceived ethnic-racial socialization measure. Ethnic identity was also hypothesized to function as a mediator in the relationship between perceived cultural socialization and social competence. The results supported a 3-factor model of perceived ethnic-racial socialization that included cultural socialization pluralism, promotion of mistrust, and preparation for bias. Exploratory analyses revealed that ethnic racial socialization messages were reported by large proportions of participants and were related to a number of demographic variables. The authors further found that perceived promotion of mistrust messages were inversely associated with social competence. They also found that perceived cultural socialization pluralism was significantly related to social competence through ethnic identity. Results support the importance of perceived ethnic-racial socialization for Asian American development.