Doctoral Dissertation Research--Bringing Culture Back In: Cultural Assimilation and the Second Generation in the Global City

纽约市和伦敦这两个全球性城市的移民青少年子女是如何在文化上同化的？在纽约和伦敦这两个多民族社区，文化同化又意味着什么？ 以往对移民同化的研究主要集中在政治、经济和社会同化，以及教育和种族认同。然而，没有一个主要的研究强调移民第二代青年的文化同化过程，这是本文的重点。 本文分为三个部分，都与文化同化有关。 首先，它着眼于第二代文化的哪些方面-消费，对教育的态度，行为模式和信仰-与种族有关。 本项目通过对青少年文化选择和行为的实证研究，对文化总是与种族相关的普遍假设提出质疑。 其次，本文探讨了当地环境在塑造第二代青年文化同化过程中是否具有重要意义，或者青年文化的全球化是否使伦敦和纽约的青年更加相似而不是不同。 换句话说，文化的哪些方面更具有地方性、全球性和种族性？ 最后，本研究探讨青少年所汲取的文化剧目，以及这些剧目的文化表达对青少年的意义。 为了回答这些关于第二代移民青年文化的问题，我将在伦敦和纽约市的两所多民族中学进行民族志研究。 我将进行20次采访，每一个第二代非洲裔加勒比，第二代印度，和本地白色学生在每所学校。 最后，我会要求100名学生在每所学校完成调查。 因此，我计划进行120次深度访谈，200次调查，以及两份学校人种志--一半在伦敦，一半在纽约市。 该项目的更广泛影响包括：研究对制定学校教育和教师培训模式具有影响，这些模式可以最好地为日益普遍的多民族环境中的儿童服务。 该项目将使教师、家长和决策者更好地了解青年文化及其与儿童如何参与学校活动的关系，方法是深入了解以下问题：青少年的风格与他/她对教育的态度之间的关系是什么？ 学校和教师应该如何理解文化风格？ 什么样的文化脚本或行为，如果有的话，可能会导致某些群体（非洲裔加勒比人在英国，非洲裔美国人在美国，男孩在这两个国家），以成绩不佳，在多大程度上做哪些文化假设的教师和管理人员有助于这种成绩不佳？ 什么样的文化工具可以教给成绩不佳的群体，以提高他们的学业成绩，什么样的专业发展将有助于教师帮助学生？ 个别学校的研究网站将受益于学习他们的学生如何看待他们的文化身份，特别是他们对教育的态度，对成功的感觉，以及取得成就的技能。

How are teenaged children of immigrants in the global cities of New York City and London assimilating culturally, and what does cultural assimilation even mean in the multiethnic neighborhoods of New York and London? Previous studies of immigrant assimilation have focused on political, economic, and social assimilation, as well as education and ethnic identity. However, no major study has emphasized the process of cultural assimilation for immigrant second generation youth, which is the focus of this dissertation. This dissertation has three components, all related to cultural assimilation. First, it looks at which aspects of the second generation's culture-consumption, attitudes toward education, modes of behavior, and beliefs-are linked to ethnicity. This project questions the common assumption that culture is always ethnicity-linked, by empirically looking at teenagers' cultural choices and behaviors. Second, this dissertation asks whether the local context matters significantly in shaping the cultural assimilation process for second generation youth, or if the globalization of youth culture has made youth in London and New York more similar than different. In other words, which aspects of culture are more local, more global, and more ethnicity-based? Finally, this dissertation research examines the cultural repertoires from which youth draw and the meanings their cultural expressions have for them. In order to answer these questions about second generation immigrant youth culture, I will conduct ethnographic research in two multiethnic secondary schools-one in London and one in New York City. I will conduct 20 interviews each with second generation Afro-Caribbean, second generation Indian, and native White students in each school. Finally, I will ask 100 students to complete surveys in each school. Thus I plan to obtain a total of 120 in-depth interviews, 200 surveys, and two school ethnographies-half in London and half in New York City. This project's broader impacts include the following: The research has implications for developing models of schooling and teacher training that can best serve children in multi-ethnic environments, which are increasingly prevalent. The project will provide teachers, parents, and policymakers greater understanding of youth culture and its relationship with how children engage with school by providing insights into such questions as: What is the relationship between a teenager's style and his/her attitudes toward education? How should cultural styles be understood by schools and teachers? What cultural scripts or behaviors, if any, might be causing certain groups (Afro-Caribbeans in the UK, African Americans in the US, boys in both countries) to underachieve, and to what extent do which cultural assumptions of teachers and administrators contribute to that underachievement? What cultural tools could be taught to underachieving groups to improve their academic achievement, and what types of professional development will help teachers help students? The individual school research sites will benefit from learning how their students think about their cultural identities, especially their attitudes toward education, feelings about success, and skills for achievement.