Migrant workers enchanted with consumer society: transnationalism and global consumer culture in Bangladesh

This article reconsiders the relationship between transnationalism from above and from below, focusing on the consumer behavior of migrant workers. Although transnationalism from below may be regarded as positive resistance to dependence on nation-states and global capital, it also facilitates incorporation into global consumer cultures. This article reports how Bangladeshi return migrants have been enchanted by consumer practices in industrialized countries and have transmitted them into Bangladesh. Return migrants bring consumption habits as well as savings and remittances from industrialized countries. Returnees consequently spread consumer culture to their homelands efficiently, promoting the penetration of global capital and further migration.     

Acculturation and academic achievement of rural to urban migrant youth: The role of school satisfaction and family closeness

China's 'tidal wave' of rural to urban migration has had a tremendous impact on the educational outcomes of its children. It remains unexplored how and when do migrant children’s experience of acculturation following arrival in the place of settlement influence their academic achievement. This study used a stratified cross-sectional sample of 2412 Chinese migrant children and adolescents aged 10–18 (Mean = 14, 45 % female) to investigate the role of school satisfaction and family closeness in the relationship between acculturation patterns and academic achievement. Acculturation patterns are derived from the bidimensional model proposed by Berry (2005). The results indicated that integration had a positive association with concurrent academic achievement. School satisfaction was a mediator between integration and academic achievement. Furthermore, the full mediation of school satisfaction was only supported when there was a high level of family closeness. Findings from this study underline the usefulness of the bi-dimensional model in understanding the individual differences in academic achievement and suggest greater attention to the cultural variations in interpersonal functioning at the family and school context.     

Our city of colours: queer/Asian publics in transpacific Vancouver

This article examines the contested relation between discourses of ethnic subjectivity and queer critique of homophobia and transphobia in Vancouver, a transpacific city in Canada that is being touted as “the most Asian city outside of Asia.” I analyse the perceived association of Chinese communities with moral conservatism and the concomitant existence of a vibrant queer Asian cultural scene in the city as a discursive clash between two cultural publics. I examine the underlying dynamics of their antagonism as well as their potential for mutual engagement.     

Caught between empire and occupation: censorship,deimperialization, and Koreans in postwar Japan

ABSTRACT

The collapse of the Japanese Empire in 1945 plunged East Asia into a state of flux and upheaval, making necessary the redrawing of geopolitical borders and the redefining the “boundaries” of nationality, language, and legal status. As part of this broader process, Koreans in occupied postwar Japan, via the platform of the magazine Democratic Korea (Minshu Chōsen), advocated for a joint process of decolonization and deimperialization whereby both Koreans and Japanese could construct a society free of imperial hierarchies. U.S. Military Occupation policy and censorship, however, thwarted these efforts and disallowed the possibility for the inclusion of a Korean subjectivity within the space of the Japanese nation. Facing intense political pressure, Koreans in Japan started to shift toward a “non-national” Zainichi Korean subjectivity distinct from the two Korean-nation states established in 1948. Further, through analyzing the case of Koreans in occupied Japan, this article sheds light on the broader impact of occupation censorship on postwar Japanese society and how the post-imperial transition to a nation-state model was a tumultuous one.     

Creative labor as moral and ethical subjects and its limitation: Creative City Yokohama,Japan

This study aims to reconsider and re-evaluate the rapid circulation of global creative city policy from the viewpoint of its creative workforce by focusing on the case of Yokohama, Japan. To shed light on this workforce’s everyday experiences and labor subjectivity, this investigation draws ideas from recent research trends of “creative labor” from the field of media and cultural studies, sociology of work, and political economy of communication. Based on in-depth interviews and participant observations, this research focuses on how the ethical and moral dimensions of labor subjectivity in creative work are prominently important in explaining Yokohama workers’ everyday living and working experiences as creative labor. Unexpectedly, this study found that these moral and ethical sentiments and actions, which take on the role of retaining their labor motivation, actually limit the development of political subjects who can resist given precarious working conditions and thereby hinder them from building a collective solidarity as “workers.” Thus this investigation concludes that the creative worker’s subjectivity retreats to solely a moral dimension rather than to a political one. Through this finding, this study explores whether the articulation of moral-political and social values in the course of cultural work can evolve from creative workers’ moral and ethical sensitivities and actions.     

