Paper exploring the decisions that these children of Korean immigrants make to gain membership in either Korean or American communities.
creator
Kim, Jinna J. E.
Title
Limitations of Second-generation Korean Americans’ Ethnic Options: Strategy, Labor, and Reward
supporting host
Grinnell College. Sociology Department.
supporting host
Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Symposium 2017
Index Date
2017
Date Issued
2017-05-20
Publisher
Grinnell College
Type of Resource
text
Genre
research paper
Digital Origin
reformated digital
Digital Extent
19 pages
Media Type
application/pdf
description
According to a recent Pew study, Korean Americans are most likely to have a majority, if not all of their friends from the same ethnic heritage, when compared to other U.S. Asian groups. What explains their preference for ethnically homogenous social networks? The existing studies on Korean American acculturation focus on the first generation immigrants and the role of religion and churches in these communities, but research on other aspects of the Korean community in the United States has been neglected. This project shifts the focus away from traditional research on first-generation Koreans’ affinity with the church and instead highlights the implications of their homogenous social relationships on our understanding of race and ethnicity in the U.S, with a particular focus on young Korean-Americans. Through in-depth interviews with six second-generation Korean Americans in the Seattle area, this research offers a deeper understanding of the decisions that these children of immigrants make to gain membership in either Korean or American communities. More specifically, the interviews reveal the work involved with and reward received through selective ethnic relationships, and the limited but strategic “option” of adopting or accentuating one’s Koreanness. My findings suggest that second-generation Korean Americans’ ethnic identity management entails both burdensome labor and calls for a redefinition of Americanness.
Language
English
Topic
Children of immigrants.
Topic
Korean Americans
Topic
Cultural assimilation.
Topic
Americanization,
Topic
Assimilation (Sociology).
Geographic
Washington - Seattle
Geographic
United States.
Temporal
21st Century
Keyword
Second generation children.
Classification
E184.K6
Related Item
Digital Grinnell
Related Item
Student Scholarship
Related Item
Undergraduate Student Symposium
Identifier (local)
grinnell:18958
Access Condition
Copyright to this work is held by the author(s), in accordance with United States copyright law (USC 17). Readers of this work have certain rights as defined by the law, including but not limited to fair use (17 USC 107 et seq.).
