Mexican-American and Anglo-American mothers' beliefs and values about child rearing, education, and language impairment

• Published in: American journal of speech-language pathology Vol. 12; no. 4; p. 452
• Main Authors: Rodriguez, Barbara L, Olswang, Lesley B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01-11-2003
• Subjects: Adult; Attitude; Child; Child Rearing; Cultural Diversity; Culture; Education; European Continental Ancestry Group; Female; Humans; Language Disorders; Mexican Americans; Middle Aged; Mothers - psychology; Social Values; Surveys and Questionnaires
• ISSN: 1058-0360
• DOI: 10.1044/1058-0360(2003/091)

This study investigated the cross-cultural and intra cultural diversity of mothers' beliefs and values regarding child rearing, education, and the causes of language impairment. Thirty Mexican-American and 30 Anglo-American mothers of children with language impairments completed 2 questionnaires, and 10 randomly selected mothers from each group participated in an interview. In addition, the Mexican-American mothers completed an acculturation rating scale. Results indicated that Mexican-American mothers held more strongly traditional, authoritarian, and conforming educational and child rearing beliefs and values than Anglo-American mothers. Mexican-American mothers cited extrinsic attributes as the cause of their children's language impairment, whereas Anglo-American mothers cited intrinsic attributes. Mexican-American mothers exhibited differences in their beliefs that were related to their level of acculturation to the mainstream culture.