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The relationship of values and parenting styles on academic achievement and occupational choice among Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans
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The relationship of values and parenting styles on academic achievement and occupational choice among Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans
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Running head: THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 1
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING STYLES ON ACADEMIC
ACHIEVEMENT AND OCCUPATIONAL CHOICE AMONG JEWISH-AMERICANS AND
JEWISH-IRANIAN AMERICANS
by
Jonathan David Ravanshenas
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirement for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION
December 2013
Copyright 2013 Jonathan David Ravanshenas
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 2
Dedications
To Hashem, who has guided me along the path of life, through the ups and downs, always
watching over me. Thank you for giving me constant opportunities to fulfill my potential and get
closer to you
To my parents, for all their support and guidance, throughout my years, I will forever be grateful.
To my wife, Natalie, whose support goes beyond words. I look forward to our continuous growth
together
To my brother, Daniel, for your guidance, support and endless hours helping me achieve my
potential
To Diane Rosenthal, a true mentor. Thank you for all your support throughout the years and
demonstrating what an educator really means
To my family and friends, for all their love, I am truly blessed to have you all in my life
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 3
Acknowledgements
With Deepest Appreciation to:
Dr. Ruth Chung, my committee chairperson: without your guidance, patience, insight and
support, I would not be able to reach my goal.
Dr. Helena Seli and Dr Saba Soomech, thank you for your willingness to share your
expertise and for providing me with encouragement.
The students who participated in this study: thank you for your time and efforts.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 4
Table of Contents
List of Tables 6
Abstract 7
CHAPTER ONE: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 8
Jewish-American Achievement 8
Jewish-American Academic Success 8
Jewish-American Occupational Success 9
Jewish-Iranian American Academic and Occupational Success 10
Jewish-Iranian American Academic Success 11
Statement of the problem 13
Background of the Problem 13
Heterogeneity and Homogeneity of Jews 15
Jewish Migration to the United States 17
Jewish-Iranian Migration to the United States 18
Theoretical Framework 20
Cultural Influences on Parenting Styles 21
Cultural Value Approach 22
Importance of Study 25
Purpose and Goal of Study 27
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 28
Values 28
Schwartz’s Cross – Cultural Value System 28
Jewish Values 31
Iranian Values 32
Family Ties 33
Education 34
Influence of Values on Career choice and career development 34
Parenting Styles 35
Baumrind’s Parenting Styles 36
Parenting Styles Typologies 37
Authoritarian 37
Authoritative 38
Permissive 38
Figure 1: Parenting Styles 40
Parenting Styles and Academic Achievement 40
Parenting Styles and Diverse Populations 42
Summary of the Literature 44
Research Questions and Hypotheses 45
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 46
Participants 46
Instrumentation 48
Demographics and Background Information 48
Parenting Authority Questionnaire (PAQ) 48
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 5
Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) 50
Academic Achievement 52
Occupational Choice 52
Procedure 53
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS 55
Preliminary Analysis 55
Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian Values 55
Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American Parenting Styles 56
Correlational Analysis 57
Analyses of Research Questions 59
Research Question 1: Are there differences between Jewish-Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans in parenting styles, values, academic achievement, and
occupational choice? 59
Research Question 2: Do parenting styles and values predict academic
achievement (GPA) for American Jews? 61
High School GPA 62
College GPA 62
Graduate GPA 63
Sat and GRE 63
Research Question 3: Do parenting styles and values influence the current and
future occupational choices of American Jews? 65
Current Career 65
Future Career 66
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION 68
Differences and Similarities between Jewish-Americans & Jewish-Iranian Americans 68
Parenting Styles 68
Values 72
Benevolence 73
Self-Direction 73
Security 74
Academic Achievement 75
Parenting styles and Values as predictors of Academic Success 75
Occupational Choice 77
Parenting Style and Values as Predictor of Occupational Choice 77
Additional Findings 79
Implications and Suggestions 79
Limitations of the Study 85
Recommendations for Future Research 87
Conclusion 89
References 92
Appendices 116
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 6
List of Tables
Table 1: Demographic Characteristics of Jewish-Americans versus Iranian-Jewish Americans 47
Table 2: Values Breakdown for Values (Jewish-Americans versus Iranian-Jewish) 56
Table 3: Parenting Styles - Jewish-Americans versus Iranian-Jewish 57
Table 4: Results of Correlation Analysis - Academic Achievement, Parenting Styles and Values 57
Table 5: Results of Correlation Analysis - Parenting Style and Values) 58
Table 6: American-Jewish Future and Current Career Choice 64
Table 7: Summary of Final Regression Models for Predicting Parenting Styles 65
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 7
Abstract
This paper sought to look at potential differences in parenting styles within and between Jewish-
American and Jewish-Iranian families, and their influence on academic achievement and
occupational choice. Participants included 428 Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American
students who completed an online survey consisting of demographic background information,
the Parental Authority Questionnaire and the Schwartz Values Survey. Results have suggested
that Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans primarily share the same authoritative
parenting styles and held similar values. Results also indicated that there were no major
differences between Jewish-Americans’ and Jewish-Iranian Americans’ academic achievement
and occupational choices. Due to the homogeneity of Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian
Americans in terms parenting styles, values, academic achievement and occupational choice, the
two were subsequently combined as a single group (American – Jews). A further investigation
of the influences of parenting styles and academic achievement of American-Jews on academic
achievement and occupational choice was explored. The results found that neither parenting style
nor values predicted academic achievement and occupational for American-Jews. The findings in
this study support the notion that there are many factors that influence occupational achievement,
and that other variables must be investigated when it comes to the academic achievement and
occupational choice of Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
Keywords: values, parenting styles, academic achievement, occupational choice, Jewish-
Americans, Jewish-Iranian Americans
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 8
CHAPTER ONE: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
Jewish-American Academic Achievement
Despite historic occurrences of social and academic discrimination in the United States,
the Jewish-American population is a highly educated and economically successful subset of the
American population, leading both researchers and laypersons to inquire as to the reasons for this
phenomenon. Jews, as a minority group, are enjoying academic and occupational success in the
United States—perhaps more so than most minority groups—and, in some ways, more
completely than in their attempts in any other country in the past (Chiswick, 1987). This success
has been achieved within a relatively short tenure in the United States, and is exemplified in the
high number of Jewish students enrolled in prestigious colleges and universities all over
America, as well as their occupational standings. Academically, for example, Jews account for
nearly 21% of enrollment in Ivy League schools, 10 times more than might be expected given
that Jews make up only 1.7% of the general population (Lipset & Raab, 1995). Jewish
enrollment rates are even higher at the 50 small schools that U.S. News and World Report ranked
among the "Top 50 Undergraduate Schools of 2003” (Peace, 2005). Furthermore, recent
estimates indicate that approximately 90% of all college-age Jews enroll in some type of college,
a dramatic contrast to the national average of 25.2%. These high rates of enrollment in
institutions of higher education have brought widespread attention to the Jewish-American
population as it relates to comparisons with other ethnic minorities, as well the influential factors
lending themselves to this minority’s groups’ academic and occupational success (Fejgin, 1995).
Known as “people of the book” for their emphasis on literacy and adherence to the tenets
of the five books of Moses (Torah), Jews have historically valued education. The importance
that Jewish culture places on education, independent of country of residence, is evidenced by the
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 9
contributions Jews have made in various fields such as the arts, entertainment, literature,
education, science, and medicine throughout the last several centuries (Pease, 2005). However,
in America, education is the “great leveler”; it is the one thing that Jewish-American immigrants
immediately embraced as a path to occupational opportunity for advancement for themselves and
their children (Grubin et al., 2009). Indeed, the educational profile of Jewish-American
communities indicates that they have become one of the most educated and academically
successful minority groups among “all American ethnic and religious groups, of all Jewish
communities around the world, and of all the Jewish communities ever recorded in history,”
reflecting the value that Jews have placed on education and on the educational opportunities
available in America (Goldscheider, 1993, p. 260). Chiswick (1987) contends that the Jewish-
American population pursued educational endeavors in hopes of using their knowledge as a
means of increasing social mobility and occupational opportunities. Yet little is known about the
defining variables that are leading to the academic success of American Jews and the subsets the
Jewish-American populations (e.g., Jewish-Iranian Americans).
Jewish-American Occupational Success
In keeping with their educational attainment, Jews increasingly occupy the top positions
in some of America’s largest and most prestigious companies. For example, in 2011,
approximately 30% of the senior executives and billionaires of the “Forbes 400” corporations
were Jews (Forbes, 2011). Indeed, American Jews have enjoyed disproportionately higher
representation in high-status and prestigious occupations throughout the 20th century (Smith,
2005). Both Chiswick’s (2005) investigation on the occupational attainment of American Jewry
and Smith’s (2005) study of the distinctiveness of Jewish America corroborate these findings.
According to Chiswick, Jewish men and women have increasingly attained higher occupational
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 10
status, defined as the consensual nature of rating a job based on the belief of its worthiness as
compared to the white majority population (68% compared to 37%). Moreover, the percentage of
Jews entering perceived high-level occupations (e.g., in medicine, law, academia) continues to
increase at a rapid rate, widening the gap between them and the rest of the population, especially
in professional occupations (Chiswick, 2005). In line with this trend, Smith’s (2005)
investigation of Jewish-American occupations found that the Jews of North America have had
the lowest level of unemployment during the last 10 years of any ethnic/racial and religious
group, a reflection of their greater education and higher occupational standings.
Jewish-Iranian American Academic and Occupational Success
A particular subset of the Jewish-American demographic—Jewish Iranian-Americans—
have recently received widespread attention for their occupational and academic success in the
United States. After leaving Iran en masse in 1979 due to the Iranian revolution, Jewish-Iranian
immigrants quickly formed enclaves in metropolitan areas such Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, and
New York City that afforded them educational and occupational opportunities similar to the
existing communities of Jewish-American immigrants (Modarres, 1998). Jewish-Iranian
American occupational success in America has been widespread, with many immigrants and
second-generation students pursuing fields of higher education such as medicine, architecture,
law, engineering, and various sectors of academia. Moreover, Jewish-Iranian Americans have
also started to enjoy markedly increased enrollment in universities over the last several decades
since moving from Iran.
Interestingly, Iranian immigrants, regardless of religious background, have been
relatively successful entrepreneurs, investing in real estate, construction, and retail businesses in
the United States (Kelly & Friedlander, 1993). Many have also pursued higher education in
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 11
medicine, architecture, law, engineering, and various sectors of academia. Research on Iranian-
American immigrants as a whole, independent of religion, highlights their educational and
occupational achievement:
64.9 percent of Iranian men attended four years of college or more, 84.0 percent of those
are employed, 51.3 percent are employed in higher white-collar work (managers and
professionals) while 29.1 percent are employed in higher blue-collar work (sales and
clerical), 19.6 percent are in blue-collar work (all other occupations), and 33.3 percent are
self-employed. (Waldinger & Bozorgmehr, 1996, p. 356)
For women, the figures are "33.7 percent have four years of college or more, 47.6 percent are
employed, 41.7 percent work in higher white-collar jobs, while 41.4 percent work in higher blue-
collar jobs, 16.9 percent work in blue-collar jobs, and 14.4 percent are self-employed"
(Waldinger & Bozorgmehr, 1996, p. 356).
Jewish-Iranian American Academic Success
Although it is well established that American Jews, as a whole and regardless of ethnic
background (e.g., Jewish-American vs. Jewish Iranian-American) are achieving academic and
occupational success in the United States, the literature on Jewish academic and occupational
success demonstrates that this success is not uniquely American. Rather, throughout the 20
th
century, Jews in most other countries have attained similar academic and occupational success,
“varying only in degree rather than in kind” (Chiswick, 1987). This prompts the question as to
whether Jewish diversity in terms of nationality has an effect on the types of educational and
occupational success found within diverse Jewish groups. There are significant differences
among Jews in terms of their country and national culture of origin, and it is debatable whether
those cultural differences lead to the acquisition of particular cultural values or skill sets which,
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 12
in turn, lead to academic and occupational success. Cultural values are often used as a criterion
to justify one’s judgment of others and self (Schwartz, 1992), and are therefore used to
characterize societies and individuals, and to explain the motivational bases of attitudes and
behavior. These cultural differences may potentially be the cause of the phenomenon of
academic and occupational success enjoyed by Jews, and may speak to the differences of the
degree rather the kind of educational and occupational success amongst of Jews of different
national and cultural origins.
As a consequence of Jewish cultural diversity in terms of national culture of origin, there
might also be distinctive parenting styles that may influence academic achievement and
occupational choice. Parenting styles have been proposed as an influencing factor in previous
research examining the association of parenting behaviors on children’s academic outcomes
(Baumrind, 1972; Dwairy & Menshar, 2006; Fletcher, Darling, Dornbusch, & Steinberg, 1995).
For example, the majority of research on child rearing indicates that children reared in an
authoritative environment associated with warm and responsive parenting in addition to high
levels of control and demand, consistently scored higher on levels of school achievement than
children who were reared with other parenting styles. Alternatively, students reared in an
authoritarian environment—i.e. those reared with a parenting style associated with a low
measure of warmth and responsiveness yet with high levels of control—typically scored lower
than students raised in an authoritative household (Lamborn, Mounts, Steinberg, & Dornbusch,
1991).
The effects of parenting styles on children’s academic outcomes have been found to be
inconsistent between Eastern and Western societies. While children in Eastern societies benefit
more from the authoritarian parenting style in terms of academic outcome (Chao, 2001; Dwairy
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 13
& Menshar, 2006; Leung et al., 1998; Steinberg et al., 1992), their counterparts in Western
societies benefit more from the authoritative parenting style (Baumrind, 1972; Fletcher et al.,
1995; Weiss & Schwarz, 1996). It seems that the relationship between parenting styles and
children’s academic achievement is inconsistent across cultures. The differences between
Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American students could be due the differences in
parenting styles.
Statement of the Problem
While American Jews, as a whole and as compared to the broader spectrum of minorities
that compose the United States, seem to be enjoying unparalleled academic and occupational
success, little is known about the factors influencing this phenomenon, inviting the question of
the effects of Jewish diversity on educational and occupational success. Moreover, minimal
focus on the reasons for this unprecedented success results in a poor understanding of American
Jews within their respective sub-groups. Therefore, to understand the academic and occupational
success of American Jews, this study explored diversity factors such as parenting styles and
cultural values, both of which have been found to be influential factors in academic and
occupational achievement. The purpose of this study was to address the gaps in existing research
and to explore the impact of parenting styles and values as predictors of educational and
occupational success of Jews in America, but nuanced by consideration of within-group
differences of Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 14
Background of the Problem
Jews comprise only about 2% of the total population in the United States (approximately
5 to 6 million individuals in a total population of about 314 million) and are composed of a
diverse set of subgroups (Tobin, Tobi, & Rub,, 2005). Different subcultures of Jews exist,
ranging from Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union and Israel to Jewish immigrants
from Iran and Europe. Geography within the United States also plays a unique role, with the
Jewish community cultures of California, New York, and Florida being quite different from each
other, and many times reflecting the characteristics and behaviors of the regions in which they
live. Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and other religious denominational differentiations within
Judaism also constitute different sub-communities, as do various forms of participation in the
Jewish community (Tobin et al., 2005). This researcher does not purport to examine all of the
religious nuances that derive from the complex composition of the Jewish community and its
diverse sub-populations. Rather the focus of this research study was on parental and cultural
value differences between Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans, as well as their
potential influence on education and occupational choice.
Previous research has sought to examine the potential influence parents have on their
children's academic achievement and to substantiate the positive impact of authoritative
parenting and the negative impact of the authoritarian and permissive parenting styles on
academic performance (Dornbusch et al., 1987; Paulson, 1994) However, due to the multiple
factors that influence an individual's career choices, understanding the family’s influence on
occupational choice is a complicated endeavor. A review of the literature on these issues
highlights the family’s critical role, particularly the parental role, in affecting career development
during many stages of life (Whiston & Keller, 2004). Research on career development has
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 15
provided information on the influence of family contextual factors, such as socio-economic
status, that are associated with career development; yet, it is unclear how the relationships and
cultural values within the family facilitate or inhibit successful career development.
