Perceived Parental and Peer Support in Relation to Canadian,Cuban,and Spanish Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Intrinsic Academic Motivation

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore possible parent and peer influences on adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation in cultures varying in traditional emphasis on the family unit (Cuba, Canada, and Spain). Perceived parent and peer support, parents’ expectations, and valuing of academics significantly predicted adolescents’ valuing of education and motivation. Spanish adolescents were less motivated than members of the other ethnic groups. The Spanish participants also reported lower perceived parental expectations than Chinese Canadians and less perceived peer support than did Cubans and Chinese Canadians. Perceived social support from same- and opposite-sex friends predicted adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic motivation most strongly in the Canadian sample. Cuban parents’ perceived valuing of academics predicted adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation more strongly than in the other cultures sampled.

Keywords

academic motivation social support ethnicity

Young people who do not value or enjoy learning become unmotivated to achieve in school (Legault, Green-Demers, & Pelletier, 2006). Significant others, such as parents and peers, contribute to adolescents’ values and motivation, but their influence may vary depending on the values placed upon education in different cultures (e.g., Dandy & Nettlebeck, 2002). The aim of the present study was to examine the extent to which perceived parent and peer valuing of and support for academics predict adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation in cultures varying in the traditional emphasis on the family unit—namely, the majority Anglo-European culture of Canada, Chinese immigrants to Canada, Spain, and Cuba.

Students may engage in schoolwork because they are motivated to learn, explore, or understand new concepts or because they derive satisfaction from achieving a goal (Vallerand et al., 1992). In self-determination theory, motivation is associated with the innate psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness; autonomy refers to the ability to self-regulate or control one’s actions, competence refers to feelings of self-efficacy in attaining one’s goals, and relatedness refers to the quality of interpersonal relationships with significant others (Deci & Ryan, 2004; Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier, & Ryan, 1991). Intrinsic motivation refers to the engagement in an activity due to its inherent pleasurable qualities (e.g., Ryan & Deci, 2000). According to the theory, social environments that provide opportunities for autonomy, competence, and supportive interpersonal relationships are believed to enhance motivation and performance (Deci et al., 1991). Gottfried (1985) found that children who have high academic intrinsic motivation strive for and attain high levels of achievement and have positive perceptions of their academic competence. In addition, intrinsically motivated students report high self-efficacy and good academic outcomes (Howard, Ferrari, Nota, Holberg, & Soresi, 2009). Students who are not intrinsically motivated for academics experience low academic achievement, social anxiety, school disengagement, and dropout (e.g., Gottfried, 1985; Gottfried, Gottfried, Morris, & Cook, 2008).

Parent and Peer Influences on Academic Motivation

Parents’ support, valuing of academics, and expectations/aspirations for their children’s educational outcomes are important in promoting adolescents’ valuing of academics, motivation, and performance (Howard et al., 2009; Jodl, Michael, Malanchuk, Eccles, & Sameroff, 2001). Parenting practices emphasizing intrinsic motivation orientation are related to students’ academic intrinsic motivation (Gottfried, Marcoulides, Gottfried, & Oliver, 2009). Furthermore, parents’ emotional and instrumental support expressed through open communication, encouragement, and involvement in children’s education contribute to academic achievement and motivation (e.g., Domagała-Zyśk, 2006; Spera, 2005). Academically successful students often report a sense of relatedness with, and perceived support from, their parents (Domagała-Zyśk, 2006).

Parents’ values about their children’s education and achievement are frequently associated with their own educational level. Highly educated parents hold high expectations/aspirations for their children, and in turn, their children tend to hold high expectations/aspirations for themselves (Hill et al., 2004). Highly educated parents may also be able to contribute to their children’s motivation by providing the necessary physical and emotional resources, such as involvement in, and support of, children’s schoolwork (e.g., Grolnick & Slowiaczek, 1994).

In addition to family factors, peers may influence adolescents’ achievement and attitudes toward academics. Interpersonal relationships in adolescence are important in providing social and instrumental support, such as help with homework and encouragement to do well in school (Fuligni, 1997). Academically successful students and students who hold high expectations for themselves tend to affiliate with peers who are highly motivated academically, value good grades, and are similarly involved in academics (Kiuru, Aunola, Vuori, & Nurmi, 2007; Ryan, 2001). Adolescents with high achieving friends show improvement in their own academic achievement over time and increased involvement in school (e.g., Wentzel, McNamara Barry, & Caldwell, 2004). In addition, friends’ academic competence and support have been shown to be associated with students’ own academic competence (Bissell-Harvan & Loken, 2009).

Parents and peers may influence different outcomes. Parents influence adolescents’ academic values and aspirations through parenting practices and the home atmosphere; peers may influence students’ school-related behaviors, such as time spent on homework and academic expectations (Kiuru et al., 2007; Steinberg, Dornbusch, & Brown, 1992).

Cultural Differences

The needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, although universal, may be expressed or valued differently across cultures (Deci & Ryan, 2004). In individualistic societies, the need for autonomy in one’s actions may be particularly important, but the need for relatedness may be more valued in collectivistic cultures (Heine, Lehman, Markus, & Kitayama, 1999). Deci and Ryan (2004) suggest that individualism/collectivism may not be the only determinant of autonomy or relatedness needs in each culture. Nevertheless, cultural values may influence the internalization of these needs.

