Parental Influence In Chinese Kids

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Echo H. Wu Hong Kong Institute of Education
This paper explores the influence of parenting beliefs and practices on children’s talent development through a specific perspective of several Chinese American families with gifted children. In-depth interviews were employed to collect data fromthe parents, and research questions focused on the daily practice of parenting and parents’ beliefs concerning how to nurture high achievement among children. Findings of this study include evidence of a sense of responsibility for parenting, a high level of confidence over their children’s future, and a mixed strategy of parenting that combines traditional Chinese parental expectations with anadopted Western notion of respect for a child’s own decision making.
Research indicates that there are a variety of issues, such as gift- edness or innate ability, intrapersonal components, and various environmental factors, that may influence children’s talent devel- opment. Parenting is considered to be one of the most influential factors, especially in early childhood, as it is thought tocontrib- ute directly to the talented performance of children. According to research (e.g., Bloom, 1985; Csikszentmihalyi & Csikszentmihalyi, 1993; Freeman, 2001; Rubin & Chung, 2006; VanTassel-Baska & Olszewski-Kubilius, 1989), parents and other significant family members play pivotal roles in the development of gifted and tal- ented children, not only in nurturing the academic performance of childrenbut also in facilitating their social-emotional development (Feldman, 1999; Gross, 2004; Gross & Vliet, 2005; Moon, 2003; Nugent, 2005; Olszewski-Kubilius, 2002).
Echo H. Wu is Assistant Professor in Early Childhood Department at the Hong Kong Institute of Education.
Journal for the Education of the Gifted. Vol. 32, No. 1, 2008, pp. 100–129. Copyright ©2008 Prufrock Press Inc.,http://www.prufrock.com
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Parental Influence on Children ␣␣␣
Literature on cultural matters in education has provided the premise that different cultures present different tools, habits, and assumptions that significantly influence human thoughts and behav- ior (Tweed & Lehman, 2002). Thus, people from different cultural backgrounds may hold different beliefs about, and perceptions of, the role of parentsand families, as well as different ideas about gift- edness (Wu, 2006). In Asian countries, particularly in a Chinese context, innate ability is regarded as being less influential than fac- tors like effort (Wu, 2005). Although self-effort and environmental factors have been paid much attention, it seems that in Western societies the importance of innate ability has been dominant and has influencedparents and others in their perceptions of learning and achieving (Wu, 2006). Such a focus on effort and hard work might be a unique feature among Chinese American people, as compared to general American parents who might pay more attention to the importance of innate ability. One would assume that Chinese par- ents who have lived in the U.S. for many years may combine their Chinese traditionalbeliefs and practices with what is valued in the American culture.
There is an abundance of research on culture and parenting styles and their influences on children’s academic outcomes, in and out of the U.S. (Chan & Moore, 2006; Dandy & Nettelbeck, 2002a; Glasgow, Dornbusch, Troyer, Steinberg, & Ritter, 1997; Leung, Lau, & Lam, 1998; Rubin & Chung, 2006; Stewart, Bond, Abdullah, & Ma, 2000; Wu etal., 2002). There has been little research, however, that has specifically focused on the beliefs and practices of parents of gifted Chinese American students. This is remarkable given the fact that some proportion of the high percentage of Asian American students in gifted programs in U.S. schools are Chinese (Kitano & DiJiosia, 2000; Plucker, 1996). Most of the existing studies have focused...