In order to better understand the American–Jewish population and the possible variables
impacting academic achievement and occupational choice, familiarity with the displacement and
migration of the Jewish people throughout history as it has led up to migration to the United
States is needed. Further, it is worthwhile to explore the cultural and contextual factors lending
themselves to particular migration patterns. That historical background illuminates the
importance of migration in Jewish culture which, in turn, leads to an exploration of how values
are acquired. All of which leads to a discussion of how culture affects parenting styles and value
acquisition, ultimately leading to the effects of Jewish diversity on academic achievement and
occupational choices.
Heterogeneity and Homogeneity of Jews
From its earliest origins, the history of the Jews has been one of dispersal and migration.
Jewish identity has always been the product of a multitude of interactions with the new cultures
in which the Jews have found themselves (Miles & Sheffer, 1998). A century ago, the largest
centers of Jewish culture lay in Europe, both Eastern and Western, primarily dominated by
Ashkenazi Jews (Sheffer, 2003). Numerically, the Jewish communities of the Middle East,
dominated by Sephardi and Sephardic Jews, were relatively small and peripheral (Sheffer, 2003).
However, over the course of the past century, with an influx of Jews immigrating to the United
States out of fear of religious oppression and in pursuit of economical betterment, the
demography of the North American Jewish community has undergone a radical change. As a
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 16
result, Jewish culture has shifted as well, leading to a broad spectrum of both religious
denominations and ethnic cultural backgrounds.
Historically, Jewish immigration to the United States reflected the desire to improve
status, widen knowledge, and exploit greater economic opportunities in addition to religious
freedom (Tsur, 1982). Among the immigrants that fled in pursuit of safety in the face of religious
persecution, as well as the pursuit of economic advancement, were the Jews of Iran, also known
as Jewish Iranians. Since arriving in America en masse in the 1970s, the Iranian-Jews of
America, much like other Jewish-American minorities, have experienced a high level of
academic achievement and occupational success (Bozorgmehr & Sabagh, 1988). Indeed, overall,
since the early 20
th
Century, the Jewish-American minorities as a whole have received attention
for their over-representation in the high-level professions, for their academic achievement
(McDermott, 2002), and their accumulation of wealth (Cheswick, 1985). Yet, little is known
about the influences contributing to these minorities’ academic and occupational success.
It could be argued that as a result of centuries of relentless persecution, the Jewish
population developed a strong sense of religious and ethnic identity in order to uphold its
traditional values (Cohen, 2010; Herman, 1977). In line with that theory, Elazar (1994)
contended that Jews are known for their strong sense Jewish “cultural” preservation. Guiso,
Sapienza, and Zingales (2006) defined culture as “those customary beliefs and values that an
ethnic, religious, and social group transmits fairly unchanged from generation to generation” (p.
23). At the core of Jewish culture, parents, family, and community play a critical role in the
preservation of the Jewish value system. Indeed, the focus on the preservation of culture and
identity has been known to affect variables such as parenting styles, acculturation patterns, and
values (Schwartz, Montgomery, & Briones, 2006). It is this focus that has allowed Jews to
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 17
maintain a consistently religious and ethnic culture through more than 5,000 years of history and
migrations that have encompassed the entire globe.
Jewish Migration to the United States
The United States has the largest number of Jews of any country, the result of waves of
immigration to escape religious persecution and to pursue economic and educational stability.
The first wave of Jewish immigration occurred in the 17
th
century during the latter half of the
Spanish Inquisition, a widespread social movement that sought to convert the Jewish population
to Christianity and forbid Jewish practices (Carroll, 2001; Elazar, 1995). Many Jews fled to
Brazil, only to almost immediately flee once again in fear of their safety, and by 1654 many had
made their way to New Amsterdam (present-day New York) (Carroll, 2001). In the 1860s,
financial instability in Germany forced German Jews to immigrate to the United States in search
of economic opportunity. Then, in the 1880s, a third wave of Jewish immigrants to the United
States fled Russia in response to the pogroms initiated by the Tsar (Diner, 2004). Between 1880
and 1910, it is estimated that three million Russian Jews sought asylum in the United States
because America afforded them religious freedom and economic opportunity (Elazar, 1995). In
the 1950s, the United States experienced a new influx of Jewish immigrants following the
Holocaust and World War II; most of those Jews were Ashkenazi. As the historical record
shows, in each of these waves of migration the Jews fled their homelands in fear of religious
persecution and came to America to pursue economic opportunity with hopes of survival (Dahan
& Sheffer, 2001).
As a result of the immigration waves from the early 16
th
century until the 1950s, the
United States experienced a significant influx of Jewish immigrants from around the world due
to religious persecution and severe economic deprivation in their native lands. Immigration to the
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 18
United States reflected the desire to improve status, expand knowledge, and exploit greater
economic opportunities in addition to religious freedom (Lederhendler, 2009).
Jewish Iranian Migration to the United States
In common with their Jewish counterparts from other lands, the initial wave of Iranian
migration to the United States began with the temporary movement of foreign college students in
search of educational opportunity and occupational advancement (Min & Bozorgmehr, 2000).
By the late 1970s, Iran led all other countries in the number of foreign students in the United
States (Bozorgmehr & Sabagh, 1988). However, as a result of the changes wrought by what is
known in the Islamic Republic as the “Iranian Revolution of 1979,” a second influx of Iranians
migrated to the United States fleeing the discriminatory and restrictive policies of the new
regime (Feher, 1998). In order to protect themselves from looming religious persecution, and in
search of educational, professional, and economical advancement, approximately 25,000 Iranian
Jews immigrated to the United States (Hakimzadeh & Dixon, 2006; Mossayeb & Shirazi, 2006).
However, although some Iranians migrated to the United States purely for economic reasons
both before and after the revolution, their numbers are negligible compared to those who came
for educational and political reasons (Bozorgmehr & Sabagh, 1991).
It is estimated that from 1970 to 2000, more than 60,000 Jewish Iranians left Iran to settle
in the United States. Most settled in ethnically concentrated areas in hopes of preserving their
Iran cultural heritage while seeking educational and occupational advancement for themselves
and their children (Bozorgmehr, 1998). Prior to the Islamic revolution, Jewish-Iranian
immigrants boasted substantive educational backgrounds and prestigious occupations, and were
the wealthiest Jews per capita in the world (Mossayeb & Shirazi, 2006). A large percentage of
Iranian-born American immigrants were educated and education-bound, with approximately
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 19
51% of the recorded population holding a bachelor’s degree or higher, and nearly 87% holding a
high-school diploma (Mossayeb & Shirazi, 2006). However, upon entering the United States,
Iranian immigrants had increasing difficulty transferring their previous occupations to their new
country, and they were subjected to pernicious prejudice and discrimination (Bozorgmehr, 1998).
Most Iranians decided to focus on entrepreneurial pursuits and the private sector as means of
economic survival (Min & Bozorgmehr, 2000) and soon became known as affluent entrepreneurs
and professionals (Kelley & Friedlander, 1993). Iranian parents, especially those who were older
or who had already gone through the Iranian educational system, continued to emphasize the
pursuit of formal education for their children as a means of financial and occupational prestige
(Bozorgmehr & Sabagh. 1988).
Only a few years later, the second-generation Jewish-Iranians were born (from here on
labeled Jewish-Iranian Americans), most of whom were socialized in Jewish, Iranian, and
American cultures, and went through the formal American educational system. As such, many
Jewish-Iranian American students took advantage of the educational opportunities that were not
previously afforded to their parents and the older generation in Iran. Jewish-Iranian American
students started altering their occupational and academic orientations. They became a highly-
visible portion of college and university student populations, particularly in the Los Angeles area
where a substantial proportion of Iranian-Jews live (Bozorgmehr & Sabagh, 1991). Indeed,
Jewish-Iranian students, as well as the collective Jewish-American population, have been
recently receiving attention for their increasing presence in high-status occupational fields, such
as medicine, law, and finance.
In summary, Jewish-Iranian Americans, a relatively new immigrant group, hold distinct
cultural values, such as the pursuit of education and occupational advancement, which closely
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 20
hew to Jewish-American values. Even though these two immigrant groups share an emphasis on
the importance of education, little is known about the particular value system that parents
transmit to their children as well as the parenting styles with which they do it. Therefore, the
purpose of this study was to investigate the relative influence of values and parenting style on
academic achievement and the occupational choices of Jewish Americans, as well as examining
intra-group differences.
Theoretical Framework
In the past, studies have been proposed to explain the variability in the academic and
occupational success among the diverse cultural and religious minorities that utilize the
American educational system. Many of these studies have focused on potential cultural values
and predispositions that might support or suppress achievement. Since Jews are a minority by
ethnic descent and by religion, and can therefore be distinguished by their distinctive ethnic and
religious cultural characteristics, a “cultural-value approach” can assist in explaining academic
performance and occupational orientations of Jewish-Iranian Americans (Brown, 2002). Thus,
this research took a culture-based approach to studying the parenting styles and student
orientations of the Jewish-Iranian community in the United States.
Jewish-Iranian Americans “strongly” identify with the Jewish culture; perhaps more so
than their Iranian cultural roots, most which have been passed down from generation to
generation through parental guidance (Bozorgmehr, 2000). As such, Jewish cultural values, as
well as parenting styles, can help elucidate Jewish-Iranian student orientation. However, it is also
important to understand how Iranian cultural values may be affecting and interacting with the
Jewish values and giving rise to a new integrated set of cultural values which perhaps can
explain the high achievement levels of the Iranian Jews in America. Schwartz (2006) argued that
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 21
studying values-emphases directly is an effective way to capture and characterize cultures, since
those values are cognitive representations of people’s important goals and motivations, phrased
in socially acceptable language useful for coordinating action. As such, the current research
studied the cultural values and links to particular parenting styles as a direct outcome of these
cultural values.
Cultural Influences on Parenting Styles
Cultural values and the ideals of a culture are primarily transmitted to the next generation
through child-rearing practices. Therefore, cultural context is believed to be of particular salience
to parenting research (Ogbu, 1994). Parenting behaviors can be influenced by the direct and
indirect effects of cultural models of individualism and collectivism. Its direct influence on
parenting behavior could be explained by parents passing along the values of a culture to their
children to become productive and integrated members of their culture. In collectivist countries,
such as Iran, parents often promote values such as helpfulness, conformity, adherence to social
conventions, and interdependence with their in-groups such as family and nation, within child-
socialization parenting practices (Greenfield & Suzuki, 1998). Research focusing on
authoritarian parenting practices in collectivist groups demonstrates that children must often
suppress their own desires and consider the needs of others in the in-group (Grusec et al., 2000).
Therefore, according to the outcome valued in collectivist groups, authoritarian parenting may be
more appropriate compared with other parenting styles in the Iranian community.
Authoritative parenting style is more commonly found among White families than in
African-American, Asian-American, and Hispanic-American families, while an authoritarian
parenting style appears to be more common among ethnic minority families than among White
families. Researchers believe these differences in styles might be a sign that parenting is linked
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 22
to culture and parental belief systems. Although authoritative parenting is less common in ethnic
minority families, this parenting style has been linked with adolescent competence across a wide
range of families (Steinberg & Silk, 2002), with adolescents in minority families benefiting as
much from authoritative parenting as their non-minority peers (Steinberg, Dornbusch, & Brown,
1992). Interestingly, research also indicates that White youth appear to experience any
undesirable effects of an authoritarian parenting style to a greater degree than ethnic minority
youth.
It could therefore be hypothesized that the form (e.g., authoritative parenting style) and
function of behavior (the interpretation or meaning of parenting styles) can be fully understood
only in the context of culture (Bornstein, 1995). In this conceptualization, culture is theorized to
afford different meaning to behaviors (for example, parenting) and has different effects on
children and adolescents across different cultures. For instance, it is known that behavioral
control is related to the positive outcome of Asian-American students, who “interpret”
behavioral control as parental warmth and acceptance. In contrast, adolescents of European-
American descent perceive behavioral control as the negative indices of parenting (Chao, 2001).
Cultural Value Approach
The examination of the literature indicates the central role that values play in
distinguishing and characterizing different cultures (e.g., Fiske, Kitayama, Markus, & Nisbett,
1998; Hofstede, 1980, 2001; Smith & Schwartz, 1997), as well as the role they serve as guiding
principles for decisions and behaviors (Kahle, 1983; Rokeach, 1973). Several decades of
research (Kluckhohn, 1951; Rokeach, 1973; Schwartz, 1999) suggest that “values” can be
comprehensively defined as conceptions of the desirable goals that guide the way social actors
select actions, evaluate people and events, and explain their actions and evaluations. As such,
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 23
many researchers contend that value systems are the core element of a culture, which can be
defined as “collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or
category of people from another” (Hofstede, 2001, p. 9). Value systems contain all the values
held by individuals, including their cultural values, which have been identified as values
typically held by certain cultural groups (Schwartz, 1992). According to Williams (1970),
cultural values represent the implicit and explicit shared abstract ideas about what is good, right,
and desirable in a society.
The explicit and implicit value emphases that characterize a culture are imparted to
societal members through everyday exposure to customs, laws, norms, scripts, and
organizational practices that are shaped by and express the prevailing cultural values (Bourdieu,
1972; Markus & Kitayama, 1994). Thus, these cultural values (e.g., freedom, prosperity,
security) are the basis for the specific norms that tell people what is appropriate in various
situations (Schwartz, 1999). Furthermore, Rokeach (1971) proposed that the cultural values an
individual adopts play a major role in the establishment of personal and professional goals such
as occupational choice. Supporting this view, cultural values have often been identified as
critical variables in the career-development process (Fouad, 1995; Super & Sverko, 1995).
Brown (2002) proposed that there is considerable diversity within the values systems of
people from the same ethnic and religious groups. Interestingly, due to their cultural
distinctiveness, Jewish-Iranian Americans are considered a minority in two aspects: in relation to
the general American population and in relation to the American Jewish population. As such,
Jewish-Iranian Americans not only retain disparate cultural values as compared to the general
American society, but also differing values as compared to Jewish-Americans in general.
Moreover, Jewish-Iranian immigrants are a heterogeneous group who lived very different lives
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 24
in Iran and endured extremely distinct experiences during the revolution. Therefore, Jewish-
Iranian Americans, themselves, are not a homogenous group and differences among them may
be due, in part, to their level of acculturation and differences in cultural values (Sharshar, 2011).
Cultural values are known to be social variables that influence the behaviors of
individuals and groups, and, consequently can be used to help explain the academic
achievements and occupational choices of minority groups (Brown, 2002). Therefore, given the
different cultural backgrounds of the immigrant groups of America, cultural values have been
increasingly viewed as important factors determining the academic achievement and
occupational choices of various minorities, as those values convey what individuals or groups
perceive as important and provide standards that guide behavior, namely academic achievement
and occupational choices. If values are influential in the process of choosing an occupation, it is
critical, from both a scientific and practical standpoint, to ascertain the empirical relationship
between the value variables and career orientation. However, minimal attention has been directed
at the relationship between specific value orientations and the selection of occupational choices
of Jewish-American students in general, and Jewish-Iranian students in particular (Mossayeb &
Shirazi, 2006).
The cultural-value approach emphasizes differences in academic achievement and
occupational success among various minority groups through a focus on distinctive cultural
characteristics and values. Thernstrom and Thernstrom (2003) contended that the achievements
of the Jews are “the product of cultural values that they have brought with them and transmitted
from generation to generation” (p. 98). Smith (2005) argued that Jews, as a religious group, are
expected to maintain and pass on their Jewish identity, explaining that Jewish parents’ sense of
being a minority, combined with their knowledge of a long history of persecution, makes it
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 25
difficult for the them to take their security for granted, thereby emphasizing the importance of
education and occupational achievement to ensure survival. Jews attach great value to studying
and education, subsequently socializing their children for educational and academic success
(Slezkine, 2004).
