Socialization Goals of Immigrant Mothers from Diverse Cultures and of Their Children’s Preschool Teachers in Italy

This study investigated and compared the socialization goals and values of first-generation immigrant mothers in Italy and of their children’s preschool teachers. Seventy-eight mothers of four major migrant groups—Romanian, Moroccan, Nigerian, and Sri Lankan—and 21 Italian teachers were interviewed...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of cross-cultural psychology 2016-02, Vol.47 (2), p.197-214
Main Authors: Lavelli, Manuela, Döge, Paula, Bighin, Mara
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acculturation
Attitudes
Autonomy
Caregivers
Content analysis
Correspondence analysis
Cultural Background
Cultural differences
Culture
Early Childhood Teachers
Identity
Italy
Mothers
Objectives
Preschool children
Preschool teachers
Relatedness
Religion
Social identity
Social integration
Social norms
Socialization
Sri Lankan people
Teachers
Values
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This study investigated and compared the socialization goals and values of first-generation immigrant mothers in Italy and of their children’s preschool teachers. Seventy-eight mothers of four major migrant groups—Romanian, Moroccan, Nigerian, and Sri Lankan—and 21 Italian teachers were interviewed about the most important things they want their children to learn or achieve in their life. A thematic content analysis of the interviews yielded nine categories of socialization goals that were differentially emphasized by mothers and teachers. All immigrant mothers emphasized the value of goals associated with hierarchical relatedness, particularly Respect for Adults, Religious Practice, and Sense of Family and Original Culture. However, correspondence analysis showed that the mothers’ views tended to conglomerate in clusters with those of mothers of the same cultural background, indicating some differences between the four groups that might shed light on different acculturation processes. The Italian teachers focused on goals pertaining to individual psychological autonomy (Autonomy Identity), Social Integration, and Respect for Social Rules, showing a considerable distance from the immigrant mothers’ main goals. These findings provide empirical evidence that children of first-generation immigrant families experience caregivers at home and in preschool with divergent goals for their development. This has important practical implications, suggesting the need for action to increase the mutual understanding of caregivers with different cultural backgrounds.
ISSN:0022-0221
1552-5422
DOI:10.1177/0022022115616870