Major
Psychology
Anticipated Graduation Year
2024
Access Type
Open Access
Abstract
This qualitative study investigates the role that familism plays in how Latinx caregivers raise bilingual children. 31 semi-structured interviews with Latinx parents ( explored parenting strategies used to promote bilingualism in children. Interview transcripts (i.e., written records) were thematically coded and analyzed, revealing several themes regarding caregivers’ values and practices in navigating bilingual parenting. Caregivers expressed values such as an obligation to instill bilingualism in their children to uphold tradition and a need to maintain relationships within their extended family network. Interviews revealed caregivers’ practices of teaching bilingualism as well. Caregivers conveyed a dependence on extended family members to expose their children to Spanish, while also using their personal language experiences within their family context to influence how they promote bilingualism in their children. These findings demonstrate the significant influence of familism on caregivers’ values of bilingualism and the practices they employ to teach their children to be bilingual.
Community Partners
Loyola University Chicago
Faculty Mentors & Instructors
Danieli Mercado Ramos, M.A. Department of Developmental Psychology; Perla B. Gámez, PhD Department of Developmental Psychology
Supported By
Loyola University Bilingual Language Development Lab
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
The Role of Familism in Raising Bilingual Children
This qualitative study investigates the role that familism plays in how Latinx caregivers raise bilingual children. 31 semi-structured interviews with Latinx parents ( explored parenting strategies used to promote bilingualism in children. Interview transcripts (i.e., written records) were thematically coded and analyzed, revealing several themes regarding caregivers’ values and practices in navigating bilingual parenting. Caregivers expressed values such as an obligation to instill bilingualism in their children to uphold tradition and a need to maintain relationships within their extended family network. Interviews revealed caregivers’ practices of teaching bilingualism as well. Caregivers conveyed a dependence on extended family members to expose their children to Spanish, while also using their personal language experiences within their family context to influence how they promote bilingualism in their children. These findings demonstrate the significant influence of familism on caregivers’ values of bilingualism and the practices they employ to teach their children to be bilingual.