Most existing data documenting cultural differences in children’s motivation pertain to different ethnic groups within the United States rather than different countries. Iyengar and Lepper (1999) found that Anglo-American children were less intrinsically motivated to perform a task when choices were made by their mothers rather than by themselves, supporting the belief that autonomy and personal choice are important for North American children’s intrinsic motivation. Iyengar and Lepper observed the opposite pattern in Asian American children, who showed higher intrinsic motivation than Anglo-Canadians when the task was chosen by an authority figure. Asian American children were more persistent in performing and achieving well in tasks when the choice was made by their mothers (Iyengar & Lepper, 1999), suggesting that Asian American children are likely to refer to the values of their parents and perhaps other adults in gauging their levels of motivation. This is consistent with Eaton and Dembo’s (1997) findings supporting that Asian American students pursue high academic achievement in order to avoid failure, which, in turn, may bring shame upon the family or collective. Furthermore, D’Ailly (2004) found that Chinese children in Taiwan reported lower levels of self-efficacy beliefs or intrinsic interest in learning tasks than did Canadian children. The Chinese children exerted more effort and performed better than the Canadian children, who invested more effort in performing a task when they believed they were good at or interested in it (D’Ailly, 2004).

Hispanic cultures are characterized by familismo, a cultural value system emphasizing ties to the family, both nuclear and extended, over that of the individual, as well as loyalty and obedience to authority figures or family members (Jackson, 2006). Although family values seem to have a positive influence on Asian students’ achievement (Sue & Okazaki, 1990), findings on Hispanic/Latin American youth are mixed. Fuligni, Tseng, and Lam (1999) found that a moderate emphasis on family obligations and responsibilities was associated with Latin American students’ desire to achieve at school but a strong endorsement of family obligations was associated with lower academic achievement (Fuligni et al., 1999). In contrast, Esparza and Sánchez (2008) found that higher attitudinal familism predicted greater academic effort. Education level moderated this correlation, with familism significantly predicting academic achievement in children of mothers of low educational level. In any case, research conducted with immigrant samples may reflect the challenges of immigrants in adapting to school but may not represent the core values of Hispanic culture in the same way as studies conducted in Latin American countries.

Our Sampling of Cultures

Our sampling permitted comparison of cultures that differ in their overall degree of individualism/collectivism,¹ valuing of academics, and family orientation. The variables targeted in our study have been subjected to very little empirical research in these countries compared to the many studies conducted with U.S. samples.

Canada

Canada is a multicultural, North American country that, like the United States, has been characterized as individualistic (e.g., Triandis, 1989). Anglo-Canadian parents are concerned with their children’s education, family cohesiveness, and adolescents’ academic achievement (Carg, Levin, Urajnik, & Kauppi, 2005). However, Canadian parents of majority culture are known to consider the development of social skills as at least as important as academic achievement, placing greater emphasis on the development of children’s social competence than in more family-oriented cultures (e.g., Cheah & Chirkov, 2008).

Chinese Canadians

Chinese Canadians are one of the largest immigrant populations in Canada (Statistics Canada, 2006) and Chinese Canadian youth generally do well at school (Chow, 2004). Asian parents tend to hold very high educational expectations/aspirations and to set high standards for their children’s educational outcomes (Dandy & Nettlebeck, 2002; Okagaki & Frensch, 1998). These expectations may be attributed to broader cultural values about the importance of education and to children’s obligations and respect for elders and teachers, which are believed to promote academic achievement and to instill motivation and hard work in Asian youth (Sue & Okazaki, 1990). Asian adolescents from immigrant families often report receiving high social support from family and peers alike (Fuligni, 1997). In addition, Asian American adolescents report that their peers have high academic standards and that they are more involved in school-related activities than are Caucasian American students (Chen & Stevenson, 1995).

Cuba

Cuban culture shares the family orientation of other Hispanic countries. However, it is distinct from the rest of Latin America in terms of the quality of its educational system and its socialism (Gasperini, 2000). Cubans have a higher level of schooling and education than other Latin Americans. Cuban parents hold high academic values and expectations for their children’s achievement and future education and are particularly supportive and involved in their children’s schooling (Canroy, Gove, & Marshall, 2007). Children from Hispanic families in general tend to consider their parents as a primary source of support and companionship compared with American children (DeRosier & Kupersmidt, 1991). There is little reason to believe that this has diminished in Cuba despite centralized state involvement in character education and other aspects of child-rearing. The State has sought to guide rather than usurp parents in their responsibilities, channeling peer influence systematically by compulsory participation in the Scout-like Pioneer movement.

Spain

Family relationships are a central characteristic of Spanish families, despite the modernization of the country in the last decades (Grad, 2006). Interpersonal bonds, mutual support between family members, and respect for the elderly are important values in the Spanish culture. Friendship networks are also considered a major source of social support (Requena Santos, 1994). Parent-child communication is associated with students’ school self-concept (Musitu, Estévez, & Elmer, 2007), and mothers’ attitudes toward academics significantly influence adolescents’ educational aspirations (Buchmann & Dalton, 2002). Peer influences on adolescents’ academic aspirations are evident as well: Peer valuing of academics has been shown to be associated with Spanish adolescents’ academic aspirations more extensively than in other European adolescents, such as German, Austrian, or Swiss (Buchmann & Dalton, 2002). The recent reorganization of the school system and the abolition of tracking by ability level have led to a decline in teacher morale and concern that adult influence on adolescents is waning. Inability to motivate pupils appears to be a major source of teacher frustration (Marchesi, 2004).

