Influences of muticultures from second generation such as Essay

Influences of muticultures from second generation such as Korean-American on self-constructing - Essay Example They often feel confused about their identity. This has been of particular interest and has prompted me to study whether own culture has a stronger influence in self-formation or one gets influenced by the culture in which one has grown up. According to Hofstede, culture is something that is learned and therefore is embedded in a society or nation (Wong, Everett & Nicholson, 2008). It is a mental programming that is developed early in life and reinforced later through the process of socialization. Even the natural act of thinking is modified by culture. Culture has a deep impact on the life of people and hence it provides a structured and highly consistent way of living that is not deliberately constructed. Culture is an underlying system that shapes personality traits and behaviors. The period between 18 to 25 years of age is the time when young adults develop a subjective sense of identity through experimentation and explorations (Xu, Shim, Lotz & Almeida, 2004). This period is very critical for the young adults as the ethnic identity of the young forms and develops during this period. The ethnic identity, defined as the individual’s sense of self within an ethnic group, becomes an integral part of the ethnic young adults social identity and a vital component of his or her self-concept or self-image. Furedi (2007) while discussing how the culture of fear is formed, states that people vary greatly in how much culture they apply in their lives. This determines the kind of people they will become. This process of ‘self-forming’ draws from the symbolic resources of the wider culture. Habits of thought and feeling influence the way individuals make sense of their experience. Bilingualism is common among the immigrants in America. A study of the second generation Asian Americans revealed that bilingualism impacts academic achievement and social mobility (Mouw & Xie, 1999). Replacing the immigrant language by English has provoked sentiments from the