Family Remains Key to Cultural Identity After 18

Mom and dad will be happy.  Even after children turn 18, they still cling to the cultural traditions and learnings from their youth.  Cultural education remains a key facet of parenting.

According to a new study from San Francisco State University,

The formative years don’t stop at 18 according to a new study that found the actions and lifestyle of the family continue to influence whether young adults embrace their ethnicity and take pride in their roots. Published in the Journal of Adolescence, the study of young adults between the ages of 18 and 30 found that those whose families continue to teach them about their ethnic background had a greater sense of ethnic identity.

Individuals whose families actively share cultural customs and traditions with them, celebrating Chinese New Year for example, reported feeling more attached to their ethnic group and spent more time exploring their heritage.

The study surveyed more than 200 adults between the ages of 18-30 from a variety of different ethnic and racial backgrounds. 

While the good news is cultural identity stays with adolescents, values may not:

The study found that the family’s role in communicating cultural practices and traditions had a greater influence on young adults’ exploration of their ethnicity compared with whether they adopted values associated with their ethnic group. “Parents may be effective in prompting their children to find out more about their culture but they can’t necessarily instill the values of their culture,” Juang said.

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