Gender Differences

Differences between boys and girls in perceived support from parents and peers have also been observed cross-culturally. European American boys tend to perceive higher support from fathers than do girls, whereas girls report higher support from friends and classmates than boys do (Rueger, Malecki, & Demaray, 2010; Furman & Buhrmester, 1992). Support from both parents also appears to influence European American girls’ attitudes toward school more than boys’ attitudes. Research indicates that Hispanic American girls’ academic motivation is positively influenced by mothers’ academic support, and although not significant, a trend was observed for Latino boys indicating that academic support from fathers was positively associated with academic motivation (Alfaro, Umaña-Taylor, & Bámaca, 2006). Furthermore, Spanish girls have been found to perceive their parents as more loving and responsive than boys (Pelegrina, García-Linares, & Casanova, 2003). Finally, Cheng and Chan (2004) found that Chinese girls perceived less social support from family but more support from friends than Chinese boys did.

Objectives and Hypotheses

The goal of the present study was to examine the roles of perceived parent and peer social support and parents’ valuing of academics on adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation and valuing of academics in countries characterized as individual- and group-oriented and varying in family orientation. We hypothesized that Chinese Canadian and Cuban adolescents would score higher on intrinsic academic motivation and valuing of academics than Anglo-Canadian adolescents. Chinese Canadians were expected to score higher on these variables than Cubans. We hypothesized that Spanish adolescents would have the lowest scores on intrinsic academic motivation and valuing of academics among our ethnic/national samples. We hypothesized that parental educational level, perceived parental expectations/aspirations, parents’ academic values, parental support, and parental interactions with children would be higher in collectivist cultures (Chinese Canadian, Cuban) than the individual-oriented English Canada. We expected that these variables would be the lowest for the Spanish sample. We further hypothesized that perceived peer support and support from same- and opposite-sex friends would be higher in the Anglo-Canadian sample than the Cuban, Spanish, and Chinese Canadian samples. Parent variables were expected to be stronger predictors of adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation in the more family-oriented cultures than in the majority culture of English Canada. Specifically, we hypothesized that mother’s educational level, father’s educational level, perceived parental expectations and aspirations for children’s academic achievement, perceived parental values for academics, perceived maternal and paternal support, and negative interactions with mother and with father in Cuban, Chinese Canadian, and Spanish parents would be stronger predictors of children’s intrinsic academic motivation and value of academics than in children of Anglo-Canadian parents. In contrast, we expected that apparent peer influences would be stronger in the majority culture of Canada. We expected that perceived peer support and social support from same- and opposite-sex friends would be stronger predictors of students’ intrinsic academic motivation and valuing of academics for English Canadians than for Cubans, Spanish, and Chinese Canadians.

We expected girls to score higher than boys in terms of intrinsic academic motivation, valuing of academics, and perceived support from peers and same-sex friends. We also expected that parental variables would have a stronger influence on girls’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation, whereas paternal variables would predict more strongly their sons’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation. We further expected these gender differences to be evident in each ethnic/national group; Spanish, Cuban, Anglo-Canadian, and Chinese Canadian girls would perceive higher maternal support than would Spanish, Cuban, Anglo-Canadian, and Chinese Canadian boys and that boys in each ethnic/national group would report higher perceived support from fathers than girls. Finally, we hypothesized that Spanish, Cuban, Anglo-Canadian, and Chinese Canadian girls would perceive higher support from peers and same-sex friends than would Spanish, Cuban, Anglo-Canadian, and Chinese Canadian boys.

Method

Participants

A total of 539 adolescents from Ottawa (Canada), Santiago de Cuba (Cuba), and Valencia (Spain), all large cities, participated in the study. The ethnic origin of the Canadian sample was established by the questions taken from the Canadian Census—“From what country did your ancestors come?”; “Besides being Canadian, do you and your parents identify with a particular cultural or ethnic group?”—as well as place of birth of parents and grandparents. The Canadian sample consisted of 127 adolescents of Anglo-Canadian origin (43% girls; mean age = 12.76), 63 adolescents of Chinese Canadian origin (35% girls; mean age = 12.88), and 34 adolescents of other or unspecified cultural origin (44% girls; mean age = 12.76). The Cuban sample consisted of 200 adolescents (41% girls; mean age = 12.79), and the Spanish sample consisted of 115 adolescents (44% girls; mean age = 12.73). Socioeconomic status was assessed using the highest parental education level achieved. We did not consider family income because in Cuba, discrepancies among occupations in income are minimal.

Parental education levels across ethnic groups were comparable. The mean number of years of education in the Spanish sample was 12.57 for mothers and 11.77 for fathers. Only 5% of Spanish mothers and 3.9% of fathers in our sample had completed university. In the Cuban sample, mothers completed an average of 10.96 years and fathers 10.81 years of education; 6.7% of Cuban mothers and 5% of fathers in our sample had completed university. The average education of Anglo-Canadian mothers was 10.19 years and 10.84 years for fathers, while 2.8% of Anglo-Canadian mothers and 1.9% of fathers in the sample had completed university. Last, for Chinese Canadian parents the means were 10.43 years for mothers and 11.03 for fathers, with 2% of mothers and 1.9% of the fathers in the entire sample having completed university.

