Family Adjustments and Parental Behaviour Among Mixed Marriage Families

The primary purpose of the study was to determine the family adjustments and parental behaviour among mixed marriage families in Malaysia. The study also examined the association between selected factors of parental characteristics (age, sex, level of education, employment status and length of marriage), child personal characteristics (age and sex) and family contexts (number of children, family income, total household size and social support) with family adjustments (oneway selforiented, oneway spouse-oriented and mixed) as well as parental behaviour (authoritarian, authoritative and permissive). In addition, the study investigated factors that uniquely contribute to various family adjustments and parental behaviour. Sample comprised 372 mixed marriage couples with children age 5 to 12 years who were chosen purposively for the study. Data were collected by interviews based on a standardized questionnaire. Family adjustments were assessed using the 'Family Adjustment Scale' by Rozumah and Rumaya (2000), while parental behaviour was measured based on a scale by Edwards (2000). Results showed that there was almost equal distribution (oneway self-oriented=38.9%, oneway spouse-oriented=28.9% and mixed=32.2%) of types of family adjustments adopt by the respondents, with slightly more (38.9%) reporting oneway self-oriented adjustment in daily and customary activities. Majority (40.1%) of the mixed marriage parents also reported to have authoritative parental behaviour. Chi-square test of independence revealed that parent's age (X²=13.07, P≤.05), sex (X²=9.67, P≤.0.1), level of education (X²=8.55, P≤.05), employment status (X²=7.57, P≤.05) and length of marriage (X²=26.35, P≤.001) were significantly associated with family adjustments. On the other hand, education level (X²=9.37, P≤.05), employment status (X²=5.25, P≤.05) and total family income (X²=33.l7, p≤.001) were also dependent on parental behaviour. In the bivariate analyses, it was noted that parents with female target child (r=-0.18, P≤.05) and higher family income (r=0.18, P≤.05) were more self-oriented in their family adjustment. Respondents who were more educated (r=0.23, P≤.05), earned higher income (r=0.35, p≤.001) and perceived more supportive social network (r=0.28, P≤.001) were more likely to exhibit oneway spouse-oriented family adjustment

Inter-ethnic and mono-ethnic families: examining the association of parenting and child emotional and behavioural adjustment

Literature suggests that inter-ethnic children are not only one of the fastest growing populations in the last decade, but also show a higher prevalence of risk factor for poor outcomes, including family breakdown, academic underachievement and psychology maladjustment. The present research explores whether ethnicallymixed children are less well psychologically adjusted when compared to children from mono-ethnic families. Findings are reported from a study on the emotional and behavioural adjustments of children from 218 interethnic Malay-Chinese and 214 mono-ethnic Malay and Chinese families in Malaysia. The centrality of familial ethnicity status (inter vs. mono), parental relationships quality, and parenting behaviour were also explored as correlates of children’s psychological adjustment. Mother-child dyads were sampled for the survey and standardized self-administered questionnaires were utilised. In this sample of Malaysian families, multivariate analysis revealed that parental ethnicity mix, the quality of their marital relationships, and parenting behaviour predicted whether or not the children were emotionally and behaviourally adjusted. Overall, children from mixed parentage reported fewer emotional and behavioural problems than those from mono-ethnic minority families. The current study challenges traditional assumptions towards inter-ethnic families and shows that children of mixed-parentage may not be at risk of emotional and behavioural problems, as previously suggested. The findings have important implications for children development and interventions, with children of mixedparentage in today’s changing families

Intercultural marriage in Sarawak : motivational factors.

Using data gathered from 240 intercultural-married respondents in Sarawak, this study examines motivational factors for intercultural marriage. A 10-item Likert scale adapted from Lewis and Yancey (1997) was used to measure motivational factors to marry inter-culturally. Findings revealed that respondents who earned higher income were not motivated by racial factors such as the uniqueness of intercultural marriage, attractiveness of other races and communication when choosing their partner. Interestingly, those who emphasized on non-racial factors such as love, shared interest, and similar economic status, were also found to consider racial related factors in spouse selection process. To conclude, intercultural-married individuals in the study seemed to be motivated by both racial and non-racial factors to decide upon their marriage

