Psychology Commons^™

Through A Cultural Lens: The Association Between Parentification And Identity Development In Relation To Ethnicity, Jasmine A. Garcia

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Expectations of children to perform parenting tasks above their development level, a phenomenon known as parentification, is said to be destructive in western literature. However, in other cultures, children taking on some parenting duties may not be considered a detriment but rather an attribute of filial responsibility. The current study examined the relationships between identity distress and parentification as it differs by culture. A comparison of parentification by ethnicity revealed that individuals who did not classify as an ethnic minority experienced significant levels of identity distress compared to ethnic minority individuals regarding parentification. This variation may be attributed to elements …