Su Yeong Kim: Developmental Research

By Su Yeong Kim Professor, Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin How Culture Adaptation Influences Identity, Behavior and Success The fact that adolescents of migrant families have to move between two cultures can be a challenge and an opportunity simultaneously. The Mexican-origin youth in the United States are mostly anchored between maintaining the heritage culture as practiced by the parents to other contemporary American culture that surrounds them.  But what effect do these cultural identity issues have on their mental health, academic performance, and developmental dynamics over time? A longitudinal study conducted by Jinjin Yan, Lester Sim, Seth J. Schwartz, Yishan Shen, Deborah Parra-Medina, Su Yeong Kim , published in New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development illuminates this question by tracing the patterns of acculturation among Mexican-origin adolescents in families who immigrated to the United States. Findings of the research...

By Su Yeong Kim Professor, Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Stress in the family does not exist by itself; it moves, transforms, and often catches us by surprise. For decades, scientists and physicians have toiled under the same assumption: the stresses of the parents trickle down to children and impact their mental health. But suppose the reverse were also true? Suppose children's stresses had the potential to affect the mental health of their parents and sometimes more intensely than the other way around? Our latest research, conducted by Wen Wen, Ashley Janyn Galvan, Ka I. Ip, Yang Hou, Shanting Chen, Su Yeong Kim , published in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence , explored the fine-grained adolescent and maternal stress dynamics at various developmental stages. Why This Research Matters Now: Insights from Su Yeong Kim As a researcher of the developmental lives of ethnic minority and immigrant families , I’ve witnessed how sociocultural stre...