The relationship between parental belief on filial piety and child psychosocial adjustment among Malay families

This study examines the relationship between parental belief on filial piety and child psychosocial adjustment among Malay families. The study sample comprised 108 mother-child dyads of Malay families from the central zone of Peninsular Malaysia. Data were collected using structured questionnaires. Parental belief was measured using Parental Belief Scale, while child psychosocial adjustment was measured using Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Results showed that children whose parents believed in filial piety had significantly lower levels of total difficulties in behavioural, emotional symptoms, conduct problem, and hyperactivity or inattention. Findings implied that filial piety could be used as a positive measure of behavioural and emotional control of a child. Therefore, it is important for parents to nurture their children about filial piety expectations so as to provide them with moral education associated with positive psychosocial adjustment

Perceived parental warmth and depression in early adolescents: path analysis on the role of self-esteem as a mediator

The prevalence of depression in Malaysia instigated the twofold objectives of the present study. First, the relationship between perceived parental warmth, self-esteem and depression was examined, followed by the exploration on the role of self-esteem as a mediator between perceived parental warmth and depression among early adolescents. The model for early adolescent's depression was guided by Beck's cognitive theory of depression and parental acceptance-rejection theory. A total of 1394 adolescents aged 13 to 15 years, who reported living with both married and biological parents, provided complete self-report data on the measures (Conger's subscale for parental warmth, Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, Beck Depression Inventory for Malays) for the three observed variables (namely, perceived parental warmth, self-esteem and depression). In order to determine the role of self-esteem as a mediator, Pearson correlation was first conducted to ensure that the initial variable (perceived parental warmth) was related to the outcome (depression) and mediator (self-esteem) variable as suggested by Baron and Kenny (1986). Path analysis was then employed to establish the mediating effect of self-esteem. Results revealed that the data from the study fitted the model and that perceived parental warmth had an indirect effect on depression through self-esteem. Findings also revealed that self-esteem was a complete mediator in the relationship between perceived parental warmth and depression. Implications for the alternative approach in preventing depression were further discussed

SEXUAL COMPATIBILITY AND MARITAL SATISFACTION AMONG MARRIED COUPLES IN MALAYSIA: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF SEXUAL SATISFACTION

The 13th Next-Generation Global Workshop第13回次世代グローバルワークショップテーマ: New Risks and Resilience in Asian Societies and the World 日程: 21-23 November, 2020 開催場所: ベトナム社会科学院(ハノイ)/Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences(No. 1 Lieu Giai street, Ba Dinh, Hanoi, Vietnam) ※Due to the COVID-19, the workshop will be held at ONLINE for overseas participants(not from Vietnam)/ONSITE for Vietnamese participants.The sample consisted of 255 married couples (Mage=31.17; SDage=11.07; 56.5% females; 87.8% Chinese, 7.5% Indian, 3.5% Malays and 1.2% other ethnicities) recruited online through the convenience sampling method. The married couples completed a self-administered online questionnaire that included the ENRICH Marital Satisfaction Scale (EMS; Fowers & Olson, 1993), the Index of Sexual Satisfaction (ISS; Hudson, 1998), and the Hurlbert Index of Sexual Compatibility (HISC; Hurlbert et al., 1993).Significant positive relationships were found between marital satisfaction, sexual compatibility (r= .686, p< .001) and sexual satisfaction (r= .711, p< .001). Meanwhile, the findings of a mediation analysis showed that sexual satisfaction mediated the direct association between sexual compatibility and marital satisfaction. The results suggested that the married couples who were sexually compatible tended to be more satisfied with their sexual relationships which in turn led to greater marital satisfaction for them.As a conclusion, the findings from this research highlighted the importance of the sexual aspects in determining a satisfactory married life among couples in Malaysia. The results also served as a vital input for designing couple counselling interventions among practitioners in health psychology

Socio-demographic characteristics of intercultural marriage: a study of a multi-ethnic community in Malaysia