Acculturation strategies of multi-cultural family adolescents in South Korea: Marginalization,separation, assimilation,and integration

Little is known about acculturation strategies among multicultural family adolescents in South Korea. This study examined whether the life satisfaction of multicultural family adolescents differed by acculturation strategy. In addition, this study examined the factors that predict acculturation strategies. For this purpose, we used a one-way analysis of variance and multinomial logistic regression. The data for this study were taken from the Multi-cultural Adolescents Panel Study. The frequencies of acculturation strategies were: marginalization, 297 (18.2 %); separation, 97 (6.0 %); assimilation, 839 (51.5 %); and integration, 395 (24.3 %). The results of one-way analysis of variance showed that life satisfaction was highest for integration and decreased for assimilation, separation, and marginalization. Gender, national identity, self-esteem, resilience, parental neglect, parental acculturative stress, family support, friends’ support, and teacher support were found to be significantly associated with the categorized acculturation strategies. Based on the results, implications with suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Conditions influencing rural and town women's participation in the labor force : Some important considerations

This paper suggests that changes in the basic conditions of subsistence of Bangladeshi families, particularly increasing destitution and landlessness, are prime factors in forcing increasing numbers of rural and urban women into the wage sector of the economy. It has been found that as an initial step towards women's control over their own lives, participation in the labor force may be considered an advance for women in comparison to previous forms of labor. It is suggested, however, that the patterning of wage labor in less developed capitalist countries, to the extent that it follows Western trends, has every possibility of duplicating in Bangladesh the structures of women's exploitation and differential income earning opportunities hindering women's development in other countries, It is also suggested that traditional forms of social control legitimating and governing the subordination of women in Bangladesh are being undermined by worsening socio-economic conditions. It has been found that the traditional system controlling women's subordination, which is known as purdah, may be losing saliency for increasing numbers of rural families. This leads one to conclude that the development and extension of a wage economy brings new forms of social control involving contradictory results, exploitation, and dependence on the one hand, and changing conditions of independence and control on the other.     

Ethnic diversity and the nation state: from centralization in the age of nationalism to decentralization amidst globalization

The cause of conflict in multiethnic and multi-religious societies is not diversity in and of itself. Rather, it is one’s attitude towards diversity. Do we share political power and economic development with the regions and minority communities? Do we recognize the cultural identities of the minorities? This requires that the nation-state building process be imagined in more inclusive civic territorial lines rather than exclusive ethnic-genealogical lines. With the above as a backdrop, the article explores nation-state building and the related pursuit of economic growth in Malaysia and some parts of Southeast Asia. The article ends with a call for decentralizing power and resources, and for more research on local level governance and democracy.     

A process-oriented analysis of parent acculturation,parent socio-cultural stress,family processes,and Latina/o youth smoking and depressive symptoms

Latina/o youth in the U.S. are often characterized by elevated rates of cigarette smoking and depressive symptoms, and these rates appear to vary by youth acculturation and socio-cultural stress. Scholars suggest that parents’ cultural experiences may be important determinants of youth smoking and depressive symptoms. However, few studies have examined the influence of parent acculturation and related stressors on Latina/o youth smoking and depressive symptoms. To address this gap in the literature, in the current study we investigated how parent-reported acculturation, perceived discrimination, and negative context of reception affect youth smoking and depressive symptoms through parent reports of familism values and parenting. The longitudinal (4 waves) sample consisted of 302 Latina/o parent-adolescent dyads from Los Angeles (N = 150) and Miami (N = 152). Forty-seven percent of the adolescent sample was female (M age = 14.5 years), and 70% of the parents were mothers (M age = 41.10 years). Parents completed measures of acculturation, perceived discrimination, negative context of reception, familism values, and parenting. Youth completed measures regarding their smoking and symptoms of depression. Structural equation modeling suggested that parents’ collectivistic values (Time 1) and perceived discrimination (Time 1) predicted higher parental familism (Time 2), which in turn, predicted higher levels of positive/involved parenting (Time 3). Positive/involved parenting (Time 3), in turn, inversely predicted youth smoking (Time 4). These findings indicate that parents’ cultural experiences play important roles in their parenting, which in turn appears to influence Latino/a youth smoking. This study highlights the need for preventive interventions to attend to parents’ cultural experiences in the family (collectivistic values, familism values, and parenting) and the community (perceived discrimination).     

Psychosocial adaptation of Turkish return migrants and factors affecting their intention to remigrate to Europe: Personality,perceived discrimination,ethnic identity

The current study explores individual differences in the readaptation processes of Turkish return migrants from Western Europe, and investigates the roles that personality, satisfaction with life in the migration context, perceived discrimination, ethnic identity, and demographic variables play in the psychological and sociocultural adjustment of returnees. The factors predicting better psychological and sociocultural adaptation of returnees, and the factors causing them to have intention to remigrate to Europe, were scrutinized. The study involved 184 individuals, aged 15–72 years (M = 42), from three generations. Forty percent of returnees reported that they have intention to remigrate to Europe, this intention being predicted by host country ethnic identity and sense of belonging. Neuroticism, perceived discrimination and senses of belonging were found to be the main predictors of the psychosocial readaptation of Turkish migrants. The mediation analysis showed that psychological adaptation mediated the effect of sociocultural adaptation on the general wellbeing of return migrants. The results are discussed within the theories of acculturation.     

