Shopping Cultures

Second-generation Chinese American youths face the dilemma of negotiating between traditional Chinese culture and mainstream American culture. This book explores this social issue through examinining their patterns of dating attitudes and behaviors. Based on an analysis of 20 in-depth interviews, this study finds that respondents use both Chinese and American lenses to construct their dating attitudes and behaviors. Chinese and American dating are constructed as oppositional among the respondents. When discussing parents' roles, commitment, premarital sex, and gender expectations, the second-generation Chinese American youths pick and choose from their constructions of Chinese and American dating cultures. In so doing, they attempts to present a positive image of themselves in front of both Chinese and American dating cultures, thus invent a "positive" culture of dating. This book is of interest to sociologists, psychologists, and relationship therapists who are interested in Asian American youths.