The Interplay Between Collectivism and Social Support Processes Among Asian and Latino American College Students

Limited research has examined cultural influences on the use and perceived effectiveness of social support in diverse racial and ethnic groups. The present study examined similarities and differences between Asian and Latino American college students, exploring social support as a means of coping with stressors and how support-seeking behaviors relate to cultural factors (e.g., relational concerns). Five focus groups were conducted (n = 27) with Asian American participants and 5 focus groups with Latino American participants (n = 31). Asian and Latino American participants tended to underutilize social support and rely on themselves. They sought to avoid criticism and did not want to worry or burden others, namely their parents. Whereas Asian American participants were motivated primarily to avoid face loss, Latino American participants were most concerned about preserving in-group harmony and not making matters worse, though they also had concerns about being judged. Both groups expressed a need for emotional reassurance from their parents. However, Latino American participants were explicitly encouraged by their parents to solicit support, whereas Asian American participants were likely to receive parental messages emphasizing forbearance. If they solicited support, both groups preferred seeking advice or comfort from others who had been in comparable situations. These findings underscore the complex ways in which Latino and Asian Americans negotiate competing collectivist values in making decisions to (under) utilize support. The underutilization of social support may be culturally normative in Asian and Latino cultures, but potentially psychologically taxing when self-reliance is not a successful means of accommodating for this lack of support.