Article summary of The reconstruction of parenting after migration: A perspective from cultural translation by de Haan - 2011

What is the problem with the classic theories of acculturation?

Acculturation is often described as something that can be measured along two dimensions: the degree to which migrants hold on to the country of origin versus the degree to which they seek contact with the host culture. Transformation is then seen as a matter of degree of adaptation to the new culture, or leaving behind the old culture. However, the cultures are not mutually exclusive. They don´t have sharp boundaries as such and cultures merge and are re-invented.

How do Berry et al. (1986) conceptualize acculturation?

Berry´s typology of acculturation distinguishes four categories that describe how immigrants adapt socially, psychologically and academically to their new societies. The categories are assimilation, separation, integration and marginalization. Immigrants can either hold on to their old culture in varying degrees or ¨become like¨ the new culture.

What criticisms can be given to Berry´s taxonomy?

The complexity of the process of acculturation needs to be addressed:

• Immigrants can hold on to certain aspects of their culture and at the same time adopt new values and practices.
• Acculturation can develop at a different rate and to different degrees for different domains of acculturation, depending on the nature of the contact with the new culture.
• Acculturation is multivariate and modular.
• The confrontation of the two cultures can lead to new cultural practices that are different from the ones that previously existed.

What is a hybrid cultural identity?

Cultural identities can be viewed as hybrid in nature, given that the self is formed in the process of interaction with others and that multiple forces operate together in the formation of these new identities. The self and new identities are produced by encounters with others.

What is cultural translation?

Cultural translation is the practice of translation while respecting and showing cultural differences. Cultural translation cannot happen without changing the original meaning, because it is not the appropriation of a foreign culture to the new culture nor a reproduction reflecting the world view of the other. Instead, it is a dynamic interaction within which conceptual boundaries are expanded and residual differences respected. 

How can migration influence parenting traditions?

Migration can cause stress (through loss of status, economic struggles, etc.) and difficulties with developing effective parenting strategies in the new culture. In other cases, parenting can change form after migration. Some describe the rise of the modern model of childhood which has its base in economic and social developments (e.g. smaller families, more schooling) and is characterized by egalitarian relationships and independency of the child (instead of obedience and interdependency in the traditional model of childhood). In reality there are more than just these two ¨outcomes¨. There is not just a continuation of traditional parenting or a simple assimilation with modernized parenting. Migration should be viewed as a catalyst of complex changes.

How can continuation of traditional parenting be in fact a reaction to migration?

In some cases, continuation of traditional parenting is born out of the tension between the new and the old parenting practices. Immigrant parents can struggle with the freedom and independency of their children in the new culture and experience the new culture as being unsafe. This may lead them to keep their children under tight control and be extremely vigilant in monitoring their children's friendships and free activities.

How can migration lead to new hybrid parenting practices?

New family models can develop through the confrontation of different parenting models in trans-local migratory settings. In urban settings, material interdependencies in the family decrease, but the emotional and psychological interdependency remains. This leads to a hybrid model in which the autonomy of the child is combined with closely knit family ties, and the child's autonomy is fostered without giving up on family interdependency.

How can cultural translation function as an analytical model to understand the confrontation between different parenting practices?

In terms of cultural translation, migration causes a tension between various culturally different worlds and associated practices. This tension makes both traditions seem unstable, but also allows parents to attach new meaning to them. It puts parents in a unique position to redefine their parenting as one that can have qualities from different cultures (e.g. liberal and based on moral guidance). Through their confrontation, both parenting practices are transformed so that their result is not a perfect translation, but more a reformulation of both cultures.

What are residues?

As both cultures cannot be fully understood in each other´ s terms, residues remain. Residues are those parts that fall outside of the act of translation due to a lack of common language, rules or viewpoints. They can be seen as conflicts that can transform into isolated spaces and, through its tensions, form the energy for new confrontations and new translations. An example is the impasse a father may feel when having to let go of disciplinary practices (e.g. ¨you cannot spank your child in this country¨). He cannot translate his previous parenting practice into a new practice and so his disciplinary parenting technique is on hold, reflecting a residue.