Acculturation and educational involvement among Chinese immigrant parents: The mediating role of emotional well-being

Abstract

Acculturation and parental educational involvement, life satisfaction, and depression are intertwined in Chinese immigrant families. This study investigated the relationship between Chinese immigrant parents’ acculturation and educational involvement, with a particular focus on examining the mediating effects of their life satisfaction and depression on this relationship. Participants were 250 Chinese immigrant parents (M_age = 43.32 years, SD = 6.04; 76% female) of middle or high school children. The parents completed surveys about acculturation regarding mainstream acquisition (i.e., English proficiency and American cultural acquisition) and heritage maintenance (i.e., Chinese proficiency and Chinese cultural maintenance). Parents also reported their educational involvement (i.e., school, home, and community involvement), life satisfaction, and depression. Results showed that parental English proficiency (β = .18, p = .039), American cultural acquisition (β = .26, p < .001), and Chinese proficiency (β = .13, p = .044) were positively related to their school involvement. Parental English proficiency (β = .24, p = .005) was positively related to home involvement. American cultural acquisition (β = .25, p < .001) and Chinese proficiency (β = .16, p = .010) were positively related to parents’ community involvement. Parental English proficiency (β = .36, p < .001) was positively associated with life satisfaction, and English proficiency (β = -.20, p = .033) and American cultural acquisition (β = -.21, p = .003) were negatively related to depression. Moreover, parental life satisfaction mediated the relationship between English proficiency and home involvement (95% CI [.02, .14]). Parental depression mediated the association between American cultural acquisition and community involvement (95% CI [.01, .08]). This study contributes to a holistic and nuanced understanding of Chinese immigrant parents’ educational involvement in their cultural and psychological contexts.