Measures

The measures were translated from English to Spanish by co-author Yorkys Santana Gonzales. They were then back-translated into English by Barry H. Schneider to ensure the accuracy of the translation. Scale reliabilities using Cronbach’s alpha were calculated separately by culture for all measures and are presented in Table 1.

Table 1.

Scale Reliabilities

	National/Ethnic Origin
	Anglo-Canadian	Chinese Canadian	Cuban	Spanish	Canadian Unspecified
Scale	α	α	α	α	α
Perceived parental valuing of academics	.69	.79	.68	.73	.82
Perceived parental expectations	.67	.70	.66	.73	.68
Adolescents’ valuing of academics	.82	.86	.83	.85	.82
Intrinsic academic motivation	.81	.84	.79	.88	.79
Perceived social support from mother	.86	.89	.88	.89	.94
Perceived negative interchanges with mother	.76	.78	.80	.70	.83
Perceived social support from father	.93	.92	.92	.91	.88
Perceived negative interchanges with father³	.82	.30	.56	.44	.69
Perceived social support from same-sex friends	.66	.74	.75	.76	.95
Perceived negative interchanges with same-sex friends⁴	.56	.05	.16	.10	.70
Perceived social support from opposite-sex friends	.97	.90	.92	.84	.80
Perceived negative interchanges with opposite-sex friends⁵	.75	.63	.71	.76	.73
Perceived peer support for academics	.75	.72	.71	.70	.90

Adolescents’ valuing of academics and adolescents’ perceived parental valuing of academics

Adolescents’ valuing of academics and perceived parental valuing of academics were assessed using six statements developed by Fuligni (1997). Adolescents were asked to rate how important each statement was to them (e.g., “That I get good grades”, “That I do well in school”) from not important to me (1) to very important to me (5), and not important to my parents (1) to very important to my parents (5), respectively. Fuligni (1997) reported good internal consistency for the items on adolescents’ valuing of academics (α = .86) and parents’ valuing of academics (α = .82).

Intrinsic academic motivation

Intrinsic academic motivation was measured with Harter’s (1981) self-report scale on students’ motivation. Harter’s scale consists of 30 items assessing five dimensions: challenge (i.e., “Learn as much as I can”), curiosity (i.e., “Read out of interest”), mastery (i.e., “Figure out things myself”), judgment (i.e., “Learn things that interest me”), and criteria (i.e., “Knowing how I’m doing without the teacher”). Each statement is rated on a 4-point scale (A bit like me to Very much like me). Each subscale consists of six items, three on intrinsic and three on extrinsic motivation. The extrinsic motivation items load negatively to form the Intrinsic/Extrinsic pole, yielding only the one summary score for academic motivation (e.g., Harter & Connell, 1984; Ryan & Grolnick, 1986; Vallerand, Gagné, Senécal, & Pelletier, 1994).

Perceived parental academic expectations and aspirations

Perceived parental academic expectations were assessed using four statements developed by Fuligni (1997). Adolescents were asked to rate each statement (e.g., “My parents expect me to be one of the best students in class”) on a range from almost never (1) to almost always (5). Reliability analysis revealed that one of the items seriously compromised the internal consistency of the instrument in both Cuba and Spain. Therefore, we used three items in all the analyses from all cultures. Perceived parental aspirations were assessed by asking adolescents to respond to one statement (Fuligni, 1997) ranging from 1 (finish some high school) to 5 (graduate from law, medical or graduate school).

Parental education

Parental education level was assessed by asking adolescents to indicate the highest level of education their parents had attained.

Perceived parental and peer support

Adolescents’ perceptions of social support from parents and negative interchanges with mother were assessed using the 36-item Network of Relationships Inventory (NRI; Furman & Buhrmester, 1985). Adolescents’ perceptions of social support from same- and opposite-sex friends were assessed using the same scale. Participants were asked to rate each item (e.g., “How much does this person help you figure out or fix things?”; “How much does this person like or approve of the things you do?”) for all sources of social support, on a 5-point scale, ranging from little or none (1) to most (5). In terms of concurrent validity, the scores of both members of friendship dyads have been found to be correlated significantly. As well, NRI support scores correspond well with ratings of satisfaction in relationships (Furman, 1996). We also measured negative interchanges with fathers and with same- and opposite-sex friends using the same items; however, these variables were removed from the analyses due to low reliability values.

Perceived peer support for academics

Adolescents’ perceived peer support for academics was assessed using a 4-item scale developed by Fuligni (1997). Participants were asked to rate items such as “How often you and your friends help each other with homework” and “How often you and your friends study together for tests” on a scale ranging from almost never (1) to almost always (5).

Procedure

Participants in all three settings completed all questionnaires in their classrooms. The instruments were administered in counterbalanced order.