Therefore, a critical component of the cultural-value theory, in regards to the American
Jewish population, is that Jews attach high value to success and achievement. Herz and Rozen
(1982) suggested this has become a cultural norm among Jewish families, regardless of cultural
background, in which parents bring up their children to achieve, and socialize them to value
success. In support of this theory, Majoribanks’s (1972) study on child-rearing styles of Jewish
mothers found that they scored higher on ‘‘press for achievement” (the extent to which mothers
exert pressure on their children to achieve success) as compared to non-Jewish mothers. The
evidence gathered by Marjoribanks indicated that this cultural value of “press[ing] for
achievement” fosters a strong motivation towards success and academic attainment.
While the literature is replete with studies such as those cited above, there is a serious gap
in the research regarding the role that cultural-specific values play in success. More specifically,
there is essentially no research available regarding Jewish-Iranian American parenting practices
and values in comparison to Jewish-American parenting, or how the impacts and outcomes of
those practices might differ.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 26
Importance of Study
American Jews have been well represented in both academics and prestigious
occupations, particularly throughout the 20th Century (Smith, 2005). The American Jewish
population, however, is composed of diverse groups of immigrants and their descendants from
all over the world, many of whom came to the country only in the last few decades. This
diversity notwithstanding, there exist strong commonalities within the Jewish population, in
particular their shared Jewish heritage and identity: the ancestral religion, history of persecution,
the perennial experience of minority status in the Diaspora (Schmelz et al., 1990), and most
distinctively their focus on education which has lead them to high academic and occupational
achievement throughout the 20
th
century. A recent Jewish minority sub-group to appear within
the cultural mosaic of Jewish Americans in the last few decades is the Jewish-Iranian
community. This distinctive cultural group, falling under the umbrella of American Jews, has
been receiving increased attention for its achievements in high-status occupational pursuits and
academic endeavors (Mossayeb & Shirazi, 2006). Nonetheless, research on 21
st
century
American–Jewish students is rare, particularly in regard to Jewish-Iranian students, with few
attempts at a comparative analysis within the collective Jewish community. Moreover, most
educational studies that focused on Jewish-Americans have been restricted in their analysis
concerning parental influence and the effects of values on the academic achievement and
occupational choices of Jewish students. There exists a gap in the literature of how these
influences affect the educational and occupational achievement of the new generation of Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
This research project was predicated on the literature concerning parenting styles and
cultural values, both of which have proven to play an influential role in the academic
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 27
achievement and occupational choices of students. Therefore, investigating the parenting styles
and cultural values of American Jews is worth exploring as the potential factors lending
themselves to the academic and occupational success of this minority group. Additionally, the
focus on Jewish-Iranian Americans afforded this researcher the opportunity to create a
comparative analysis between Jewish Americans in general and Jewish-Iranian Americans,
providing insight into the two groups.
Purpose and Goal of Study
The purpose of this study is to address the gap in the current research literature
concerning Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian cultures by empirically investigating the
relationship of parenting styles and values to academic achievement and occupational decisions,
as well as investigating within-group differences in values, parenting styles, acculturation,
academic achievement, and occupational choice between the Jewish-American and the Jewish-
Iranian American population. Given the dearth of substantive knowledge regarding the
influences on the academic achievement and occupational orientations of Jewish Iranians and
American Jewry, this investigation focused on several domains known to influence the academic
achievement and occupational choices among similar minority groups; specifically values,
cultural, and parental influences.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 28
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
Chapter 1 of this dissertation established cultural values and parenting styles as
influencing factors on academic achievement and occupational choice. In this chapter, I review
the literature on potential influences on the Jewish-American, Jewish-Iranian American, and
comparative (e.g., Asian American) minority groups’ academic achievement and occupational
choices. In order to provide more depth to the understanding of potential influences on academic
achievement and occupational choice, the focus of the literature review is the influence of value
systems and their relationship to academic achievement and occupational choice. What follows
is an in-depth discussion of the various parenting-style typologies as developed by Baumrind
(1971), and the effects that these parenting styles have on the development of children and
adolescents. The review of the literature also explores the relationship between parenting styles
and the academic achievement of their children.
Values
Schwartz’s Cross-Cultural Value System
Values convey what is important to people in their lives, affecting motivation, attitudes,
and behavior (Rokeach, 1973). Values, according to Schwartz (1992), act as standards or beliefs
that guide actions and judgments across situations and time, and are often influenced by cultural
environment, social groups, social systems, religion, and past or present experiences. Schwartz
(1990) contended that different cultures, or the shared way of life of a group of people, are
typically influenced by value priority into what is known as a value system. These value systems
thereby result in a continuum along which judgments are made regarding behaviors and actions.
As such, Schwartz (1992, p. 9) viewed culture “as the rich complex of meanings, beliefs,
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 29
practices, symbols, norms, and values prevalent among people in a society,” in which value is
the emphasized central feature and the guiding factor of decision-making.
The Schwartz cultural-level value system is based on his seminal work on human values
(Schwartz, 1994). Schwartz’s value system represents the most promising framework for
universal values, and takes care of the limitations of prior research assessing values in three
important ways by (a) exhibiting both external and convergent validity (Bond & Smith, 1996),
(b) using both Western and non-Western sources to derive cultural-value dimensions, and (c)
controlling for meaning equivalence.
The theory of value contents and structure defines values as desirable, trans-situational
goals varying in importance, that serve as guiding principles in people’s lives (Kluckhohn, 1951;
Rokeach, 1973; Schwartz, 1992). Values are, therefore, proposed to be representations of
people’s important goals and/or motivations. Schwartz (2006) argued that value emphasis
indicates shared conceptions of what is good and desirable in the culture, therefore shaping and
justifying both individual and collective beliefs, actions, and goals. However, as discussed
above, according to Schwartz (1992), the impact of a person’s values on attitude and behavior
can be evaluated more effectively through information on their whole value system, rather than a
single value. Schwartz’s (1992) theory of values, therefore, identifies and validates 10 distinctive
types of value domains. These value domains consist of power, achievement, hedonism,
stimulation, self-direction, universalism, benevolence, tradition, conformity, and security.
Those 10 motivationally distinct types of values were derived from universal
requirements of the human condition and verified in cross-cultural research in 47 countries.
Schwartz (1992) generated 56 values based on these value types and determined that these
particular values matched the value type if the central goal of that type was promoted when
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 30
people acted in ways that expressed that value. For example, wealth and social power were
associated with the "power" value type, while honoring elders and respecting tradition were
associated with the "tradition" value type.
Additionally, Schwartz (1992, 2005) explicated structural aspects of values; namely, the
dynamic relationship among them. According to Schwartz (2005), there may be conflict
between the different values a person holds, which may manifest in inconsistent actions. For
example, the pursuit of the achievement value conflicts with the pursuit of the benevolence
value, since seeking success for oneself is likely to obstruct actions aimed at enhancing the
welfare of others who need help. However, the power value would be strengthened by seeking
personal success and social status. Given this background, it is imperative to explore the
underlying values being transmitted and cultivated among the Jewish-American community and
their potential influence on academic achievement and career choice.
Most cultural theorists believe that, as a result of centuries of relentless persecution, the
Jewish population developed a strong sense of religious and ethnic identity. It has been
acknowledged that no matter where various Jewish communities reside, Jews are known for their
strong sense of preserving their Jewish cultural values (Elazar, 1994). Guiso et al., (2006)
defined culture values as “those customary beliefs and values that an ethnic, religious, and social
group transmits fairly unchanged from generation to generation” (p. 23). At the core of Jewish
culture is the critical role that parents, family, and community play in the preservation of the
Jewish value system. Indeed, the focus on the preservation of culture and identity has been
known to affect variables such as parenting styles, acculturation patterns, and values.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 31
Jewish Values
Although definitions of Jewish cultural values are not difficult to find throughout the
Jewish literature, the difficulty resides in the fact that that they are rarely analyzed and precisely
defined. The Jewish value system has been historically centered on the tenets of the Pentateuch
(Torah; the Five Books of Moses) and the various traditions (minhags) adopted throughout the
centuries of Jewish migrations. Nearly all formulations of Jewish values include elements of the
tenets of Torah (for example, tzeddakah, which is charity and acts of benevolence) and halacha
(rules and guidelines based on rabbinical scholar’s interpretation of Torah, Talmud, the Mishna
and various other texts). A review of Jewish values suggests that the pursuit of justice, social
equality, and making the world a better place are fundamental characteristics of the Jewish
cultural value system (Cox & Jones, 2011).
Additional research focusing on the Jewish value system found that the Jewish culture
tends to place strong emphasis on the importance of family, community, and education (Cox &
Jones, 2011). The family plays a significant role in the Jewish values system, with parents
viewed as the main facilitators in maintaining and cultivating the values that have been carried
throughout the generations. Jews also place great importance on preservation of culture and
values by developing small enclaves, thereby continuing to maintain contact with members of
their own community (Whitfield, 1999). In essence, the Jewish family is part of an organic mix
that includes the nuclear family as the basic unit, which, in turn, is part of a larger extended
family, both of which exist within a Jewish community. Each of these units is bound together by
the Jewish tradition that provides common guidelines and values, and a sense of coherence.
Education has been a priority to Jewish communities around the world, and throughout
history, as a means of preserving identity and culture. Jewish culture views education as a
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 32
transportable asset assisting in adapting to new surroundings and ensuring survival of Jewish
heritage and values (Smith, 2005). Moreover, education has instrumental and intrinsic value as
well; continuous growth and acquiring knowledge have been engrained as positive goals in life,
even aside from academia. The importance given to education can be illustrated by Jews’ annual
expenditures toward education, with Jews spending more on education per capita than other
minority groups (Smith, 2005). More than half of American Jewish adults have attained a college
degree, while more than a quarter have earned graduate degrees—proportions higher than those
found in any other American religious group (Kosmin, Berry & Keysar, 2006).
Iranian Values
Due to their long tenure in Iran, Jewish-Iranians strongly identify with the Iranian culture,
adopting many of that culture’s values. According to Banafsheian (2003), Iranian Jews have
shared more than 25 centuries with Iranians; therefore, they share many of the same values and
traditions. In accordance with the collectivistic orientation of Middle Eastern culture, Iranians
tend to identify themselves according to their membership in a group, namely the family and
community, versus focusing on individual needs (Haboush, 2005). Indeed, despite the variation
that exists across groups within the Iranian culture, there are strong values pertaining to the
importance of family that can be observed. Moreover, within the immediate nuclear family unit
there exists a multitude of factors that often predict how family values and child-rearing practices
are employed (Sharifzadeh, 2004). Such elements include, but are not limited to, parents’ level of
education, employment, the family’s degree of religious faith, and the family’s degree of
exposure to a Western way of life (Sharifzadeh, 2004).
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 33
The available literature demonstrates that the Jewish-Iranian cultural value system lends
prime importance to family and cohesion, and so is similar to that of the Jewish cultural value
system. The extended family unit continues to typify family relations, emphasizing the value of
familial cohesion, with Iranian Jews having frequent contact with every living generation in their
family. The Iranian cultural system, very similar to the Jewish cultural system, also emphasizes
the importance of education as a route to social mobility. Bozorgmehr’s (1991) study on the Los
Angeles Iranian community found that many parents said they would send their children to
American universities even if they had never planned to leave, emphasizing the importance of
education as a means of occupational advancement.
Family Ties
Iranian culture is adult oriented, with parents being involved in making major life
decisions for their children, such as professional careers and academic schooling. In Iranian
culture, the individual’s total life is dominated by the family and familial relationships (Jalili,
2005). The collectivistic nature of the Iranian culture is such that people rely on family
connections for position, security, and influence (Haboush, 2005). Family ties remain an integral
value among Jewish Iranians, with the preference for family members to live as close as
possible. Many members of extended families live in the same city or in close proximity to each
other, and frequent visitations and contact are the norm. It is quite common for three generations
of a family to live together in the same house (Sharifzadeh, 2004). Loyalty and respect for
parents as well as extended family is always present and expected. Traditionally, elders are
respected, listened to, and treated deferentially. Despite being in an adult-centered culture,
Iranian children are nevertheless the focus and priority within most families. Ansari’s 2005 study
of Iranian-American immigrants found that second-generation Iranian-Americans cite “parental
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 34
love and care” as the most important “Iranian” value to pass on to their own children. The strong
“love and care” for children oftentimes will express itself as “overprotection,” resulting in
pressure to achieve academically and occupationally.
Education
Aside from religious persecution, pursuing economic and professional opportunities, as
well as providing educational opportunities for their kids, were the primary reasons why many
Iranians initially moved to the United States. Education is of a prime importance to Iranian
culture, with “high occupational status” seen as a sign of prestige and success. It could be
theorized that Jewish Iranians are perhaps one of the most highly educated immigrant
communities because of their families’ strong emphasis on the importance of education.
Moreover, pride in and identification with one’s occupation are seen as essential to their essence;
therefore, most Iranians will not perform well in occupations that they consider beneath them
(Jalili, 2005). Iranian’s social code prescribes correct behavioral patterns with those in each
position in the hierarchy. People of a lower occupational rank respond to those of a higher rank
with deference, politeness, and respect. Thus, education is viewed as a means to high
occupational standing and prestige.
Influence of Values on Career Choice and Career Development
Cultural values have been found to influence career choice. Teng, Morgan, and
Anderson’s (2001) study on community college students found that students from four distinct
cultural groups (White, African-American, Hispanic, and Asian-American) displayed significant
differences on a number of career values and aspirations. For example, African-Americans put
great value on having a good starting income, while Hispanics put value on job security. This
helps to explain disparities in occupational choice based on fundamental values held by different
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 35
cultural groups. Leong (1991) identified extrinsic values such as money, status, and prestige as
being an influential factor in Asian-Americans’ occupational decisions. Gim’s (1992) study of
Asian-Americans indicated that parental pressure was one of the top five factors affecting their
career preference.
Likewise, strong cultural values distinct to Jewish tradition have a profound influence on
the academic and career choices of Jewish Americans. In a multi-dimensional statistical
investigation of American Jewry, Smith (2005) found that among the myriad of ethnic groups
and religious denominations that make up the American population, American Jews are the most
distinctive in their values and beliefs. Corroborating these findings, Smith’s study indicated that
Jews attach utmost importance to the pursuit of education and occupational advancement.
Multiple studies support these findings, with the mean years of schooling for Jews surpassing
other ethnic groups: 15.7 years for Jews versus 13.1 years for others (Kosmin & Lachman,
1993). More than 90% of second-generation Jewish students have a college education
(Goldscheider, 1993). Moreover, this educational edge has led Jews to the top in measures of
occupational status (Kosmin & Lachman, 1993), social-economic status (Alba, Lutz, &
Vesselinov, 2001) and academic achievement (Lynn, 2005). Clearly, educational achievement
and occupational status remain strong values in the Jewish community, and especially in the
Jewish-Iranian community, a group that attaches great importance to social status through
occupational standing.
Parenting Styles
An extensive search of the literature failed to find any study that examined the effects of
parenting styles on the academic achievement and occupational choices of Jewish Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans. However, the importance of parenting styles is supported throughout
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 36
the literature on the effects of parental influence on the developmental processes of children
(Glasglow et al., 1997).
Much evidence exists that parents influence their children’s career development and that
the family provides resources that are significant concerning adolescents’ ideas about their
future. For example, parents provide financial and emotional support, and also transmit their own
values, goals, and expectations to their children, all of which can impact the career development
process. Career theories suggest that parents assist in shaping children’s self-concept and can
serve as role models (Crites, 1962; Super, 1957).
The influence of parenting and family upon academic achievement is also well
documented, with most of the research focusing on parenting styles, particularly the interactions
between parents and children. Building on prior research regarding the effects of parental
disciplinary approaches and the process of family socialization, Baumrind (1971) established
distinctive parenting-style typologies that help to explain differences in parental interactions with
children. Baumrind’s research expands on the possible effects of academic achievement and
psychological development. These frameworks serve as the basis for exploring the relationships
between parental interactions with children and academic achievement in the Jewish-Iranian
community.
