Cultural Identity, Perceived Discrimination, and Parental Support as Determinants of Immigrants’ School Adjustments:

Abstract

This study focuses on factors predicting school adjustment of immigrant adolescents. One hundred seventy-five immigrant adolescents of Vietnamese origin in Finland (ages 13 to 18) were compared with a sample of host national Finnish youth (N = 337). The immigrant adolescents were better adjusted to school than were their host national peers. In addition, school adjustment was enhanced by the integrative mode of acculturation (i.e., acquisition of the skills needed for participation in the host culture along with adherence to traditional cultural patterns). However, ethnic identity and acculturation were shown to be distinct phenomena; the acquisition of new cultural traits did not imply the simultaneous adoption of a new identity. In addition, perceived discrimination had a detrimental, whereas perceived parental support had a positive impact on the immigrants’school adjustments. The impact of these factors turned out to be mostly indirect (e.g., through self-esteem, sense of mastery, and psychological distress).