Results

Measurement Equivalence

We performed multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using the AMOS 18.00 software to examine measurement invariance among factor loadings across the four ethnic groups. First, we evaluated the baseline models separately by ethnic group. Results indicated adequate model fit for perceived parental valuing of academics and adolescents’ valuing of academics (CFI > .95, RMSEA < .08) for all ethnic groups except for Chinese Canadian adolescents’ valuing of academics (CFI = .800, RMSEA < .08). The model fit for perceived peer support indicated varying statistics across the ethnic groups (CFI between .845 and .988; RMSEA between .05 and .30), for intrinsic academic motivation the fit was acceptable (CFI > .95, RMSEA < . 07), and for perceived support from all sources and perceived negative interchanges with mother (as assessed by the NRI) the CFI values ranged between .70 and .90 (RMSEA between .05 and .09). Next, we conducted multigroup CFA on all questionnaires with the exception of the measure of perceived parental expectations, which consisted of only three items. Results indicated acceptable fit for perceived parental valuing of academics (CFI = .927, RMSEA < .08) and adolescents’ valuing of academics (CFI = .976, RMSEA < .05) but less adequate fit for perceived peer support for academics (CFI = .810, RMSEA > .08) and intrinsic academic motivation (CFI = .820, RMSEA < .05). For perceived social support and negative interchanges with mother (NRI), we performed a CFA for each type of perceived support separately (mother, father, same-, and opposite-sex friends). Results indicated less acceptable model fit for each source of perceived support (e.g., perceived negative interchanges with mother: CFI = .894, RMSEA = 0.51; perceived social support from father: CFI = .772, RMSEA < .09). Because of the large number of items in the NRI and the small sample sizes in our study, we did not evaluate this scale further. The model comparison statistics indicated nonsignificant χ² values for the measurement and structural weights on the intrinsic academic motivation measure; however, the χ² for measurement residuals was statistically significant. For all the other scales (i.e., perceived parental valuing of academics, adolescents’ valuing of academics, NRI), the χ² for the model parameters were statistically significant. Although these statistics may compromise the invariance of these measures cross-culturally, it is important to consider the small sample sizes in these analyses and the large number of items, which did not allow for adequate evaluation of the measures across the ethnic groups.

Ethnic/National and Gender Differences in Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Motivation²

We performed a 4 (Ethnicity/Nationality) × 2 (Gender) between-subjects MANOVA on adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation. We omitted the 34 participants of unspecified ethnic/national origin from the Canadian sample. Using the Wilk’s Lambda criterion, results indicated that the pooled dependent variables varied significantly by ethnicity/nationality, F(6, 992) = 8.63, p < .001, partial η² = .05. Follow-up univariate ANOVA indicated a significant main effect of ethnicity/nationality on adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation (see Table 2). The multivariate gender effect and the Ethnicity/Nationality × Gender interaction were not statistically significant. Multiple comparisons tests revealed significant ethnic/national differences in adolescents’ valuing of academics (see Table 2). Spanish participants scored significantly lower than Cuban, Chinese Canadian, and Anglo-Canadian adolescents on valuing of academics. No other ethnic/national group differences were statistically significant.

Table 2.

Mean Scores of Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Intrinsic Academic Motivation Ethnic/National Groups

National/Ethnic Origin
	Anglo-Canadian		Chinese Canadian		Cuban		Spanish
Variable	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD	F _{3, 497}	Partial η²
Valuing of academics	6.28^a	1.31	6.43^a	1.29	6.38^a	1.15	5.57^b	1.25	11.90*	.07
Intrinsic academic motivation⁶	19.02	4.90	20.65	4.43	19.42	5.08	20.24	4.59	2.65***	.02

Note. Means in the same row that do not share superscripts differ at p < .05 in the Tukey Honestly Significant Difference comparison.

p < .001. ***p < .05.

To control for unequal sample sizes, we repeated the MANOVA with equal sample sizes established by randomly deleting cases in SPSS, using the random sampling function. This method randomly deletes cases from the larger groups only and matches their final size (n) with that of the smallest group (here: n = 63; Tabachnick & Fidell, 2007). Results were almost identical to the analysis performed with groups of unequal size, but one additional difference emerged as significant: Chinese Canadians scored higher on intrinsic academic motivation than Anglo-Canadians (M = 20.78 and M = 18.17, respectively), F(3, 244) = 3.75, p < .05.

Ethnic/National and Gender Differences in Perceived Parent and Peer Support

We performed a 4 (Ethnicity/Nationality) × 2 (Gender) between-subjects MANOVA on 11 dependent variables (mother’s educational level, father’s educational level, perceived parents’ expectations, parents’ aspirations, parents’ academic values, mother support, father support, negative interactions with mother, peer support, and social support from same- and opposite-sex friends). The multivariate analysis indicated that the combined dependent variables varied significantly by ethnicity/nationality, F(39, 1436) = 1.58, p < .05, partial η² = .04, and gender F(13, 485) = 2.36, p < .01, partial η² = .06. As shown in Table 3, results from univariate ANOVA indicated that the groups differed significantly on perceived parental expectations, perceived peer support for academics, and social support from opposite-sex friends. Follow-up analyses, using Tukey (HSD) post hoc tests, revealed that Spanish participants perceived significantly lower parental expectations for academic attainment than Chinese Canadians (Table 3). In addition, Spanish participants perceived less peer support for academics than Cuban and Chinese Canadian participants. Last, Spanish adolescents perceived higher social support from opposite-sex friends than Cubans and Anglo-Canadians (see Table 3). The Ethnicity/Nationality × Gender interaction was not statistically significant, but significant gender differences were found for mother’s level of education, F(1, 497) = 4.61, p < .05, partial η² = .01, and social support from fathers, F(1, 497) = 4.97, p < .05, partial η² = .01. Boys reported that their mothers had a higher education level than girls did and perceived more social support from fathers.

