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When East Meets West: Understanding The Misconduct Of Teenage Girls In Hong Kong, Violet Cheung

Psychology

Although acculturation towards western culture has been linked to higher levels of misconduct in previous research, little is understood about the mechanisms involved. The present study uses two mediators, early autonomy timetable and large family obligation discrepancy to explain how western values alter children’s behavior and family dynamics, that would push them towards misconduct. The sample included 138 girls (M = 13.8 years) from Hong Kong, a former British colony. Results showed that when indigenous youths adopted western values, their autonomy timetables were accelerated, which in turn manifested itself as misconduct. Meanwhile, the western acculturated youths also had a larger …