Baumrind’s Parenting Styles
Baumrind (1971) initially conceptualized the various types of parenting styles based on a
typological approach to the study of parent socialization practices. Baumrind identified three
qualitative patterns of parental authority – authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive. Maccoby
and Martin (1983) subsequently altered the typology by categorizing parents according to levels
of parental demandingness and responsiveness. Transformation of the parenting styles, in terms
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 37
of interaction between these two underlying dimensions, produces a four-fold typology, adding
two distinct parenting styles under the permissive typology – permissive indulgent and
permissive neglecting. A comprehensive model of Baumrind’s (1971) parenting process
indicates that parenting styles are a confluence of three distinct processes: (a) the values and
goals that parents place on their children, (b) the parenting practices that parents employ, and (c)
the attitudes that parents express toward their children.
Baumrind (1991) explored two additional dimensions of parenting styles: parental
responsiveness and demandingness. Parental responsiveness (parental warmth or
supportiveness) refers to "the extent to which parents intentionally foster individuality, self-
regulation, and self-assertion by being attuned, supportive, and acquiescent to children's special
needs and demands" (Baumrind, 1991, p. 62). Parental demandingness (behavioral control,
supervision, and maturity demands) refers to "the claims parents make on children to become
integrated into the family whole, by their maturity demands, supervision, disciplinary efforts and
willingness to confront the child who disobeys" (Baumrind, 1991, p. 62). Each parenting style
reflects a different naturally occurring pattern of parental values, practices, and behaviors
(Baumrind, 1991), and a distinct balance of responsiveness and demandingness.
Parenting Style Typologies
Authoritarian. This parenting style is characterized by a high level of demandingness
and little responsiveness by the parents to the needs of the child. Parents often attempt to shape,
control, and evaluate the behavior and attitudes of their children in accordance with an absolute
set of standards. These types of parents emphasize obedience, respect for authority, work,
tradition, and the preservation of order (Baumrind, 1971). Therefore, authoritarian parents are
low in responsiveness to their children’s perspectives, while expecting that their children are
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 38
high in demandingness. Authoritarian parents place high value on obedience while discouraging
a give-and-take relationship. This parenting style is associated with low levels of independence
and social responsibility in their children (Baumrind, 1967).
Authoritative. The Authoritative parenting style is characterized by parental
responsiveness to the needs of their children. However, authoritative parents also exhibit
demandingness in their set of expectations for their children. These parents expect mature
behavior from their child, and believe in clear setting of standards, firm enforcement of rules,
encouragement of the child’s independence and individuality, open communication between
parents and children, and the recognition of the rights of both parents and children (Baumrind,
1971). An authoritative parent encourages independence, originality, open communication, and
listens to the child's point of view as well as expressing his or her own, while at the same time
maintaining a fairly high level of expectation from the child in terms of conduct and
responsibilities. This parenting type is associated with high social and cognitive competence in
children, and these children are more independent than those of other parenting style
counterparts (Baumrind, 1973).
Permissive. In Baumrind’s original parenting-style typology, the permissive parent
encompassed a wide range of parental behavior. However, within the permissive parenting type,
Maccoby and Martin (1983) subsequently identified two additional primary parenting styles,
specifically permissive indulgent and permissive neglecting parents. Permissive indulgent parents
are characterized by low demandingness and high responsiveness. These parents are “tolerant,
warm, and accepting, yet exercise little authority…They make few demands for mature behavior,
and allow for considerable self-regulation” (Glasgow, Dornbusch, Troyer, Steinberg, & Ritter,
1997, p. 508). In contrast, permissive neglecting parents are characterized by low in
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 39
demandingness and low in responsiveness. These parents minimally monitor their children’s
behavior, infrequently support their needs, and often display “a neglectful or uninvolved pattern
of parenting…and are disengaged from parental responsibilities (Glasgow et al., 1997, p. 508).
Figure 1
Parenting Styles
Parenting Styles and Academic Achievement
Various researchers confirmed the benefits of authoritative parenting styles on a wide
range of populations, with the positive impact of authoritative parenting styles assumed to be
based on the encouragement of independent problem solving and critical thinking (Hess &
McDevitt, 1984). Authoritative parenting has been found to be associated with children’s and
adolescents’ school adjustment, high levels of performance (Dornbusch et al., 1987; Lomborn et
al., 1991; Steinberg et al., 1994), strong school engagement (Grolnick & Ryan, 1989; Pulkkinen,
1982; Stenberg et al., 1992) and positive attitudes towards school (Maccoby & Martin, 1983;
Pulkkinen, 1982; Steinberg et al., 1989;). Baumrind’s (1971) study of preschool children found
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 40
that such a mode of family interaction was associated with low levels of independence and social
responsibility. More recently, research focusing on adolescence has found positive associations
between authoritative parenting style and academic achievement (Hickman, Bartholomae, &
McKenry, 2000; Kim & Chung, 2003).
Authoritative parenting, which encourages children to be independent while still placing
limits and controls on their actions, often produces children who are academically successful and
are achievement orientated (Darling, 1999). Children of authoritative parents have consistently
higher scores on measures of psycho-social competence and school achievement. “Research
indicates that non-authoritative styles of parenting are less effective than authoritative parenting
in promoting a sense of instrumental competence among adolescents” (Baumrind, as cited in
Glasgow et al., 1997, p. 510). Several studies report positive associations between authoritative
parenting styles, academic performance (Reitman, Rhode, Hupp, & Altobello, 2002), and self-
control (Hart, DeWolf, Wozniak, & Burts, 1992; Pettit, Dodge, & Brown, 1988). Consistent with
those findings, Baumrind (1991) found that children (ages 4-15) of authoritative parents were the
most motivated, competent, and achievement oriented as compared to children reared under
other parenting typologies. Studies have often found this parenting style to be closely associated
with self-confidence, persistence, social competence, and psycho-social development (Strange &
Brandt, 1999). Overall, authoritative parents have been found to provide warm family climates,
set standards, and promote independence, which results in more active career exploration
(Kracke, 1997).
Durkin (1995) cited three reasons why authoritative parenting may be related to positive
academic outcomes. First, authoritative parents provide their children with a high level of
emotional security that gives them a sense of comfort and independence and helps them to
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 41
succeed academically. Second, authoritative parents provide their children with explanations for
their actions, which in turn provides the children with a sense of awareness and understanding of
their parents’ values, morals, and goals. Finally, authoritative parents engage in bidirectional
communication with their children, which nurtures skills in interpersonal relations and helps
children to become well-adjusted and more popular, thus helping the children to succeed socially
and academically.
Authoritarian parenting, as opposed to authoritative parenting, is characterized by a
restrictive, punitive style in which parents exhort their child to follow their directions. This often
leads to adverse effects on the academic achievement of adolescent students (Darling, 1999).
This type of parenting has been often linked with undesirable results, such as low academic
achievement (Dornbusch et al., 1987).
The permissive parenting style has often been associated with underachievement by those
parents’ children. Permissive parents place little to no expectation on their child concerning
achievement and behavior, leading to poor academic performance (Aunola, Stattin, & Nurmi,
2000). The permissive parenting styles (permissive-indulgent and permissive-neglectful) are
frequently linked to children who have low levels of self-esteem and exhibit a great degree of
delinquency, ultimately leading to poor academic achievement. The permissive styles score
similarly on problem behaviors and school performance, which is one of the reasons they are
often combined into a single group (Dornbusch et al., 1987). Children of this particular parenting
style engage in more selfishly motivated activities and tend to be less responsible than do
children of differing parenting styles (Meteyer & Jenkins, 2009). It has been suggested that, in
permissive homes, the under-controlled environment does not foster self-regulation in the
children and thus may leave them more impulsive and aggressive (Baumrind, 1991). Children of
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 42
permissive parents tend to have high social confidence and self-esteem, but also suffer from
lower academic achievement and school involvement (Aunola et al., 2000).
Parenting Styles and Diverse Populations
Various studies have attempted to confirm the benefits of authoritative parenting styles
on student achievement in a range of populations (Lamborn et al., 1991; Steinberg et al, 1994).
However, inconsistent results regarding the effects of parenting styles and childrens’ academic
outcomes have been found between Eastern and Western societies. Numerous studies focusing
on the influence of parenting styles in Eastern and Western cultures have demonstrated that
although children in Western societies would benefit more from an authoritative parenting style,
in terms of academic outcomes (Baumrind, 1972; Fletcher et al., 1995; Weiss & Schwartz,
1996), children in Eastern societies would benefit more from the authoritarian parenting styles
(Chao, 2001; Dwairy & Menshar, 2006; Lueng et al., 1998).
Parenting styles differ according to the ethnic groups of which they are a part, with
diverse effects on child achievement and development. For example, Hispanic and Asian
families are known to be more authoritarian, whereas Caucasian families are known to be more
authoritative. The positive relationship between authoritative parenting style and academic
achievement that is found among Caucasian students does not exist as frequently for Hispanic-
American and African-American students (Dornbusch, Ritter, Leiderman, Roberts, & Fraleigh,
1987; Park & Bauer, 2002). Examinations across ethnic groups have found that among African
Americans, parenting style was not a significant predictor of grades and achievements
(Dornbusch, Ritter, & Steinberg, 1991). In another study using a sample of African-American
adolescents (11-19 years old), Attaway and Hafer-Bry (2004) found that parental beliefs in high
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 43
degrees of control predicted lower grades, but parental beliefs in responsiveness did not
contribute to adolescents' grades.
The differences in parenting styles by race and/or ethnicity, however, do not necessarily
directly translate into differences in child outcomes, as cultural factors within and between
different countries and ethnic groups affect the relationship between parenting achievement, as
parenting styles may take on different meanings for different ethnic groups (Chao, 1994). For
example, the associations between parenting styles and Asian-Americans may not have the same
influence as generally seen in other ethnic or racial groups. Therefore, while authoritative
parenting proves to be academically beneficial to White students, authoritarian parenting styles
have a greater positive academic influence for Asian-American students (Dornbusch et al., 1987;
Steinberg et al., 1992).
Asian-American parents are often described as "controlling" or "authoritarian," with
literature citing these parenting behaviors as typically predicting poor academic achievement
(e.g., Attaway & HaferBry, 2004; Baumrind & Black, 1967; Chao, 1994). Given these findings,
one would expect Asian-American children to be less academically successful, but that is often
not the case. Asian-American students generally show better academic performance than do their
counterparts (Peng & Wright, 1994). Dornbusch et al.’s (1987) findings suggested that Asian
Americans should have poorer academic results than European Americans because their parents
are more authoritarian. However, Asian-American students generally show better academic
results than European Americans (Sue & Okazaki, 1990). Corroborating those findings,
researchers have found that in some ethnic groups, aspects of authoritarian parenting styles may
be associated with more positive outcomes than Baumrind (1971) predicted (Parke & Buriel,
2006). It is therefore important to note that research has found conflicting results concerning the
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 44
relationship between certain parenting styles and student achievement, with cultural factors
playing a critical role in influencing parenting styles of certain ethnicities and their subsequent
influence on academic achievement.
Summary of the Literature
To summarize the effects of parenting styles on achievement, the most common pattern
for achievement has been positively related with the authoritative parenting style, while the
permissive parenting styles consistently produce low achievement. Recent research looking at
the influences on academic achievement between authoritative and authoritarian style has found
inconsistencies when ethnic and cultural factors are taken into consideration. Given the
substantial influence and association of particular parenting styles on the academic and social
developmental processes of children (Glaslow et al., 1997), this researcher investigated the effect
of parenting on the academic achievement and occupational choice of American Jews and
Iranian-American Jews. Parenting may arguably be the most important factor contributing to a
child’s development, as supported throughout the literature, and was therefore proposed as a
potential influencing factor attributing to the success and differences in academic achievement
within the American Jewish population. Previous research has addressed differences in parenting
in Western and Eastern countries and the varying influence that different parenting styles have
on academic achievement. As such, the purpose of the present study is to investigate the
relationship between parenting styles on the academic achievement and occupational choices of
Jewish–American and Jewish-Iranian Americans. Moreover, the contradictory findings on the
strength of a particular parenting style as a predictor of academic achievement based on culture
necessitates further study of other factors such as cultural values that may also influence
academic achievement and occupational choice.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 45
Research Questions
Research Question 1: Are there differences between Jewish-Americans and Jewish-
Iranian Americans in parenting styles, values, academic achievement and occupational choice?
Hypothesis 1a: There will be differences in parenting styles between Jewish-Americans
and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
Hypothesis 1b: There will be differences in values between Jewish-Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans.
Hypothesis 1c: There will be differences in academic achievement between Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
Hypothesis 1d: There will be differences in occupational orientation between Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
Research Question 2: Do parenting styles and values predict academic achievement (as
measured by GPA.) for Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans?
Hypothesis 2a: Differences in Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans parenting
styles will predict academic achievement.
Hypothesis 2b: Differences in Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans values
will predict academic achievement.
Research Question 3: Do parenting styles and values influence the occupational choices
of Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans?
Hypothesis 3a: Differences in Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans parenting
styles will predict occupational choice.
Hypothesis 3b: Differences in Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans values
will predict occupational choice.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 46
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
This study investigated the influence of parenting styles, acculturation and values on the
academic achievement, occupational choices, and occupational pathways of Jewish-American
and Jewish-Iranian students. This following chapter describes the methodology employed in the
study, including the participants, instrumentation, and procedures.
Participants
Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American students from the Los Angeles and New
York Jewish communities were solicited during a three-month period between the fall of 2010
and winter of 2011. A total of 451 students volunteered to participate in this study. Of the 451
total survey responses, 23 could not be included in the study due to incomplete responses or
respondents who indicated that they were not Jewish-American, resulting in a usable response
pool of 428 for the final data analyses.
Jewish-American participants in the sample ranged in age from 19 to 49 years old (n =
85, M = 31.70, SD = 10.48). As indicated in Table 1, Jewish-American female participants
comprised 69.6% (n = 220) of the sample, while male participants comprised 30.4% (n = 96) of
the sample. Jewish-Iranian American participants in the sample were slightly younger than
participating Jewish Americans, ranging in age from 19 to 36 years old (n = 25.05, SD = 5.19).
As shown in Table 1, Jewish-American female participants comprised 58% (n = 65) of the
sample, while male participants comprised 42% (n = 42) of the sample. Anonymous self-
reported surveys were completed by the participants online. The majority of Jewish Americans
identified with the Central and Eastern European Ashkenazi tradition (n = 253, 89%), while a
majority of Jewish-Iranian Americans identified with the Middle-Eastern Sephardic tradition (n
= 85, 79%). More than 23% (n = 99) of the participants indicated that their family income was
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 47
greater than $150,000. The rest of the participants were fairly evenly distributed among other
family incomes. Less than 9% (n = 28) of Jewish-American respondents indicated they were
born outside the United States, with 66% (n = 191) of the respondents indicating that their
grandparents or parents born inside the United States. Approximately 35% of Jewish-Iranian
Americans indicated they were born outside the United States (n = 37). Fewer than 3% of Iranian
respondents came from families in which both parents were born outside the United States.
Table 1
Demographic Characteristics of Jewish-Americans versus Iranian-Jewish Americans
Jewish American
a
Iranian-Jewish American
a
p-value
b
N 316 112
Age 31.70 (10.48) 25.05 (5.19) < .001***
Sex
Male 96 (30.4) 47 (42.0) .03*
Female 220 (69.6) 65 (58.0)
Generational Status
Parents & grandparents born in US 79 (27.4) 1 (0.9) <.001***
Parents born in US
At least 1 grandparent born outside US
112 (38.9) 2 (1.9)
At least 1 parent born outside US 69 (24.0) 66 (62.3)
Respondent born outside US 28 (9.7) 37 (34.9)
Which do you identify with
Ashkenazi 253 (88.5) 2 (1.9) < .001***
Mizrachi 1 (0.3) 10 (9.3)
Sephardic 27 (9.4) 85 (78.7)
Sephardim 5 (1.5) 11 (10.2)
Highest Level of Education
Some High School 0 (0.0) 2 2 (1.8) .004**
High School Graduate/GED 11 (3.7) 4 (3.6)
Some College/Technical School 41 (13.6) 26 (23.4)
College Graduate 83 (27.6) 37 (33.3)
Advanced Graduate Degree 166 (55.1) 42 (37.8)
Childhood Household Income
$0 - $16,000 4 (1.3) 1 (0.9) .16
$16,001- $30,000 8 (2.7) 8 (7.2)
$30,001 - $50,000 22 (7.3) 13 (11.7)
$50,001 - $75,000 28 (9.3) 14 (12.6)
$75,001 - $100,000 34 (11.3) 14 (12.6)
$100,001 - $150,000 35 (11.6) 11 (9.9)
$150,001+ 80 (26.6) 19 (17.9)
Don’t know 90 (29.9) 31 (27.9)
Entered Into Desired Career
Yes 252 (86.0) 92 (85.2) .83
No 41 (14.0) 16 (14.8)
Note.
a
reported as M(SD) or n(%) unless otherwise noted.
b
reported for independent samples t-tests or chi-square tests of
independence as appropriate.
