Strengthening intergenerational/intercultural ties in migrant families: A new intervention for parents

The development of intergenerational/intercultural conflict secondary to differential rates of acculturation between migrant parents and their children has been repeatedly noted in the literature. It has been shown to be associated with negative mental health consequences for both parents and children. However, currently, very few community-based interventions address this risk factor. The paper describes SITICAF (Strengthening of Intergenerational/Intercultural Ties in Immigrant Chinese American Families), an 8-week parenting program which aims to prevent and reduce this conflict. In a pilot study, SITICAF was tested with 15 immigrant Chinese American parents. In spite of the small sample size, pre–post assessments showed the parenting intervention to be effective in improving the intergenerational relationship, increasing the participants' sense of parenting responsibility and control of child, and sense of coherence. Also, a stronger sense of parenting control was associated with a better intergenerational relationship, which, in turn, was associated with an increase in the child's esteem. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.