Asian Cultural Expectations, Family Conflict, and Mental Health in Asian American Adolescents: A Focus on Subgroup Differences

Hyeeun Chung, University of Maryland
Mia A. Smith-Bynum, University of Maryland

As guided by Hwang (2006)’s Acculturative Family Distancing model, this study examined the relationship between expectations of adherence to Asian cultural values, family conflict, and adolescent depressive symptoms one year later as well as subgroup differences in the relationship (Chinese vs. Filipino). A subsample of Asian American adolescents from Waves I and II of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) (N = 322) were used. Multiple regression analyses indicated that emphasis on family obligation was associated with greater depressive symptoms in the Chinese American adolescent sample (n = 121) and restricted autonomy was linked to higher levels of depressive symptoms in the Filipino American adolescent sample (n = 201). In addition, parental conflict did not mediate the relationship between Asian cultural expectations and depressive symptoms. It only had direct effect on greater depressive symptoms among Filipino American adolescents.