*p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 48
Instrumentation
Demographics and Background Information
Demographic data (see Appendix A) was collected in order to describe the participants in
the study. The survey designed for this study included information about the participant’s age,
gender, parents’ levels of education, generational status, length of time living in the United
States, parents’ country of origin, religious movement identification (Orthodox, Modern
Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist), and regional denomination (Ashkenazi,
Sephardi, Sephardic, Sephardim).
Parental Authority Questionnaire (PAQ)
The first independent variable measured was parenting style, based on information
provided by the participants about their parents. The Parental Authority Questionnaire (PAQ)
was developed to measure three parenting styles: authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive
(Buri, 1991). This instrument has been one of the most widely used tools in investigating
parenting styles and has been continually supported by research showing it to have strong
content validity. The PAQ has been tested and proven to be an effective tool in assessing
maternal and paternal authoritativeness, authoritarianism, and permissiveness. It is an
appropriate measure for use with older adolescents and young adult males and females (Buri,
1991). Higher mean scores indicate a stronger perception by the respondent of a parent’s
parenting style as authoritative, authoritarian, or permissive. Mean scores range from 1 to 5, with
1 indicating little recognition by the respondent of the parenting style of each parent and 5
indicating total recognition by the respondent of the parenting style of each parent.
The questionnaire consisted of separate evaluations of mothers’ and fathers’ parenting
styles, with a total 30 items for each. The questionnaire yielded separate authoritative,
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 49
authoritarian, and permissive scores for each parent. Each of the scores was derived from the
participant’s appraisals of the parent’s perceived style. The PAQ does not distinguish between
indulgent permissive or neglectful permissive.
Buri’s (1991) PAQ consists of 30 items per parent, with 10 questions measuring each of
the three different parenting-style types—permissive, authoritarian, and authoritative—using a 5-
point Likert Scale. The possible responses ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree)
for each parental style. A minimum score of 30 was required in order for a parent to be
considered part of that parenting style, and mean scores were calculated by dividing the total
score for each parenting style by 10. Each statement on the PAQ provided the opportunity for the
participant to describe the patterns of authority exercised by his or her parents while growing up.
Scores for the permissive subscale were obtained by summing items 1, 6, 10, 13, 14, 17, 19, 21,
24, and 28. Scores for the authoritarian subscale were obtained by summing items 2, 3, 7, 9, 12,
16, 18, 25, 26, and 29. Scores for the authoritarian subscale were obtained by summing items 4,
5, 8, 11, 15, 20, 22, 23, 27, and 30. The possible scores for these three subscales ranged from 10
to 50. The highest score of the three parenting styles was identified as the parenting style closest
to that under which the participant was reared in by either the mother or father.
Typically, the PAQ provides information on the parenting styles of each individual parent
from the child’s perspective, thereby presenting the possibility of having six separate scores for
each participant. However, with the objective being that of evaluating parenting styles from a
holistic perspective, that is the overall impact of parenting from the child’s perspective not
including the differences between mother and fathers, a combined form of the PAQ (Kim &
Chung, 2003) was implemented.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 50
Participants were instructed to respond to the items based on their overall perceptions of
recalled parental behavior. This instrument was selected because of its strong psychometric
properties as well as its design for college and graduate-age populations. The PAQ internal
consistency reliability ranged between .74 to .87, while its test-retest reliability ranged from .77
to .92. The PAQ also has a strong discriminant and criterion-related validity (Buri, 1991).
Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ)
The second instrument implemented to measure the second independent variable (values)
was the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ; Schwartz, 2003; Schwartz, Lehmann, & Roccas,
1999; Schwartz, Melech, Lehmann, Burgess, & Harris, 2001). The PVQ was designed to
measure the same 10 basic value orientations measured by the Schwartz Value Survey.
According to Schwartz, the design of the PVQ reduces the cognitive complexity of the items by
presenting respondents with short verbal portraits of different people: the person’s goals,
aspirations, or wishes that point implicitly to the importance of a single value. This makes it
suitable for use with all segments of the population, including those with little or no formal
schooling.
An example of the PVQ’s short verbal portraits is “Thinking up new ideas and being
creative is important to him. He likes to do things in his own original way.” This describes a
person for whom self-direction values are important. Another example: “It is important to him to
be rich. He wants to have a lot of money and expensive things.” This describes a person who
cherishes power values. By describing each person in terms of what is important to him or her—
the goals and wishes he or she pursues—the verbal portraits capture the person’s values without
explicitly identifying values as the topic of investigation. For each portrait, respondents answer
the question: “How much like you is this person?” They check one of six boxes labeled as
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 51
follows: very much like me, like me, somewhat like me, a little like me, not like me, and not like
me at all. Thus, respondents’ own values are inferred from their self-reported similarity to people
who are described in terms of particular values. The similarity judgments are transformed into a
6-point numerical scale.
The score for the importance of each value is the average rating given to items designated
a priori as markers of that value. The number of items to measure each value ranges from three
(hedonism) to eight (universalism), reflecting the conceptual breadth of the values. Only value
items that have demonstrated near-equivalence of meaning across cultures in analyses using
multi-dimensional scaling (SSA; Schwartz, 1992, 1994, 2005a) and confirmatory factor analysis
(CFA; Schwartz & Boehnke, 2004) are included in the indexes. Across 212 samples (national
representative, teacher, student), the alpha reliabilities of the 10 values average .68, ranging from
.61 for tradition to .75 for universalism (Schwartz, 2005b).
Schwartz’s (1994, 1997) values models have been extensively used in cross-cultural
studies of individual values. Incorporating values identified in a diversity of cultures, the
Schwartz values model and the reliability of its measurement have been cross-culturally
validated with 97 samples in 44 countries including China and the United States (Schwartz 1994,
1997). Ten universal values were derived:
(a) Achievement: personal success through the demonstration of competence according to
social standards;
(b) Benevolence: concern for the welfare of close others in everyday interactions;
(c) Conformity: restraint of actions, inclinations, and impulses likely to upset or harm
others and violate social expectations or norms;
(d) Hedonism: pleasure and sensuous gratification for oneself;
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 52
(e) Power: attainment of social status and prestige, and control or dominance over people
and resources;
(f) Security: safety, harmony, and stability of society, of relationships, and of the self;
(g) Self-Direction: independent thought and action;
(h) Stimulation: excitement, novelty, and challenge in life;
(i) Tradition: respect, commitment, and acceptance of the customs and ideas that one’s
culture or religion imposes on the individual;
(j) Universalism: understanding, appreciation, tolerance, and protection for the welfare of
all people and for nature (Schwartz, 1992).
Academic Achievement
Academic achievement, the first dependent variable, was calculated using participant’s
self-reported current and/or past university GPA, and SAT and GRE scores, if applicable.
Answers were self-reported and therefore subject to response bias. Students were to report
GPAs on a categorical basis: (i.e. 0-2.0, 2.1- 2.5, 2.6-3.0, 3.1-3.5, 3.6-4.0) by checking of the
appropriate box. Participants were encouraged to look at transcripts or report cards in order to
verify this information.
Occupational Choice
Occupational choice, the second dependent variable, was determined using the
Occupational Information Network (O*NET) career clusters. O*NET was created for the U.S.
Department of Labor, Employment & Training Administration by the National Center for
O*NET Development. O*NET is a database that contains well-researched job descriptions and
other information for jobs that exist in the United States (both government and private). These
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 53
jobs are grouped by occupation. Students were to choose from one of the following career
categories in order to help indicate current and/or future career choice.
(a) Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources
(b) Architecture and Construction
(c) Arts, Audio/Video Technology and Communications
(d) Business, Management and Administration
(e) Education and Training
(f) Finance
(g) Government and Public Administration
(h) Health Science
(i) Hospitality and Tourism
(j) Human Services
(k) Information Technology
(l) Law, Public Safety, Corrections and Security
(m) Manufacturing; Marketing, Sales and Service
(n) Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
(o) Transportation, Distribution and Logistics.
Procedure
The investigator for this study contacted and solicited Jewish-American and Jewish-
Iranian American students from around the Los Angeles community and Jewish networks to
complete online surveys. A synopsis of the survey, a link to the survey, and a notice of
confidentiality were included in all emails and solicitations. Networks were identified by
contacting various Jewish college campus networks around the Los Angeles area. Campuses
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 54
such as UCLA, Santa Monica City College, University of Southern California, and California
State University of Northridge were specifically targeted as they enrolled a high percentage of
both Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American students.
A consent form was provided at the beginning of the online survey and it informed the
participants that their participation was voluntary and information would be kept confidential.
Participants also were provided with the researcher’s contact information in case they had further
questions relating to the study. The average time to complete the survey was approximately 15 to
20 minutes. The specific terms of the variables and instrument were not mentioned, meaning the
participants did not know what the study was looking for particularly.
As an incentive to increase the survey population, the researcher offered gift cards from
Target, Best Buy, and Foot Locker to 10 random participants. The researcher also offered to
donate $1 to the Japanese Tsunami relief fund for every survey that was completed.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 55
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS
This chapter presents the results of the statistical analyses that address the following three
research questions:
1. Are there differences between Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans in parenting
styles, values, academic achievement, and occupational choice?
2. Do parenting styles and values predict academic achievement (GPA) for Jewish Americans
and Jewish-Iranian Americans?
3. Do parenting styles and values influence the occupational choices of Jewish Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans?
Preliminary Analysis
Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian Values
The top values recorded for Jewish American’s (JA’s) were Benevolence, Self-direction,
Universalism, Security, and Achievement; the lowest values recorded were Power, Stimulation,
Conformity, Tradition, and Hedonism. The top values recorded for Jewish-Iranian Americans
(JIA’s) were Benevolence, Self-direction, Security, Tradition, and Universalism; the lowest
values recorded were Power, Stimulation, Achievement, Conformity, and Hedonism. The values
of Benevolence, Self-direction and Security seem to be a high value priority, while the values of
Power, Stimulation and Conformity seem to be a low priority among American Jews, as a whole.
Table 2 (below) illustrates the breakdown for values by ethnicity (Jewish-Americans vs. Jewish-
Iranian Americans) in descending order.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 56
Table 2
Values Breakdown by ethnicity (Jewish-Americans versus Iranian-Jewish)
Jewish-Americans Jewish-Iranian Americans
Values Mean SD Values Mean SD
Power 3.04 .89 Power 3.26 .86
Stimulation 3.35 .78 Stimulation 3.77 .95
Conformity 3.50 .96 Achievement 3.82 1.03
Tradition 3.56 1.02 Conformity 3.85 1.08
Hedonism 3.59 .87 Hedonism 3.89 .87
Achievement 3.72 .95 Universalism 3.97 .74
Security 3.80 .89 Tradition 3.98 1.05
Universalism 3.95 .87 Security 4.01 .98
Self-Direction 4.29 .97 Self-Direction 4.43 .87
Benevolence 4.44 .94 Benevolence 4.57 .75
Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American Parenting Styles
Table 3 (below) illustrates the mean score for the different types of parenting styles as
indicated by Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American participants. For Jewish Americans,
the mean score for authoritative parenting was 27.15, 22.69 for authoritarian style, and 20.35 for
permissive style. While for Jewish-Iranian Americans, the mean score for authoritative parenting
was 28.36, 26.76 for authoritarian style, and 22.69 for permissive style.
Table 3
Parenting Styles (Jewish-Americans versus Iranian-Jewish)
Jewish Americans Jewish-Iranian Americans
Parenting Style Mean SD Parenting Style Mean SD
Authoritative 27.15 6.87 Authoritative 28.36 6.75
Authoritarian 22.69 5.39 Authoritarian 26.76 6.37
Permissive 20.35 7.85 Permissive 22.69 5.42
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 57
Correlational Analysis
Based on the results shown in Table 4, the authoritative parenting style is positively
correlated with high GPA (r = .17, p < .05). This indicates that high scores for the authoritative
parenting styles are associated with high GPA at the high-school level.
The value of benevolence is negatively associated with high-school GPA (r = -.12, p <
.05), SAT (1600), (r = .40, p < .001), and SAT (2400) (r = .40, p < .001). This indicates that
higher scores for the value of benevolence are associated with lower high-school GPA and SAT
scores. The value of hedonism is positively correlated with high-school and college GPA and
GRE, indicating that higher scores for hedonism are associated with higher GPAs at the high-
school (r = .12, p < .05) and college level (r = .14, p < .05), and higher scores for the GRE, (r =
.31, p < .001). Lastly, power is positively correlated with graduate-school GPA, (r = .19, p <
.05), which means that those who have high scores for power have higher graduate-school GPAs.
Table 4
Results of Correlation Analysis (Academic Achievement, Parenting Styles and Values)
High School GPA College GPA Graduate School GPA SAT (1600) SAT (2400) GRE
Parenting Style
Permissive -.07 -.08 -.08 -.03 .12 .13
Authoritarian .06 -.02 .05 .09 .25 .23
Authoritative .17* -.01 .003 -.14 -.23 -.09
Values
Conformity -.07 .01 .02 .08 .08 -.15
Tradition -01 .03 -.10 -.01 -.01 -.18
Benevolence -.12* -.08 -.07 -.40*** -.40*** .03
Universalism .05 -.04 .04 -.30 -.30 -.10
Self-Direction -.04 -.05 .01 -.09 -.09 -.02
Stimulation .06 -.04 -.01 .25 .25 .21
Hedonism .12* .14* -.07 .20 .20 .31***
Achievement .004 .01 .05 .23 .23 .09
Power .03 .08 .19* .26 .26 .10
Security -.06 -.06 -.004 -.03 -.03 -.23
Note. * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 58
Significant correlations among the three parenting styles and among the three identity
styles were found. Authoritative parenting style was positively correlated with Tradition, r = .16,
p < .05, and Security, r = .21, p < .01, while negatively correlated with Achievement, r = -.16, p
< .05, and Power, r = -.15, p < .05. Additionally, Authoritative parenting was correlated with
high-school GPA, r = .17, p < .05. Authoritarian parenting style was positively correlated with
Conformity, r = .14, p < .05, Self-direction, r = .14, p < .05, and Security, r = .12, p < .05, and
negatively correlated with Tradition, r = -.14, p < .05, and Universalism, r = -.22, p < .001.
Permissive parenting style was positively correlated with Stimulation (r = .16, p < .01) and
Power (r = .13, p < .05) and negatively correlated with Benevolence, r = -.14, p < .05. Table 5
(below) illustrates the correlations between parenting styles and values.
Table 5
Results of Correlation Analysis (Parenting Style and Values)
Permissive Authoritarian Authoritative
Values
Conformity
-.12 .14* .11
Tradition
-.07 -.14* .16*
Benevolence
-.14* -.296 -.30
Universalism
-.01 -.22*** .03
Self-Direction
-.05 .14* -.13
Stimulation
.16** .02 -.006
Hedonism
-.03 .05 -.12
Achievement
.03 .11 -.16*
Power
.13* .12* -.15*
Security
.006 .05 .21**
Note. * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 59
Analyses of Research Questions
Research Question 1: Are there differences between Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian
Americans in parenting styles, values, academic achievement, and occupational choice?
The first research question under examination dealt with the differences between Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans in parenting styles, values, academic achievement, and
occupational choice. This question, therefore, focused on how ethnicity affected the parenting
styles, values, and academic and occupational choices of the respondents. The four research
hypotheses were developed and then tested to arrive at the findings. Each of these hypotheses
were examined using a different statistical analysis, as mentioned below.
