Suicide, Identity, and Acculturation: Study of a Social Problem Within the Hmong

Community

Presented at the UCI Undergraduate Research Symposium

By

Machiline Xiong

May 15, 2004

• ChildrenTraditional Gender Roles

Withhold Emotions

Academic Success

• Family StructureHusband Ultimate Authority

Large, Extended Families

Hmong Culture

Hmong Culture (cont.)• Respect the Elders

• Collectivism vs Individualism

• Hesitancy to use Western Resources

Reliance on Elders

Spiritual Healers

Source: Sacramento Bee

What is a Social Problem?

• A condition or issue that threatens the quality of life and the most cherished values of most people in a society, leading them to recognize and agree that something should be done to remedy that condition.

(Kornblum & Julian, 2001, p. 4)

Unless a problem is perceived or recognized as potentially harmful, there will not be a response or attempts to find a solution.

Overview of the Study• 15 participants from San Diego and Fresno Counties• Semi-structured interviews conducted

Gender 9 males

6 females

Ethnicity • 27% Non-Hmong

• 73% Hmong

Occupation • 5 Students

• 2 Media Sources

• 3 Business Professionals

• 2 School Counselors

• 3 Clinical Health Professionals

Table 1

2001 2002 2003

May 20018th Suicide

Nov. 2001Suicide

Prevention Program

Aug. 2002Media

Headlines

2002Refugee InformationExchange Conference

March 2003HND ConferenceWashington, D.C.

July 2003Assembly Bill

78

Aug. 2001Southeast

AsianMeeting

Main Research Questions• How did the string of teen suicides affect the

acculturation of the Hmong?The suicides were used by community leaders as a means to accelerate the acculturation of the Hmong.

• “Prior to us, other resources have been looked at as the enemy, but when we go with them and explain to the Hmong families what we’re doing and how we can help them to prevent future conflicts, they’re pretty receptive and they understand.”

- Clinical Health Professional

Main Research Questions (cont.)

• How might the acculturation status of the Hmong be correlated with the suicides?

Children are raised to put the interest of others first so they often carry the burden alone

• “I usually don’t talk to anyone when I’m having problems…I might tell a friend at school, but I don’t go into detail. …That’s just how I deal with it.”

- Student

Conclusions

• Immigrant community leaders can use traumatic events to facilitate acculturation

• Suicides used to present to larger audience that the Hmong had a social problem

In Summary…

• “The process of becoming an American is most simply called "Americanization," which must always be a two-way street. All Americans, not just immigrants, should understand the importance of our shared civic culture to our national community.”

(U.S. Commission on Immigrant Reform Report 1997)

Acknowledgements

• Dr. Paul Jesilow• Dr. Valerie Jenness

• Funding:UCI Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program

• Participants from San Diego and Fresno Counties

For more information, please contact:

Machiline Xiong

Department of Psychology & Social Behavior

University of California, Irvine

xiongm@uci.edu