Becoming English: The Monro Family and Scottish Assimilation in Early-Modern England

ABSTRACT

Migrant assimilation into host societies has been the subject of intense theoretical debate, but the applicability of the resultant modelling to historical data is unclear. This article addresses that lacuna through a case-study of the assimilation trajectory of one Scottish family, the Monros, in England in the century after 1690. The Monro experience suggests that ‘classic’ assimilation modelling remains a useful, if imperfect, conceptual tool. At the same time, it acts as a counter-point to historiographical narratives about the rise of ‘Britishness’, since the main loci of this family’s identity were successively Scottish and English, but never ’British’.     

Managerial characteristics, operational observations, and small business performance: A comparison of US and Mexican ventures

To contribute to our cross-cultural understanding of small business ventures, we investigate manager reports of small business effectiveness in the United States and Mexico. We examine the influence of organizational policies, managerial characteristics, and managerial process observations on reports of business effectiveness. Data were gathered from ventures in both countries, and results showed differences in interpersonal processes, business structure, and gender. Implications for future research are given.     

Trajectories,institutions, and re-locations: a conversation on Inter-Asia outside Asia

ABSTRACT

This conversation explores the resonances of the Inter-Asia project outside the geographical boundaries of Asia. The participants, who represent diverse national, institutional, and professional experiences, discuss the following topics: how Asia and the Inter-Asia project has affected their intellectual trajectories; navigating academic institutions and formations; the changing meaning of diaspora and migration and their effects on language and communication; and the relationship between the academy and social movements. Particular attention is paid to reframing Australia and Canada from an Inter-Asia perspective.     

Acculturation attitudes and adaptation among South Korean residents in Japan: The mediating role of coping strategies

Acculturation processes and intergroup experiences of minority groups have been little studied in East Asian societies, including Japan. The number of migrants in Japanese society is steadily increasing, suggesting that the country is a new immigration destination in the 21st century. Therefore, further research on the acculturation processes of immigrants in Japan is warranted. This study examined the relationships among acculturation attitudes, coping strategies, and psychological adjustment in a sample of South Korean newcomers living in Japan. The results of this study support the integration hypothesis, which states that balanced acculturation attitudes that favor engagement in both the host and home cultures lead to higher levels of psychological and sociocultural adaptation. Assimilation attitudes did not contribute significantly to adaptation. Different coping strategies employed by individuals during interethnic discrimination mediated the links between individual acculturation attitudes and the two aspects of adaptation. By linking acculturation attitudes and relevant social behaviors, this study sheds light on the role of coping strategies as mediators of the relationships between acculturation attitudes and psychological and sociocultural adjustment in ethnic minority groups.     

Universalism and colonialism: reconsidering postwar democracy in Japan

This article reconsiders the postwar democracy in Japan in terms of a certain involvement between universalism and colonialism. Recently, some scholars have criticized the legislation of a new national security law in Japan as destroying the legacy of the postwar democracy. It seems, however, not to be allowed to regard this legislation as a fundamental turnover of the basic position in international policy of postwar Japan. As is well known, the Japanese government in the postwar era has kept its pacifism, whose ideal is explicitly expressed and realized by article 9 of the Japanese Constitution. Although the security law legislated in 2015 could be seen as breaking this ideal of pacifism, the Japanese government’s official statement declared that the new security law inherited pacifism under the name of “provocative contribution to peace.” This article tries to reinterpret the postwar democracy from this point. By critically reading ongoing debates regarding the issue of wartime comfort women and Nambara Shigeru’s democratic thoughts, it seems a certain war, which has been a fundamental root of the postwar democracy in Japan – that is, “a war against the enemy of all” – has sustained itself in an interwoven relation between universalism and colonialism.     

The red thread and the white kimono: Japanese women, omote and ura

A portrait of modern Japanese middle class urban woman is presented from a dual perspective: Omote, public outside self, and Ura, private inside self. An almost Stereotypic outward submissive presentation is correlated with a special inner strength commanded as the Japanese woman satisfactorily fulfills the role of home manager. This strength is understood to be a particular characteristic of Japanese women which supports the existence of the well known “psychology of dependence.” Data from interviews with 30–50 year old Japanese women, collected over a four year period, is placed within the historical context of women 's traditional role in Japan.     

Lost in TransNation: Tokyo and the urban imaginary in the era of globalization

Abstract

The 2003 film Lost in Translation has attracted both acclaim and critique concerning its representation of the urban imaginary of Tokyo. Examining both the film representation and the critical responses to the imaginary, this paper discusses how they illuminate some of the emerging issues that Tokyo and Japan face in the era of globalization, such as the loss of the idiosyncratic status of non‐Western modernity that Japan has long enjoyed; post‐(self)Orientalist cultural othering; and the transnational alliance of media and cultural industries in a global cultural economy of branding the nation through media and consumer cultures, all at the expense of the issue of intensifying migration and multicultural situations in the urban space. It will be suggested that both the film and Japanese critiques of the film are lost in the actuality of Tokyo (indeed, of Japan) and its populace, which is being radically transformed by intensifying transnational flows of people, capital, and media imagery.