Hypothesis 1a: There will be differences in parenting styles between Jewish-Americans
and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
To determine the differences in parenting styles between Jewish Americans and Jewish-
Iranian Americans, a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted. Using
Pillai’s trace, there was no significant effect of ethnicity on parenting style. No statistical
differences were found between Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans, for all three
parenting styles (e.g., authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive)
Hypothesis 1b: There will be differences in values between Jewish-Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans.
In order to determine ethnic-group differences in values, multivariate analysis of variance
(MANOVA) was conducted. Using Pillai’s trace, there was no significant effect of ethnicity on
all levels of personal value orientations. No statistical differences were found between Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans across all values.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 60
Hypothesis 1c: There will be differences in academic achievement between Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
In order to evaluate whether there is a difference in the academic performance of Jewish
Americans compared to Jewish-Iranian Americans, a series of three chi-square tests of
independence were conducted to examine subjects’ high-school, college, and graduate-school
GPAs. Due to the risk of an inflated family-wise error rate associated with multiple testing, a
conservative Bonferroni correction was applied by dividing the standard alpha value of .05 by
the three tests to be run, resulting in statistical significance being claimed only for tests that were
significant at the .02 level of significance (.05/3).
The chi-square tests revealed a statistically significant association between ethnicity and
high-school GPA (
2
(4)
= 17.94, p = .001), with Jewish-Iranian Americans being less likely than
Jewish Americans to attain a GPA of 3.6 and higher. College (
2
(3)
= 3.80, p = .28) and graduate
school (
2
(2)
= 6.77, p = .03) approached corrected statistical significance set at the .02 level of
significance.
Hypothesis 1d: There will be differences in occupational orientation between Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
In order to determine whether there is an association between ethnicity and career choice,
a chi-square analysis was conducted. Upon examination of the subjects’ current careers, several
modifications were made.
First, after classifying participants’ current careers into the 16 categories specified by
O*NET, 156 (36%) of the observations remained unclassified. The creation of three additional
categories (student, homemaker, and unemployed) allowed all responses to be fit into a category.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 61
After assigning a career classification to each subject’s response, it was noted that several
career paths were rarely indicated (see Table 2). As a result, several modifications were deemed
necessary to avoid creating cells with expected counts of less than five during the chi-square
analysis. Specifically, 10 career paths (architecture and construction; arts, audio/video
technology and communications; hospitality and tourism; information technology; law, public
safety, corrections and security; manufacturing; science, technology, engineering and
mathematics; transportation, distribution and logistics; homemaker; unemployed) were removed
from the analysis. In addition to these modifications, jobs in finance and in human services were
recorded as Business. After this recoding, a chi-square test of independence revealed no
statistically significant association between ethnicity and current career (
2
(4)
= 1.37, p = .85).
Research Question 2: Do parenting styles and values predict academic achievement (GPA) for
American Jews?
Based on the analysis above with few significant differences between Jewish-Iranian
Americans and Jewish-Americans, both groups were combined in subsequent analyses.
A series of regression models were examined using the three parenting styles. Eight value
dimensions of the Schwartz’s (1992) value survey were used as predictors, while academic
achievement was used as the criterion variable. As suggested by Schwartz, all value predictors
were centered on the average total score of all value items. In addition, two of the subscales
(stimulation and universalism) were excluded. Stimulation—the need and want for excitement,
novelty, and challenge in life—was excluded on the basis that its main value goal closely
resembled hedonism (Schwartz, 2009). A total of six models were run to examine participants’
high-school, college, and graduate-school GPA levels, SAT scores, and GRE scores.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 62
As logistic regression modeling techniques failed to provide a precise analog to the R
2
derived in linear regression models, it was decided to report Nagelkerke’s R
2
for each model, as
Cox and Snell’s R
2
equation is limited to values below the theoretical maximum value of 1.
As GPA was collapsed into categories, participants’ high-school GPA scores were
examined with multiple logistic regression modeling. The resulting model demonstrated
adequate goodness of fit (p > .05 for both Pearson and Deviance measures), and overall served as
a statistically significant predictor of participants’ high-school GPA (X
2
(33)
= 54.23, p = .01). It
also was found to predict approximately 33% of the observed variance in participants’ high-
school GPA category. Within the model, three value dimensions emerged as the sole statistically
significant predictors: benevolence, achievement, and conformity
High-School GPA
To determine the effect of parenting styles on the academic achievement of Jewish-
Americans high-school GPAs, a multi-linear regression model was performed. After the analysis,
no significant findings emerged from the analysis, with all three types of parenting styles
(permissive, authoritarian, and authoritative) having no significant effect on GPA at all levels
(3.6 – 4.0 versus 4.1+, 3.1 – 2.5 versus 4.1+, 2.6 – 3.0 versus 4.1+).
College GPA
Participants’ college GPA levels were examined with multiple logistic regression
modeling. Although the resulting model demonstrated adequate goodness of fit (p > .05 for both
Pearson and Deviance measures), the full model failed to serve as a statistically significant
predictor of participants’ college GPA (X
2
(22)
= 19.48, p = .62), precluding any examination of
the effects of specific predictors.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 63
As this overall model was not found to be significant, a tabular representation of the
results was omitted. Additionally, no comments can be made on how the predictors (parenting
styles and values) influence Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American college GPA scores.
Graduate GPA
As only two graduate GPA categories (3.1 - 3.5 and 3.6 - 4.0) had sufficient response
rates to allow for regression modeling, graduate GPA was reduced to a dichotomous variable,
and binary logistic regression modeling was conducted. The resulting model failed to serve as a
statistically significant predictor of students’ GPA (
2
(11)
= 9.29, p = .60), precluding any
examination of the effects of specific predictors. No conclusive comment, therefore, can be made
on the potential influence of parenting styles and values on Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian
American graduate GPA scores.
SAT and GRE Scores
As there were only 22 and 37 subjects with complete information on the predictors for
the new SAT and GRE, the sample size was found to be too small and hence no analysis was
conducted.
Research Question 3: Do parenting styles and values influence the current and future
occupational choices of American Jews?
In order to determine whether parenting styles and values are related to choice of current
career field, three hierarchical regression models were examined. Each of the three parenting
styles investigated in this study (permissive, authoritative, and authoritarian) were examined as
dependent variables. As several career classifications were removed from the data set due to low
response rates, ultimately only five career fields were dummy-coded, meaning that the original
15 O*Net career categories were collapsed into education, health, marketing, and business (with
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 64
student serving as the reference category), and entered into the first block of the model. As
previously stated, only eight of the 10 value dimensions of Schwartz’s (1991) value survey were
examined, as required by the instrumentation. These values were force-entered into the model in
the second bloc, as indicated in Table 6.
Table 6
American-Jewish Future and Current Career Choice
Career Category
n (valid %)
Changes for
Analysis
Current
Career
Future
Career
1 Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) Dropped
2 Architecture and Construction 1 (0.2) 1 (0.2) Dropped
3 Arts, Audio/Video Technology and
Communications
16 (3.7) 22 (5.1) Dropped
4 Business, Management and Administration 56 (12.9) 67 (15.4)
5 Education and Training 65 (15.0) 81 (18.7)
6 Finance 16 (3.7) 14 (3.2) Recoded as
Business
7 Government and Public Administration 0 (0.0) 5 (1.2) Dropped
8 Health Science 35 (8.1) 100 (23.0)
9 Hospitality and Tourism 6 (1.4) 7 (1.6) Dropped
10 Human Services 20 (4.6) 39 (8.6) Recoded as
Business
11 Information Technology 4 (0.9) 5 (1.2) Dropped
12 Law, Public Safety, Corrections and
Security
19 (4.4) 31 (7.1) Dropped
(Current Only)
13 Manufacturing 4 (0.9) 3 (0.7) Dropped
14 Marketing, Sales and Service 24 (5.5) 19 (4.4) Dropped
(Future Only)
15 Science, Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics
11 (2.5) 12 (2.8) Dropped
16 Transportation, Distribution and Logistics 1 (0.2) 1 (0.2) Dropped
17 Student 141 (31.5) 3 (0.7) Dropped
(Future Only)
18 Homemaker 9 (2.1) 5 (1.2) Dropped
19 Unemployed 6 (1.4) 5 (1.2) Dropped
20 Undecided - 14 (3.2) Dropped
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 65
Current Career
Upon examining the models, neither career (F(4,214) = 2.07, p = .09) nor the addition of
values (F(8, 206) = 1.52, p = .15) predicted levels of permissive parenting. For levels of
authoritarian parenting, a different pattern emerged. Both current career (R
2
= .05, F(4,217) =
2.69, p = .03) and the addition of values (R
2
change = .11, F(8,209) = 3.33, p = .001) predicted
levels of authoritative parenting (see Table 7). Finally, regarding authoritative parenting,
although current career was not predictive of levels of authoritative parenting (R
2
= .01, F(4,
134) = 0.37, p = .83), the addition of values resulted in a statistically significant model (R
2
change = .17, F(8,126) = 3.31, p = .002 (see Table 7).
Table 7
Summary of Final Regression Models for Predicting Parenting Styles (n = 139-222)
Regression Models and Predictors
a
SE R
2
Sig
Model 1: Permissive Parenting No predictors reached the .05 level of significance
Model 2: Authoritarian Parenting .16 < .001***
Current Career Field
b
Education 1.89 1.21 .11 .12
Health 2.25 1.48 .10 .13
Marketing 2.49 1.81 .10 .17
Business 3.36 1.28 .18 .01**
Values
Conformity .93 .74 .11 .21
Tradition 1.49 .76 .16 .05*
Benevolence -2.39 1.03 -.19 .02*
Self-Direction -.02 .96 -.002 .98
Hedonism 1.14 .68 .14 .10
Achievement .42 .68 .05 .54
Power .37 .65 .04 .57
Security -.33 .83 -.03 .69
Model 3: Authoritative Parenting .18 .009**
Current Career Field
b
Education -2.08 1.42 -.14 .15
Health -1.93 1.46 -.12 .19
Marketing -1.57 2.07 -.07 .45
Business -.57 1.35 -.04 .67
Values Conformity -1.78 .86 -.21 .04*
Tradition 1.28 .93 .15 .17
Benevolence -.37 1.26 -.03 .77
Self-Direction -.54 1.07 -.06 .61
Hedonism -.96 .73 -.14 .19
Achievement .08 .77 .01 .92
Power -1.89 .73 -.26 .01**
Security 2.33 .90 .25 .01**
Note.
a
Reflects final models,
b
Reference Category: Student.
* p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 66
Future Career
An additional analysis was conducted investigating how parenting styles and values had
an effect on future career plans (see Table 8). Three regression models were used to assess the
three styles of parenting using three career fields and eight values as the predictors. Parenting
styles and values and occupational choice (Career Clusters) were used to conduct a chi-square
test:
Permissive Parenting: Overall, future career did predict permissive parenting (F
(3,222)
=
4.97, p =.002). The inclusion of values—that is, the addition of values in conjunction
with parenting styles—to the model failed to contribute any significant findings (F
(8,214)
=
1.45, p = .18), so this block was excluded from the reported values above.
Authoritarian Parenting: Overall, future career didn’t predict authoritarian parenting
(F
(3,227)
= 1.40, p =.24). However, the inclusion of values as a whole did predict
authoritarian parenting, (F
(8,219)
= 3.98, p < .001).
Authoritative Parenting: Overall, future career didn’t predict authoritative parenting
(F
(3,147)
= .56, p =.64). However, the inclusion of values as a whole did predict
authoritative parenting, (F
(11,139)
= 2.02, p = .03)
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 67
Table 8
Summary of Final Regression Models for Predicting Parenting Styles (n = 151-231)
Regression Models and Predictors
a
SE
R
2
Sig
Model 1: Permissive Parenting .06 .002**
Future Career Field
b
Education -2.10 .80 -.19 .01**
Health .81 .77 .08 .30
Law -2.13 1.25 -.12 .09
Model 2: Authoritarian Parenting .14 < .001***
Future Career Field
b
Education -.22 1.19 -.01 .86
Health .97 1.16 .06 .41
Law 1.50 1.81 .06 .41
Values
Conformity 1.20 .80 .12 .13
Tradition 1.81 .78 .18 .02*
Benevolence -2.66 1.09 -.20 .02*
Self Direction .76 .98 .06 .44
Hedonism .62 .69 .07 .37
Achievement .54 .72 .06 .45
Power 1.33 .65 .15 .04
Security -.17 .85 -.01 .84
Model 3: Authoritative Parenting .14 .01**
Future Career Field
b
Education .82 1.31 .06 .53
Health .02 1.26 .002 .99
Law -1.91 1.95 -.09 .33
Values Conformity -1.59 .89 -.18 .07
Tradition .68 .90 .08 .45
Benevolence -.50 1.28 -.04 .70
Self Direction -1.48 1.00 -.15 .14
Hedonism -.03 .71 -.003 .97
Achievement -.58 .74 -.07 .44
Power -1.74 .72 -.23 .02*
Security 1.94 .91 .19 .04*
Note.
a
Reflects final models,
b
Reference Category: Business.
* p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 68
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION
As mentioned in the literature review, for the last several decades Jewish Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans have enjoyed academic achievement and occupational success in the
United States. Yet, there exists little research that has explored the potential influences leading to
this success. The main purpose of this study was to address the gap in the current literature
concerning parenting styles among both Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans and to
examine the potential influences leading to Jewish academic achievement and occupational
choice. Specifically, this researcher sought to examine the relationships between parenting styles
and values on the academic achievement and occupational choices among Jewish Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans. Previous research has used parenting styles to help examine the
connections between parental behaviors and student’s academic outcomes and occupational
choice (Attaway & Bry, 2004; Baumrind, 1971; Steinberg et al., 1992). Cultural values have also
played a crucial role in determining these factors (Brown, 2002). The previous chapter provided
a quantitative analysis of the relationship between these variables. The current chapter provides a
discussion of the main findings, implications for research and practice, limitations of the current
study, and recommendations for future research.
Differences and Similarities between Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans
Parenting Styles
Despite the researcher’s belief that there would be differences in parenting styles between
Jewish- Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans, due to the differences in their individualistic
versus collectivist cultural backgrounds, no significant differences in parenting styles were
found. This study found that Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans are more similar
than this researcher originally believed in terms of their parenting styles. The authoritative
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 69
parenting style emerged as the prevalent parenting style for both Jewish Americans and Jewish-
Iranian Americans. These results are consistent for Jewish American parents who have had a
longer acclimation period in the United States, and are therefore, more “open” and allow their
children to act more independently. The dominant parenting style in the United States is
authoritative (Baumrind, 1971); that Jewish-American parents exhibit that parenting style is
consistent with the trends in their larger Western social milieu. These results are also consistent
with Baumrind’s findings (1971) that authoritative parenting yields positive academic
achievement. American Jews in general, as this study finds, are achieving a high degree of
academic success.
The fact that the two groups were not different in parenting style might lend credence to
the idea that the Jewish culture plays a more influential role in determining parenting styles than
the host culture within which Jews live. Jewish parenting, strongly influenced by the tenets of the
Torah (“The Five Books of Moses” known as The Pentateuch) and the Rabbinical Sages (i.e.,
The Pharisaic Sages and their intellectual and spiritual descendants) throughout the centuries,
strongly focuses on the development of the child through a gentle balance of love and discipline
(Abrams & Abrams, 1994). As such, Jewish parenting closely resembles an authoritative
parenting style, where parents hold high expectations for their children, yet encourage
independence and expression of opinions while at the same time expressing warmth and
acceptance.
It is important to know that, although, the two groups ranked high in authoritative
parenting, Jewish-Iranian Americans were more likely to rank their parents higher on the
authoritarian ranking scale. Although parenting styles in both groups were authoritative, Jewish-
Iranian Americans were more authoritarian within that. One possible explanation for the high
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 70
mean of authoritarian parenting styles might be a result of Jewish-Iranian parents’ strict
adherence to an “Iranian” or Near-Eastern collectivist parenting orientation (Rudy & Grusec,
2006). The development of parents’ philosophy about parenting is often based on individual and
family experiences, social context and cultural background (Belsky, 1984), and as such, it is
hypothesized that Jewish-Iranian parents, who come from a collectivist background, would more
strongly endorse authoritarianism, despite now living in a more individualist country (e.g., the
United States).
