PATTERNS OF ADAPTATION AND SURVIVAL AMONG VIETNAMESE IN AN URBAN SETTING: A STUDY OF FAMILY AND GENDER (PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA)

Abstract

This is a study of a group of recently arrived Vietnamese refugees. Qualitative research methods--participant-observation and in-depth interviewing--were used to gather data for the study. The study sample included twelve Vietnamese households living in the city of Philadelphia. The study examines the group\u27s strategies or methods of adaptation and coping with the social-cultural environment of the dominant society. It is shown that these strategies are collective and familial in nature. A traditional family system organizes, defines and gives cultural meaning and legitimacy to the cooperative relationships upon which these strategies are based. The study also examines the shifting and evolving gender experiences of the group. It shows that traditional notions of gender remain of significance to the Vietnamese women and men. This is so, despite the challenges and potential for change posed by the alternative model of gender within the dominant popular culture. It is suggested that the persistence of traditional, male dominant patterns of gender is related to the continued material and cultural relevance of the traditional family system for the Vietnamese. In addition, the contacts and relationships of the Vietnamese women with the institutions of the dominant society tend to reinforce their traditional experience of gender and their dependence on the traditional family system