Table 3.

Descriptive Statistics by Ethnicity/Nationality for Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Intrinsic Academic Motivation

National/Ethnic Origin
	Anglo-Canadian		Chinese Canadian		Cuban		Spanish
Variable	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD	M	SD	F _{3, 497}	$η_{p}^{2}$
Mother’s level of education	2.91	1.30	2.88	1.34	2.86	1.42	3.04	1.49	0.43	.01
Father’s level of education	3.56	1.42	3.41	1.56	3.53	1.58	3.50	S1.52	0.15	.01
Perceived parental aspirations	3.50	0.76	3.62	0.67	3.57	0.77	3.48	0.85	0.80	.01
Perceived parental expectations	21.96^ab	4.85	23.14^a	4.70	21.71^ab	6.12	20.38^b	6.18	3.75***	.02
Perceived parental valuing of academics	23.39	3.18	23.72	3.42	23.48	3.57	22.67	3.63	1.76	.01
Perceived social support from mother	95.14	9.12	94.11	11.85	95.08	11.33	94.50	12.12	0.10	.01
Perceived negative interchanges with mother	22.87	5.69	23.33	5.49	23.00	6.21	24.19	6.00	1.17	.01
Perceived social support from father	93.13	15.12	94.85	18.05	92.83	17.46	96.42	15.68	1.49	.01
Perceived peer support for academics	17.32^abc	2.46	17.95^ab	3.40	17.60^ba	2.65	16.39^c	3.84	5.58*	.03
Perceived social support from same-sex friends	100.60	10.35	101.50	11.34	100.55	11.94	100.84	14.01	0.33	.01
Perceived social support from opposite-sex friends	76.80^a	19.10	83.15^abc	23.80	77.80_ba	15.24	85.32^c	20.02	4.51**	.03

Note. Means in the same row that do not share superscripts differ at p < .05 in the Tukey Honestly Significant Difference comparison.

p < .001. **p < .01. ***p < .05.

To control for unequal sample sizes, we repeated the MANOVA with equal sample sizes established by randomly deleting cases. The results were almost identical. In addition to the findings that were significant in the main analysis, there were a few more significant ethnic/national differences: Ethnicity/nationality was significantly related to adolescents’ perceptions of parents’ valuing of academics, F(3, 244) = 3.18, p < .05. Cubans reported higher perceived parental values of academics compared to Spanish (M = 23.74 and M = 22.13, respectively, p < .05). Also, Chinese Canadians scored higher on parents’ valuing of academics (M = 23.72) compared to Spanish; however, the mean difference did not reach statistical significance (p = .052). Last, there was a significant gender difference in perceived social support from same-sex friends, F(1, 244) = 4.65, p< .05; across the whole sample, girls scored significantly higher than boys.

We performed a 2 (Gender) × 13 (All Adolescent, Parent, Peer Variables) MANOVA to explore gender differences within each ethnic/national group. Results indicated a statistically significant multivariate effect for gender in the Chinese Canadian sample, F(13, 49) = 2.087, p = .032, but no statistically significant multivariate effect for gender was observed in the Spanish, F(13, 101) = .742, p = .718, Cuban, F(13, 186) = .677, p = .785, or Anglo-Canadian, F(13, 113) = .832, p = .625, samples on any of the variables. Tests of between-subjects effects indicated that Chinese Canadian girls scored significantly higher than Chinese Canadian boys on perceived support from same-sex friends (M = 105.36 and M = 99.41), F(1, 61) = 4.141, p = .046. Furthermore, tests of between-subjects effects indicated that Anglo-Canadian boys scored significantly higher on perceived social support from opposite-sex friends compared to Anglo-Canadian girls (M = 80.07 and M = 72.38, respectively), F(1, 125) = .5.191, p = .024.

Regression Analyses

We conducted separate hierarchical regression analyses for each dependent variable, using a theory-driven order of entry in order to test the hypotheses pertaining to apparent parent and peer influences. In each equation, dummy variables representing ethnicity/nationality (Canada, Cuba, Spain) were entered in the first step of the model, followed by parent and then peer variables. The ordering of variable entry permitted us to determine whether peer influence was still evident after controlling for family influence. At the fourth and fifth step of the model, we examined the interactions between Ethnicity/Nationality × Parent variables and Ethnicity/Nationality × Peer variables. This enabled us to determine whether the apparent influences of parents and peers differed according to ethnic/national origin.

Ethnicity/nationality

Consistent with the MANOVA results reported above, ethnicity/nationality predicted 6.8% of adolescents’ valuing of academics, ΔF(2, 536) = 18.36, p < .001. Ethnicity/nationality did not contribute significantly to adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation ΔF(2, 536) = 1.225, p = .295.