The high rank of authoritarian parenting might be better understood if an exploration of
the collectivist tendencies of Iranian Jews is considered. In the Iranian culture, parents often tend
to identify themselves according to their membership in a group—namely the family and
community—versus focusing on individual needs (Haboush, 2005). The focus on collectivist
orientation, where children are encouraged toward conformity to familial and parental
expectations, leaves little to no room for personal opinions, and is very similar to the
authoritarian style of parenting. This is consistent with Jalali’s (1996) findings that Middle-
Eastern families are more likely to use an authoritarian style of interaction with their children.
Moreover, this is also consistent with previous research that has shown that when people from
more collectivist backgrounds immigrate to countries that emphasize individualism, they often
endorse much higher levels of parental control as compared with members of the cultural
mainstream (e.g., Chao, 1994; Chiu, 1987; Dornbusch et al., 1987; Knight et al., 1994; Kwak &
Berry, 2001; Rudy & Grusec, 2001). This difference of degree indicates that although many
Iranian parents display authoritative parenting styles, a markedly high percentage exhibit
authoritarian parenting styles. The results also seem to indicate that Jewish-Iranian Americans
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 71
are also adopting many of their host country’s cultural parenting styles. Future researchers might
want to explore the influence of acculturation on Jewish–Iranian parenting styles.
It might very well be that the heightened prevalence of an authoritarian parenting style is
a fitting manifestation of the Jewish-Iranian culture, meaning that parenting styles may have
different meanings between and within the two ethnic groups. For example, unlike White
Americans, Asian-American parents might express encouragement of their children’s academic
achievement not through warmth and closeness associated with authoritative parenting, but
rather demanding hard work, discipline, and obedience, a style resembling authoritarian
parenting (Chao, 1994; Chao, 2001). Similar to the Asian-American culture, Iranians reinforce
the values of hard work, discipline, and obedience. However, although there is much parental
control in Iranian families, there is also much warmth, affection, and immense love that most
Iranians demonstrate for their children, an emotionality that might be perceived as a parenting
style similar to the authoritative. To reiterate, parenting in Jewish-Iranian culture might be more
authoritarian in structure, but the warmth, affection, and intense love can be considered
authoritative. That is to say, the expression of emotions and encouragement might have different
meaning in different cultural contexts. It might very well be that authoritative parenting itself, as
a construct, might manifest and present differently for Jewish Americans than for Jewish-Iranian
Americans. Although the two Jewish groups share the same the category of authoritative
parenting styles in general, authoritative parenting might look different for the two Jewish groups
being discussed.
Contextual factors such as acculturation and generational status can also illuminate the
ways in which the variations of parenting style among American Jews present. For example,
research demonstrates that some groups, such as Chinese Americans (Chao, 2001) and Hispanics
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 72
(Driscoll, Russell, & Crockett, 2008), initially start as authoritarian households, but then move
toward adopting host (Western) culture childrearing practices in the second generation and
beyond. This acculturation can make it more likely for future generations of Jewish-American
parents to demonstrate authoritative parenting styles, in comparison with first-generation
parenting styles. Jewish Americans, who have had a lengthier time of exposure to the
mainstream American parenting style, have had more time to acclimate and adopt an
authoritative style of parenting. Jewish-Iranian parents are not as far along as their Jewish
American counterparts in adopting a more individualistic, authoritative parenting approach. In no
way should it be understood that authoritarian parenting is the more primitive of the two styles
considered here. Rather, what should be understood is that, in the acclimation and acculturation
process, the adoption of parenting style in the United States is one in which the process starts
with authoritarian and ends with authoritative for most immigrants, including the American -
Jewish population.
Values
The top values recorded for JIA’s were benevolence, self-direction, security, tradition,
and universalism; the top values recorded for JA’s were benevolence, self-direction,
universalism, security and achievement. Therefore, the values of Benevolence, Self-direction,
and Security seem to be an overall value trend among Jewish-Americans as a collective whole.
At least two factors may elucidate this phenomenon: (a) the two cultures may not be as disparate
in values as originally thought; and (b) although Jewish Iranians adopted many Iranian cultural
values, Jewish cultural values seem to be more dominating, or a higher value priority.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 73
Benevolence
The results demonstrate that Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans hold
benevolence as the number one ranked value priority. An integral value of the Jewish culture is
tzedakah, which literally means “righteousness, justice or fairness,” which might explain the
high priority value placed on the value of benevolence (Jones & Cox, 2011). A rich literature
exists on tzedakah and performing acts of benevolence within the Jewish culture (Tobin et al,
2006). Benevolence within the Jewish community is itself a set of systems, ideologies, and
behaviors that have shaped the character of the Jewish community throughout its history.
According to Judaism, acts of benevolence such as giving to the poor are not always viewed as
generous or magnanimous acts. Rather, these are viewed as an obligation in Judaism, a duty that
cannot be forsaken even by those who are themselves in need.
Self-Direction
The second highest ranked value recorded by both Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian
Americans was the value of self-direction. According to Schwartz (1992), self-direction values
foster creativity, motivate innovation, and promote coping with challenges that a particular
group, whether ethnic or religious, may face in times of crisis. Behaviors based on this particular
value are intrinsically motivated and focus on satisfying individual needs without harming
others. One could argue that Jewish culture promotes the value of “self-direction,” or the need to
survive through constructive means such as academic achievement and occupational choice.
The high rank of self-direction by both Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans
in this study is consistent with the “marginality” hypothesis of Jewish academic and occupational
success. The marginality explanation of Jewish success, as proposed by Veblen (1919), argues
that due to the multiple persecutions and emigration patterns throughout their long history, Jews
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 74
are constantly caught between two worlds: their Jewish traditional culture and the new host
country’s culture. Jewish immigrants detached from traditional Judaism and Jewish communal
life in their old-world country, and when accepted into new host countries, are forced to adapt
through academic modalities, often leading to economic success.
Moreover, self-direction values are often promoted by educational experiences that help
encourage intellectual openness, flexibility, and breadth of perspective, and vice versa (Kohn &
Schooler, 1983). Educational experiences, therefore, foster the value of self-direction, while
self-direction fosters educational experiences. Interestingly, educational experiences often
challenge unquestioning acceptance of prevailing norms, expectations, and traditions, thereby
undermining conformity values, both of which were ranked low on the priority values scale by
both Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
Security
The third highest rank value recorded by Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian
Americans was the value of security. According to Schwartz (1992), people or groups that hold
the value of security as a primary value are motivated to seek health and safety, perhaps due to
previous experiences. Security values express, to a significant degree, the goal of security for self
or the group with which one identifies (Schwartz, 2006). Both Jewish Americans and Jewish-
Iranian Americans have undergone centuries of persecution that, it can be hypothesized, resulted
in a culture of protection and survival.
Educational attainment may be interpreted as a form of security; a career and income
safety net for the future. Holding constant other characteristics, American Jews today invest
more in schooling and report higher occupational status and larger incomes than average
Americans (Lipset & Raab, 1995). This attitude toward education appears rooted in Jewish
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 75
culture, both secular and religious. Many researchers have hypothesized that a focus on
education is a direct result of Jews “protecting” themselves using educational advancement as a
means of occupational and financial advancement.
Academic Achievement
The results of the present research indicate that Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian
Americans seem to have no major academic achievement differences, with a majority of the
American Jewish population falling into “higher” levels of academic achievement (e.g., high-
school GPA of 3.0 and above, college GPA of 3.0 and above, graduate-school GPA of 3.0 and
above, as compared to the national average according to data from the National Center for
Educational Statistics, 2009). The notably overall high GPA for both Jewish-Americans and
Jewish-Iranian Americans seems to be in line with Baumrind’s (1991) findings that children
from authoritative homes have consistently been found to be more academically competent than
children from other types of parenting styles and in line with findings that American Jews are
enjoying a high level of academic success.
Parenting Styles and Values as Predictors of Academic Achievement
Overall, the results indicate that across all levels of academic achievement investigated in
this study, parenting styles were not found to be a significant predictor of academic achievement
for American Jews. However, while the results demonstrate that values do impact the academic
achievement of Jewish-American students only at the high school level, the relationship is
complex and mediated by several factors. Students who held the values of achievement,
conformity, and benevolence high on their priority value were found to fall into the 3.5 – 4.0
high-school GPA range, a high-achievement category. The results also demonstrate that values
and parenting styles together are significant predictors of high-school GPA, predicting
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 76
approximately 33% of variance in high-school GPA. For every 1.0 point increase in high-school
GPA, 33% of that increase was due to the influence of parenting styles and values. The
remaining 67% increase was due to other factors. This is in line with previous research indicating
the complexity of occupational choice and academic achievement, and the plethora of potential
influential variables.
While no conclusive explanation can be given about the particular values (i.e.
achievement, conformity, and benevolence) found in this study to predict academic achievement,
one could speculate that Jewish parental focus on educational achievement lends itself well to
high academic scores on standardized tests. Prior studies focusing on high-school achievement
often noted that parental expectations about their children’s eventual educational attainment is an
influencing factor in adolescent academic performance (Ganzach, 2000; Glick & White, 2004;
Kaplan, Liu, & Kaplan, 2004). A possible explanation of the above finding might be the
importance Jewish parents accord to educational attainment in developing career and economic
opportunities. Jewish parents often develop clear expectations of the academic achievement
their children should attain, and often expect their children to attend prestigious universities.
Moreover, high-school students often depend on parents for guidance, particularly about future
academic choices (e.g., choices of universities and colleges), which often require competitive
grades.
The value of conformity often promotes obedient behavior and strict adherence to agreed
laws and statutes created by authority figures. As described by Schwartz (1992), people who
hold the value of conformity give little to no resistance to authority figures, often restraining
themselves from actions, inclinations, and impulses likely to violate expectations or norms.
Moreover, as discussed above, the value of benevolence stems from the importance placed on the
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 77
centrality of positive and cooperative social relations in the family (Schwartz, 1991). Conformity
to parental expectations might often lead Jewish-American students toward academic excellence
during high school, where parents are the primary authority figure.
Occupational Choice
The results found no occupational choice differences between Jewish-American and
Jewish-Iranian American students, indicating that ethnicity did not have an effect on their current
and future career choices. Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans are making similar
career choices, with a majority of students entering into the field of education, training, business
management, and health science. Collectively, the fields of education (e.g. teaching, professors)
and business, management and administration composed over 60% of occupational choices
among American – Jews. It could be argued that these career fields are in-line with the notion
that Jews often use knowledge and education as a modality of occupational success and survival.
That is to say, that Jews have historically entered field of education and business as means of
survival.
Parenting Style and Values as Predictor of Occupational Choice
Overall, the results indicate that certain parenting styles tend to be a significant predictor
of current and future occupational choice among American Jews. Permissive parenting proved
not to be a significant predictor for the current occupational choices of American Jews, yet
proved to be a predictor of future occupational choice in the field of education. Authoritarian
parenting, in contrast, proved to be a significant indicator of current occupational choice, but
only when that occupational choice was business. Authoritative parenting styles tend not to have
any influence on current or future occupational choice for American Jews. Values, as well,
proved not to be a significant predictor for either current or future occupational choice.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 78
The finding that permissive parenting style is a predictor of future occupational choice in
the field of education deserves closer scrutiny. Education tends to be a more liberal career field;
as such, one plausible explanation could be given to this particular finding, including the very
nature of permissive parenting. As previously mentioned, few demands, if any, are placed on
children from permissive households, with behavior often not monitored and expectations not
enforced. There are, likewise, few demands allowing considerable decision making and self-
regulation on the part of the child (Glasgow et al., 1997). Communication in the permissive-
parenting household is often minimal and children are given “the freedom to make life decisions
without referring to parents for advice” (Hickman el al., 2000, p. 42). It could be surmised that
Jewish-American students who come from permissive households are not subjected to the
pressures of achieving “occupationally prestigious” careers such as doctor, lawyer, or business
leader (National Opinion Research Center, 2012). That is to say, those Jewish-American students
from permissive-parenting households, without feeling a sense of connection or integration into
the family unit, may not feel parental pressure to uphold the “high” occupational expectations,
and so do not pursue occupations in the fields of science, law, or business management.
Although parenting styles did not generally predict occupational choices in general,
authoritarian parenting proved to be a significant indicator of current occupational choice only
when that occupational choice was business. For every point increase in the respondent’s
business value, there was a corresponding 3.36 increase in their authoritarian parenting scores.
These results seem to indicate that there is some type of association between authoritarian
parenting and students’ decisions to enter the field of business in particular. One plausible
explanation for this finding is that business tends to be considered a “high standard” occupation
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 79
and might reflect the high standards and expectations authoritarian parents place on their
children.
Additional Findings
Although not the focus of this study, there seems to be a correlation between certain
values and parenting styles. Certain values increased or decreased whether students indicated
they came from an authoritative or authoritarian household. For example, every point increase in
the value of tradition score resulted in a 1.49 increase in the authoritarian scale, while every point
increase in the value of benevolence score resulted in a 2.39 decrease in the authoritarian score.
Every point increase in the conformity score resulted in a 1.78 decrease in authoritative parenting
score. Every point increase in the power score resulted in a 1.89 decrease in the authoritative
parenting score, while every point increase in the security score resulted in a 2.23 increase in the
authoritative parenting score.
While no conclusions can be inferred by these results, values seem to influence the
parenting style. Overall, however, no real concrete conclusions could be drawn about the effect
that parenting styles and values have on the current and future occupational choices of American
Jews. These results are in line with previous research indicating that there are numerous
influences on the career development of students, and the occupational choices that adolescents
make are influenced not only by their development but also by the context in which they live
(Chen, 1997).
Implications and Suggestions
Although, due to the limitations of the study, little correlation between parenting styles
and values on the academic achievement and occupational choice of American Jewish students
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 80
could be determined, the research on parenting styles and values, provides for multiple
implications regarding Jewish-Americans and Jewish – Iranian Americans.
First, this study has implications for parents, educators, and academics’ understanding the
extant parenting styles of Jewish American children in the United States and the critical
influence that parenting has on the academic achievement of children. There is a plethora of
research that has demonstrated the positive influence that parental involvement can have on the
academic attainment of students (source). Regardless of authoritative or authoritarian parenting,
involvement in students life often yield positive academic success, which often leads to positive
occupational success. Authoritative parenting, which allows for a warm family climate, the
ability to set standards, and promote independence, often results in more active career
exploration on the part of their children. Authoritarian parenting, although sometimes construed
differently by different culture, as lacking warmth and close-minded, has proven to be beneficial
and interpreted differently by other cultures. It is therefore appropriately advised that both
Jewish- Americans and Jewish-Iranian parents be actively involved in their children’s lives,
independent of parenting style.
Next, there are two aspects that are crucial in understanding the definition and
implications of parenting styles that lead to other implications. First, the parenting style typology
does not include deviant parenting, such as abusive and/or neglectful homes, which often lead to
poor academic performance. Second, it is often assumed that the primary role of the parents is to
influence, teach, and control their children to ensure academic and occupational success.
Immigrant parents, however, must understand that children are constantly influenced by their
environment and surroundings. As 3
rd
and 4
th
generation children of Jewish –Iranian parents
continue to assimilate to United States culture, Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian parents
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 81
must understand that, although they have direct influence over their children in the house,
academic and social organizations strongly influence their children.
For Iranians parents, education of their children is a major issue, if not the center
importance of the family. Most Iranian families focus their energies to ensure their male and
female children will have the best possible education. Critical decisions such as the focus of their
educational studies and what career path to follow, will be often be decided by consulting with
parents and other elders in the family. In many instances, Iranian students are advised on what to
do and are expected to follow recommendations, sometimes against their own will. Iranian –
Jewish parents must understand that by allowing feedback and empowering their children, their
potential for success.