Due to increased levels of social contact and loosening of traditional social norms between peoples from different races and religious backgrounds in South East Asia, there has been arise in the prevalence of intercultural marriages over the past fifty years (Hassan &Benjamin, 1973; Djamour, 1965; Kuo & Hassan, 1976). Despite the cultural diversity inMalaysia, systematic research on intercultural marriage, specifically concentrating onintercultural marriages among the Malay Bumiputras (natives), Chinese, Indians and Other Bumiputras and their socio-demographic characteristics, are still lacking. This study thusexplored the socio-demographic characteristics of intercultural marriages among Malay,Chinese, Indian and Other Bumiptura mixed-married couples from Malaysia. Based ondata from 357 mixed-married couples, significant differences were found betweenhusbands’ and wives’ personal characteristics, namely religion-of-origin, current age, age-at-marriage, and personal income. Results from Cramer’s V test of association further showed a significant association between the husband-wife ethnic background and their religion-of-origin, indicating that intercultural marriages in Malaysia also tend to be inter-religious marriages. Findings provide support for the theory of homogeneity and structuraltheory. The paper discusses the impact of ethnic and religious factors on variations insocio-demographic characteristics between intercultural couples

Role of gender in perceived stress and adjustment among adolescents in Malaysia

Background: Stress is a highly unpleasant state of emotional arousal that may relates to adjustment problems such as depression, anxiety, aggression and performance in school. This study aimed to determine the role of gender in the relationship between perceived stress and adjustment among adolescents in metropolitan and urbanized cities of Malaysia. Methods: A total of 441 school-going adolescents aged between 13 and 17 years from 15 secondary schools were selected as respondents of the study by using multistage cluster sampling method with Probability Proportional to Size (PPS) sampling technique. Results: Findings of the study indicated that adolescents with low level of stress of home life, low level of stress of peer pressure and school/leisure conflict had significantly better emotional and school functioning. T-test analysis revealed significant difference in emotional functioning between male and female respondents. Multivariate analyses revealed that gender moderated the relationship between stress experiences and adjustment. Conclusion: In conclusion, stress has a negative influence on adolescents’ adjustment. Female adolescents are more affected by stress than males

Computer-mediated communication use among adolescents and its implication for psychological need satisfaction

Online self-disclosure and online communication are two communication behaviours that, on the basis of prior research and theory, would appear to be related both to one another and to psychological need satisfaction. This study explored these relationships among a sample of 190 secondary school students drawn from a district in Malaysia. Respondents completed a questionnaire battery, which included measures of online self-disclosure, online communication and psychological need satisfaction. Quantitative data were then entered and analysed via Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The results demonstrated that adolescents disclosed more during same-sex interaction than opposite-sex interaction. The findings also showed a positive relationship between online communication and same-sex disclosure for adolescent girls, but not necessarily for boys. Hierarchical regression analyses confirmed that for male and female adolescents, same-sex disclosure, opposite-sex disclosure and online communication were found to be predictive of adolescents' experiences of psychological need satisfaction in online friendships. No interaction effect was found between online self-disclosure and online communication on psychological need satisfaction. The contribution of this study is two-fold. First, currently, little research exists examining the association between online self-disclosure, online communication and psychological need satisfaction in a single published study. Second, we extend previous research with a more nuanced understanding of psychological need satisfaction embedded in the context of CMC

The usage of sexual internet media and sexual behaviour among sexually experienced adolescents in Malaysia: sexual intention as a mediator

This study examines the relationships between the use of sexually explicit material, sexual intention, and sexual behaviour in a sample of 189 sexually experienced adolescents (aged 16-17) in Malaysia. Additionally, this study investigates the mediating role of sexual intention on the relationship between the use of Sexual Explicit Internet Media (SEIM) and sexual behaviour. A self-administered questionnaire focusing on the use of SEIM scale, Youth Pre-coital and Sexual Intentions Scale, and Sexual Behaviour Assessment measured adolescents' use of SEIM, sexual intention, and sexual behaviour. The results demonstrate that the use of SEIM positively correlates with adolescents' sexual intention and sexual behaviour. Increasing engagements in sexually-related behaviour reveal an increase in sexual intentions. Findings also denote that higher exposure to SEIM promotes sexual intention, which in turn increases engagement in sexually-related behaviour. In the attempt to control sexual arousal among adolescents, prevention and intervention programmes which deal with sexuality should consider the role of Internet media and the development of healthy cognitive processes