Marriage and Family - Essay Example

Marriage and Family: Asian Americans (Add (Add (Add Marriage and Family: Asian AmericansIntroductionAsian Americans are people living in America having an Asian descent. According to a definition, ‘Asian’ “refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent” (The US Census Bureau, 2011). This paper will discuss the marriage and family life of Asian Americans who constitute 4.

8% of the US population. Family StructuresWhile analyzing the Asian Americans’ family structures, it seems that they give high value to family life and follows conventional practices. The website pobroson.com gives a vivid account of the Asian Americans as follows; in the US, 60.2% of the Asian Americans are married and this figure is higher than the national total of 54.4%. Some specific groups of Asian Americans in US have a greater marriage rate. For instance, Asian Indians possess a marriage rate of 67.

4% whereas the marriage rate of Pakistanis is 67%. At the same time, nearly 4.2% of the Asian Americans in the country are divorced; and this rate is much less than the national total of 9.7%. The divorce rate among Asian Indians in the US is 2.4% whereas it is only 2.1% in the case of Pakistanis in the country. In addition, there are only a fewer Asian American female householders in the United States without a spouse and the rate of which notably varies among different cultural groups. Data indicate that the rate of Asian Indian female households in the US without a spouse is only 3.

8% whereas it is relatively higher (13.6%) in the case of Filipino householders (Pobronson.com). MarriageAsian Americans give increased focus on traditional family values and children, and encourage gender specific roles. For Asian Americans, the framework of marriage reflects something beyond the relationship between spouses. As per reports (Asian Nation), by the end of the 20th century, there was a surge in Asian American interracial marriage. Among Asian American women, it is observed that responsibility and obligations rather than love influence their decision to marry.

This situation has persuaded many Chinese American and Japanese American women to remain single. Surveys show that some groups of Asian American women do not like to date with Asian American men as the men force them to adopt conventional and submissive gender roles. Hence, they look for men who are ready to share child-rearing and other household responsibilities. It indicates a change in marriage attitude among Asian Americans particularly among women towards Western culture (Asian Nation).

At the same time, some recent surveys indicate that many of the Americans disapprove interracial marriage with people belonging to Asian American group. As compared to US people, Asian Americans marry earlier. ConclusionsIn total, Asian Americans give specific importance on marriage and family. More than 60 percent Asian Americans in the US are married and this rate is higher as compared to the US national average. In addition, divorce rate is also relatively low among this racial group and this situation directly indicates how these people value their family relations.

In addition, interracial marriage is also prevalent among Asian Americans and this trend indicates that Asians are also increasingly adapting to the American culture. ReferencesAsian Nation: Asian American History, Demographics & Issues. (n.d). Interracial dating & marriage. Retrieved from http://www.asian-nation.org/interracial.shtmlPobronson.com. (n.d). Asian- American families. The Factbook: Eye-opening Memos on Everything Family. Retrieved from http://www.pobronson.com/factbook/pages/414.htmlU. S.

Census Bureau. (2011). Survey of Business Owners (SBO). Definitions. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/econ/sbo/definitions.html