Parent and peer support

Adolescents’ perceptions of parent and peer support and values contributed significantly to adolescents’ valuing of academics and intrinsic academic motivation. The variables pertaining to parental support and values together predicted 19% of adolescents’ own valuing of academics, ΔF(8, 528) = 9.93, p< .001. As indicated in Table 4, fathers’ educational level, perceived parents’ valuing of academics, and perceived social support from both parents contributed significantly to adolescents’ valuing of academics. When peer variables were subsequently entered in the model, the explained variance increased to 23%, ΔF(5, 523) = 6.38, p < .001. Perceived social support from peers significantly predicted adolescents’ valuing of academics. Of the Ethnicity/Nationality × Parent variables and Ethnicity/Nationality × Peer variables interactions entered in the final step of the model, only one emerged as significant: The influence of perceived social support from same-sex friends was strongest in the Canadian sample (β = 1.19, t = 2.74, p < .01).

Table 4.

Summary of Regression Analysis on Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Intrinsic Academic Motivation as Predicted by Ethnicity/Nationality and Perceived Parent and Peer Variables

	Valuing of Academics				Intrinsic Academic Motivation
Variable	β	R	R²	ΔR²	β	R	R²	ΔR²
Step 1		.25	.06*			.07	.01	ns
Canada (dummy coded) vs. other	.29*				−.08
Cuba (dummy coded) versus other	.31*				−.08
Step 2		.43	.19*	.12*		.60	.36*	.35*
Mother’s level of education	−.01*				−.05
Father’s level of education	.09 ***				.15***
Perceived parental aspirations	.03				−.05
Perceived parental expectations	.05				.04
Perceived parental valuing of academics	.16**				.35*
Perceived social support from mother	.11***				.16*
Perceived negative interchanges with mother	−.08				−.23*
Perceived social support from father	.17*				.25*
Step 3		.48	.23*	.05*		.63	.40*	.05*
Perceived peer support for academics	.17*				−.21*
Perceived social support from same-sex friends	−.01				−.02
Perceived social support from opposite-sex friends	−.10				−.10***

p < .001. **p < .01. ***p < .05.

Regression analyses indicated that perceived parent and peer support and values were significant predictors of adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation. Parent variables predicted 35.6% of adolescents’ intrinsic motivation, ΔF(9, 527) = 31.88, p < .001. As shown in Table 4, perceived parents’ valuing of academics, father’s educational level, perceived parental social support, and negative interactions with mother were the strongest predictors of adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation. When entered into the model after the family variables, peer variables explained an additional 4% of adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation, ΔF(5, 522) = 8.43, p < .001, with perceived peer support for academics and social support from opposite-sex friends being the strongest predictors.

Of the Ethnicity/Nationality × Parent Variables and Ethnicity/Nationality × Peer Variables interaction terms entered in the final step, only two emerged as significant predictors of adolescents’ intrinsic academic motivation. Adolescents’ perceptions of parents’ academic values were the strongest predictors in the Cuban sample (β = .72, t = 2.08, p < .05), and perceived social support from opposite-sex friends was strongest as a predictor of adolescents’ intrinsic motivation in the Canadian sample (β = .75, t = 2.13, p = .05), supporting the hypothesis that the influence of parents and peers varies between family- and individual-oriented cultures. We repeated the analysis dividing the Canadian sample into those of Anglo-Canadian and Chinese Canadian origin, eliminating the small number of Canadians whose ethnic/national origin could not be classified. The pattern of results was identical to that of the main analysis.

Discussion

Although we anticipated greater ethnic/national differences in apparent parent and peer influences, our results suggest that both parent and peer support are important across cultures. There is one important finding, however, confirming at least some of our expectations that perceived parental support would have greater weight in the more family-oriented cultures than in the majority culture of Canada, where perceived social support from same-sex peers was a more potent predictor of outcome than in any other culture we studied. Nevertheless, it is quite possible that more marked ethnic/national differences would emerge in a study conducted with older adolescents, especially greater differences in the influences of same- or opposite-sex peers. At that age, Canadian adolescents may gravitate even further to an adolescent culture in which peer interaction is a more fundamental feature. Although we observed few gender differences in each ethnic/national group on perceived parent and peer support, across the whole sample we found that girls scored higher than boys on perceived support from same-sex friends and boys perceived higher support from fathers than girls. These findings are consistent with previous research on gender differences in social support.

These findings provide some corroboration of the contention that perceived academic support or valuing of academics by parents and peers may influence different aspects of intrinsic academic motivation and valuing of academics. In the Canadian sample, perceived support from same-sex friends significantly predicted adolescents’ valuing of academics, and perceived support from opposite-sex friends predicted intrinsic academic motivation. On the other hand, perceptions of parents’ valuing of academics was a stronger predictor of adolescents’ intrinsic motivation in the Cuban sample.

The differences among the ethnic/national groups in the independent and dependent measures, rather than the relations among them, were of secondary interest but are nonetheless noteworthy. Contrary to our expectations, we found more similarities than differences across ethnic/national groups in adolescents’ motivation and valuing of education as well as in most of the parent and peer characteristics examined. In contrast with research conducted in the United States demonstrating that Asian American parents often have higher academic expectations/aspirations for their children’s attainment, and value academics more than European American parents (e.g., Okagaki & Frensch, 1998), we found little salient difference between this group and the Anglo-Canadians. Perhaps Anglo-Canadian parents value academics, support their children, and have expectations/aspirations as much as do parents of Chinese origin. Conversely, Chinese Canadian parents may have adopted Canadian values and characteristics as they acculturate to the Canadian society. Most newcomers to Canada settle down in larger metropolitan areas, specifically Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal. Ottawa receives a smaller number of first-generation immigrants; therefore, the Chinese Canadian participants may have been highly acculturated to the majority Canadian culture, including its values regarding education.