Allowing for exchanges of ideas between parents and their children provide the capability
of expanding the horizons of the American-Jewish students, particularly Jewish-Iranians whose
parental tendencies, although authoritative, sometimes reflect a more authoritative parenting
style, similar to their collectivist Iranian culture. Jewish-Iranian parents should view their
children as capable individuals who have the ability to influence their own career choices by
providing them with an atmosphere devoid of intimidation and fear. This will allow the children
to make informed and important decisions and choices.
The results of this study do not allow us to draw definitive conclusions about the
direction of causality between parenting styles and academic achievement among Jewish-
Americans and Jewish-American. Finally it must be pointed out that parenting styles and values
may interact with other variables to produce positive or negative consequences. Future studies
need to be pursued to address these issues and explore other variables that influence Jewish-
American parenting styles and values, for example assimilation. Understanding what contributes
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 82
to Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranians’ academic achievement allows us to predict outcomes,
which may in turn aid on the development of more effective.
The research could have fared better with the inclusion of other influential variables such
as assimilation. Acculturation instruments such as the Asian American Multidimensional
Acculturation Scale (AAMAS) (Chung et al., 2004), which was developed because of its ability
to assess acculturation to native and host cultures independently, could have been used.
Moreover, the AAMAS has also been previously used with college-aged and post-college aged
populations and assessment of career development and orientation.
It might behoove educators to understand the effects that religion and/or ethnic identity
might have on parenting styles and values. Although research has shown that parental warmth
and support, often associated the authoritative style of parenting, leads to high levels of academic
development in children, different cultures interpret warmth and support differently.
Other implications might not be related to academic or occupation success or choice per
se but might be related to an understanding of varying cultures outside the dominant American
one. Although, authoritative parenting is a beneficial parenting style, it is not necessarily the
best parenting style in the context of culture. This parenting style may provide beneficial
consequences for some groups and not others. Individualist countries, such as the United States,
often value assertiveness, independence, self-expression, and individuality, which can ideally be
fostered using an authoritative parenting style. Because of this, children of authoritative parents
will thrive in individualist environments. Collectivist cultures, such as the Iranian culture, on the
other hand, value family orientation, generosity, conformity and obedience, which is often
fostered by authoritarian parenting, and thus might be better fitted with a predominance of
authoritarian parenting.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 83
Both groups investigated had different cultures of origins but they shared a commonality
of values. It can be implied that the strongest influence for both groups is not necessarily culture
but the same religion. The implication of this is that it can also lead to an understanding of the
effects of religious affiliation on value acquisition and modes of behavior in everyday life. As
recent minority groups to the United States, Jewish-Americans and Jewish Iranian-Americans are
exposed to the mainstream American cultural patterns and influences, and subsequent
modifications in their values, norms, attitudes and behavior may be expected to occur because of
this contact (Bozorgmehr 1998). Furthermore, these changes in cultural orientation can
subsequently possibly differences in academic achievement and occupational choice. Therefore,
the greater the acculturation, the more language, customs, values, identity, attitudes, and
behaviors of the predominant culture are adopted (Domino & Acosta, 1987; Gordon 1964; Marin
& Marin, 1990). The adoption of host cultural values, behavior, and attitudes are critical to the
occupational decisions of minority groups, as cultural background is integral to career decision
making, and the meaning and values individuals place on work (Fouad et al., 2008).
Pease (2005) noted that many of the successful Jews in America were second-generation
immigrant Jews. Pease contended that for most commentators, the disproportionate Jewish
achievement in America was a predictable response to the history of oppression before
immigration and reaction to the mild to moderate level of American anti-Semitism, an ambition
to move beyond the tenement.
Thus, the finding that Jewish Americans and Jewish – Iranian Americans share similar
values despite different cultural origins has multiple implications, including a final idea that Jews
are not homogenous except with regard to their most fundamental values. Generally, in Judaism,
differences in beliefs are not just tolerated but viewed as healthy and normal. Many of the
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 84
followers of the different factions of Judaism, such as those of Orthodox, Conservative, Reform,
Sephardic, Ashkenazi, and other Jewish denominations often disagree. However, they do have a
shared values and views derived over a 4,000 year heritage. Generally, they agree on much more
than they disagree about, consistent with the findings of this investigation.
Lastly, one of the challenging issues in conceptualizing the process of American-Jewish
acculturation, has been dimensionality - whether acculturation take place along a single
dimension (i.e., polar- model, unidimensional, and unilinear), with groups and individuals
moving over time from one end of the continuum (culture of origin) to the other end (complete
adoption of the host culture) (Szapocznik, Kurtines, & Fernandez, 1980), or is acculturation
multidimensional, with groups and individuals changing on more than one dimension? Over the
last several decades, acculturation has been increasingly viewed as a multidimensional process
(Birman, 1994; Birmand & Trickett, 2001; Kim, Laroche, & Tomiuk, 2001), with every aspect of
one’s behavior being a variable for change as a result of involvement with a new culture.
The dimensionality of American-Jewish acculturation has multiple implications. Firstly, a
substantive amount of research has indicated that first generation students of all cultural
backgrounds do better academically than third and second generation students (Chao, 2001;
Fuligni, 1997; Hurtado-Ortiz & Gauvin, 2007; Kim & Chung, 2002; Pong et al., 2005).
However, the literature on Jewish educational achievement indicated an increase in academic
achievement throughout the decades across all cultural denominations (Chiswick, 2000).
Secondly, researchers also proposed that acculturation levels have an impactful influence on
students’ willingness to seek assistance (i.e., counselors) for academic and/or career related
issues (Kim, 2007b), and that more acculturated students demonstrate positive attitudes towards
guidance to personal goals and professional goals (Kim, 2007b). Jewish Iranian parents,
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 85
particularly Iranian-born parents, have minimal or lesser knowledge about the American
educational system than their Jewish-American counterparts. Therefore differences in
acculturation levels among Jewish-Iranian students might explain the differences among
academic decisions and pathways. Lastly, Fouad et al.’s (2008) study noted that a desire to
represent one’s culture, along with a not wanting to bring shame to their culture and family, is an
influencing factor among Asian Americans. Chinese parents for example, place great importance
on academic and achievement as a means to personal advancement, higher social status, and
wealth as a reflection of the entire family or community (Lum & Char, 1985). Jewish-Iranian
students, feel a sense of fidelity and pride to both their cultural origins, with a strong desire to
represent the Iranian culture and their family (Phillips & Khalili, 1995), which might explain
differences in occupational orientations.
Limitations of the Study
As with all studies, the findings of this study should be interpreted in light of its
limitations. A primary limitation was that the data was gathered through self-reports, which is
similar to other studies that use self-reporting measures (Chao, 1994). Although highly
informative, self-report instruments are subject to reporting biases and may not provide a full
picture of parenting practices. Self-reports rely on the students’ perception of their parents’
parenting styles, which may be different than the actual parenting styles employed by those
parents. Self-reports can lead to social-desirability effects in the responses for academic
achievement and occupational status, especially among Jewish-Iranian American students who
were found to have familial pressure to make a “good impression” (i.e., provide the answers they
thought were the most socially desirable). As in any study relying upon the accuracy of
participants’ perceptions of relationships within the family, bias may have influenced the
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 86
outcome. Observing parental behavior might be a better indicator than self-reports, although
studies utilizing self-reports have found consistent patterns between parenting styles and
outcomes (Steinberg et al., 1991).
Secondly, the use of categorical GPAs (i.e., 3.6 -4.0, 3.0-3.5, etc.) versus continuous
GPAs created an artificial collapse of students into GPA groups, where nuances could have been
missed. Moreover, there are also variances in GPA for each particular college/university. For
example, studies have shown that private-school GPAs are sometimes higher than public-school
GPAs (Source). Future studies should examine GPA as a continuous variable, as opposed to a
categorical level. The design of the current study was complex, using categorical GPA levels.
Using a continuous GPA level could provide more meaningful and straightforward results.
A third limitation of the study reflects the possible differences in maternal and paternal
parenting styles. Researchers are now more interested in having separate analyses for maternal
and paternal parenting style, rather than just a general categorization of parenting style
(Milevsky, Schlechter, Netter, & Keehn, 2006; Shek, Lee, & Chan, 1998). It is important to
consider the separate analyses of maternal as well as paternal parenting style (Milevsky et al.,
2006), as these differences in maternal and paternal parenting styles might positively or
negatively lead to differences in academic achievement.
Lastly, the sample size in the current study was limited in both size and scope. Jewish-
American college students are difficult to identify and track due to differences in cultural
backgrounds, as well as simply being a small minority in the United States. As a result, although
some interesting patterns emerged from the data, these patterns were only demonstrated in a
small sample size and in many cases were not sufficient for running analysis. A larger sample
size would provide a much more accurate and complete picture of current and future Jewish-
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 87
American career choices. Due to its limitation in scope, the participants in this investigation
cannot necessarily represent American-Jews in general. Moreover, due to the non-experimental
nature of this study, no cause-and-effect relationship can be implied that parenting styles cause
the observed effects on academic achievement and occupational choice.
Recommendations for Future Research
The inconclusive results of this study prompt several recommendations for future
research. Future research may involve the use of a different measure of parenting styles, such as
parental perceptions of their own parenting styles. Although Baumrind’s (1971) parenting
typology is most widely used in studies of parenting, the parenting typology may not be
applicable to the Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American populations. According to Kim
and Wong (2002), when examining styles of parenting, many studies often use concepts and
measures from Western culture even though Jewish Americans constitute less than 0.5% of the
Western population. Although Jewish Americans have experienced considerable Western
influence, some Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian immigrants may still practice more
traditional and culturally specific parenting. A comparison between students’ perceptions and
parents’ perceptions, in terms of parental influences on the career choice intentions of young
people, is another topic for future research, as student perception of parenting differs from
parental perception of parenting.
A natural extension of the present research would be to examine how differences in
acculturation among Jewish-Iranian Americans could potentially moderate the different types of
parenting styles and potential effects on values. Iranian immigrants are still in an intermediate
stage of acculturation and have not yet fully adopted American culture and values (Bozorgmehr,
1998). Questions such as “How will values and parenting styles change as the younger
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 88
generation of Jewish Iranians become more acculturated?” and “Will they be able to contain the
Jewish cultural values that have been maintained throughout the generations?” remain
uninvestigated. Moreover, little is known about what types of parenting practices best
cultivate and reinforce the transmission of cultural values to Jewish-American students.
Further research could explore the possible parenting styles that could influence the transmission
of ethnic identity and values among Jewish Americans, just as specific parenting styles can
encourage or inhibit ethnic identity.
Due to the wide range of Jewish cultural backgrounds (e.g. Russian, Polish, Austrian,
etc.), not all Jewish cultural groups were represented in the sample, and future research should
examine cultural differences within the array cultural backgrounds of Jewish Americans. A
comparison of results in the context of different Jewish cultures may also extend the knowledge
of the relationship between parental influences and career choice.
Future researchers may also wish to explore the effect of gender on Jewish Americans
and Jewish-Iranian Americans as culturally defined gender roles may influence career choice.
Researchers suggest that differences in the genders’ occupational choices might be related to the
culturally assigned importance of the centrality of work in their lives. Women’s orientation to
occupational choice might be due in part to their perspective on expected life roles, primarily
because of women’s concerns regarding participation in family roles. Men’s career orientation
might be due in part to their perspective on “providing” or being the primary “breadwinner” for
their family. It may also be interesting to look at differences between maternal and fraternal
influences on career choice and academic achievement.
Given the limitations with the size and scope of the population in this study, future
researchers should ensure a wide range of respondents and more distribution at various GPA
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 89
levels. Moreover, given the data collected, this researcher recommends that a universal measure
of aptitude be used: the SAT. The GRE is a test not all students take, thus making it of limited
value across such populations. The SAT is a standardized test that almost all high-school
students take for college admission purposes. Moreover, further studies could also include a
combination of self-reports, interviews, and case studies to provide an even greater
contextualization on the influences exerted upon Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian
Americans.
Lastly, due to time limitations, acculturation, which would have been the third
independent variable, was removed from the survey. Future studies should further investigate
differences in acculturation level and its influence on parenting styles. Variation in immigration
status and involvement in the acculturation process may contribute to inconsistent findings
regarding the child-rearing practices of American Jewish families. Understanding differences in
acculturation may help clarify the influence of culture on parenting practices of American-Jewish
families.
Conclusion
Previous research has shown that as a group, American Jews differ from the general
population in terms of education and occupational distribution (Lynn & Kanazawa, 2007).
However, little research has concentrated on the factors that are lending themselves to this
disproportionate amount of academic achievement and occupational status. This researcher
sought to investigate potential influences on the academic achievement and occupational
attainment of American Jews through an examination of parenting styles and cultural values as
predictors of academic achievement and occupational choice.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 90
The goal of the study was to examine potential differences and influences, namely
parenting styles and values that could potentially explain the phenomenon of why Jews as a
whole are excelling in the academic and professional world. Specifically, the objective of this
study was to establish and provide an in-depth examination of the contributing factors resulting
in the unprecedented academic and occupational success of the Jewish-American population as a
whole. Moreover, a second objective of this study was to create the groundwork for future
investigations of Jewish-Iranian American and Jewish-American communities, as few studies
have been conducted on the similarities and differences within and between these particular
cultural groups. This study attempted to gain a perspective on the parenting styles and values of
the Jewish-American and Jewish-Iranian American communities to assist in the understanding of
within-group differences in academic achievement and occupational choice in these
heterogeneous communities.
The results of this study were inconclusive and difficult to interpret due to a mixture of
expected and unexpected results, and few significant and powerful relationships between
parenting styles and values and academic achievement and occupational choice. Overall, the
results seem to indicate that Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans share common
parenting styles as well as cultural values. Results also indicated that there were no major
differences between Jewish-Americans’ and Jewish-Iranian Americans’ academic achievement
and occupational choices. Further research might look at variables such as acculturation as
influencing factors in academic and career orientation. The inconclusive results of this study,
however, indicate the need for further investigation into potential influences on the career
development and choices of Jewish Americans. It also promotes the need to study potential
influences on the academic achievement of Jewish Americans. Therefore, although there were no
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 91
definitive answers or conclusions, the intent of this investigation has been to make researchers
aware of potential influences regarding the Jewish-Iranian American and broader American
Jewish community, while framing the opportunity for further research.
Overall the results found that, although Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans
may have distinct histories and experiences, when it comes to parenting styles, values, academic
achievement, and occupational choice, there is not as much diversity between the groups. The
findings in this study support the notion that there are many factors that influence occupational
achievement, and that other variables must be investigated when it comes to the academic
achievement and occupational choice of Jewish Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF VALUES AND PARENTING 92
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Appendix A
Survey
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Abstract (if available)
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Asset Metadata
Creator
Ravanshenas, Jonathan David
(author)
Core Title
The relationship of values and parenting styles on academic achievement and occupational choice among Jewish-Americans and Jewish-Iranian Americans
School
Rossier School of Education
Degree
Master of Business Administration / Doctor of Education
Degree Program
Business Administration / Education
Publication Date
12/11/2013
Defense Date
12/11/2013
Publisher
University of Southern California
(original),
University of Southern California. Libraries
(digital)
Tag
academic achievement,Jewish-Americans,Jewish-Iranian Americans,OAI-PMH Harvest,occupational choice,parenting styles,Values
Format
application/pdf
(imt)
Language
English
Contributor
Electronically uploaded by the author
(provenance)
Advisor
Chung, Ruth (
committee chair
), Seli, Helena (
committee member
), Soomekh, Saba (
committee member
)
Creator Email
jdravan@gmail.com
Permanent Link (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c3-358793
Unique identifier
UC11295312
Identifier
etd-Ravanshena-2221.pdf (filename),usctheses-c3-358793 (legacy record id)
Legacy Identifier
etd-Ravanshena-2221.pdf
Dmrecord
358793
Document Type
Dissertation
Format
application/pdf (imt)
Rights
Ravanshenas, Jonathan David
Type
texts
Source
University of Southern California
(contributing entity),
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
(collection)
Access Conditions
The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...
Repository Name
University of Southern California Digital Library
Repository Location
USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA
Tags
academic achievement
Jewish-Americans
Jewish-Iranian Americans
occupational choice
parenting styles