Spanish adolescents were distinct from the other ethnic/national groups in valuing of academics, motivation, and perceived parent and peer support and values. Spanish adolescents’ low valuing of academics and motivation may be associated with the general status of the education reality in Spain, introduced briefly above. According to a European Commission Directorate-General for Education and Culture (2000) report, dropout rates in Spain are among the highest in the European Union (30%), while the percentage of individuals who have completed post-secondary education is among the lowest. In addition, our results indicated that Spanish adolescents perceived low parental expectations, which has been reported by other researchers (e.g., Martínez-González et al., 2008). Nevertheless, low parental expectations in Spanish families are not necessarily indicative of lack of parental support. Although we found no differences in perceived parent support for academics between Spanish, Cuban, Anglo-, and Chinese Canadian adolescents, there is evidence in other research suggesting that Spanish parents consider a positive, emotionally stable home environment and open communication as important influences on adolescents’ academic attainment (Martínez-González et al., 2008; Musitu et al., 2007).

Spanish adolescents perceived lower social support from peers than Chinese Canadian and Cuban participants. Thus, Spanish adolescents may tend to interact with peers who also lack motivation and interest in academics. In contrast, Chinese Canadian and Cuban adolescents, who valued academics more than Spanish participants, perceived higher peer support than Spanish participants. As discussed earlier, high achievers, who hold high academic expectations for themselves, tend to interact with peers who also value academic achievement, are highly motivated, and are involved in school (e.g., Kiuru et al., 2007; Ryan, 2001).

Our study is not without limitations. Questionnaire-based studies are not equally familiar in all cultures. Among our samples, the Cuban participants in particular had little previous experience with paper-and-pencil instruments. Although Fuligni (1997) reported good internal consistency and reliability for perceived parental expectations in Asian, Latino, and European samples, the scale is brief and there are no validity data other than face validity. In addition, one item was removed from the original scale because it compromised the internal consistency of the instrument in Cuba and Spain. Thus, possible limitations of the scale may have attenuated the results. Another limitation is the low reliability statistics for negative exchanges with same- and opposite-sex friends in the Chinese Canadian sample; negative exchanges with fathers in the Cuban, Chinese Canadian, and Spanish samples; and parental expectations for the Cuban sample. The reasons for the lack of cross-cultural reliability are not clear. Unfortunately, the elimination of negative exchanges with friends resulted in our having more variables for parent than for peer support, limiting the comparison of the two influences. In addition, we had to remove the variable pertaining to negative interchanges with fathers from the analyses, which could have been a powerful predictor of adolescents’ motivation and valuing of academics. Nevertheless, our main goal was to compare social support cross-culturally; negative exchanges were secondary.

In some cases, lack of statistically significant findings may have been due to small or unequal sample sizes. Although we addressed this issue by reanalysis using equalized groups, a larger Chinese Canadian sample might have contributed to more robust ethnic/national group comparisons. An important limitation with regard to sample size pertains to the measurement equivalence of the questionnaires administered in this study. The confirmatory factor analysis yielded less than acceptable model fit statistics in some cases, with ideal measurement invariance not reached for most of the scales. The small sample sizes and the large number of items may have contributed to the lack of measurement invariance across ethnic groups, especially the Chinese Canadian sample. Future studies should focus on measurement equivalence using larger samples that would provide more statistical power. Finally, parents’ valuing of education and support from parents and peers were measured only through adolescents’ perceptions of them, a limitation which may have compromised true ethnic/national differences in the variables assessed. Future research should include parent and peer reports on valuing of academics and social support if at all possible. We acknowledge that our sampling of cultures was limited by our contacts and resources, although we did study cultures known to vary in terms of the influential core features mentioned in the beginning of this article. Exploration of these issues in East Asia, particularly, might be highly revealing.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

This research was funded by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Notes

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Perceived Parental and Peer Support in Relation to Canadian,Cuban,and Spanish Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Intrinsic Academic Motivation

Abstract

Keywords

Parent and Peer Influences on Academic Motivation

Cultural Differences

Our Sampling of Cultures

Canada

Chinese Canadians

Cuba

Spain

Gender Differences

Objectives and Hypotheses

Method

Participants

Measures

Adolescents’ valuing of academics and adolescents’ perceived parental valuing of academics

Intrinsic academic motivation

Perceived parental academic expectations and aspirations

Parental education

Perceived parental and peer support

Perceived peer support for academics

Procedure

Results

Measurement Equivalence

Ethnic/National and Gender Differences in Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Motivation 2

Ethnic/National and Gender Differences in Perceived Parent and Peer Support

Regression Analyses

Ethnicity/nationality

Parent and peer support

Discussion

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

Funding

Notes

References

Ethnic/National and Gender Differences in Adolescents’ Valuing of Academics and Motivation²