THE INFLUENCE OF CULTURAL VALUES ON THE PARENT-CHILD INTERACTION PATTERNS OF FAMILIES FROM AN ASIAN BACKGROUND

The objective of this paper is to critically review previous studies of intervention programs that focus on parent-child interaction, in order to pinpoint deficiencies in this area of study and to recommend further research. Indeed, more interventionists and speech and language therapists must identify parent-child interaction patterns, especially when following a family-centred approach in the treatment of speech impairments or language delays. This review stresses that the cultural values of families from an Asian minority background living in a predominantly white culture influences their parent-child interaction patterns. The Asian Values Scale, developed by Kim et al. (1999), is used in this paper to demonstrate cross-cultural differences and to examine how these values manifest themselves in parent-child interaction inmany Asian minority communities. This review opens with general definitions of culture, cultural values, parent-child interaction and parent-child interaction therapy. Then, previous studies of parent-child interaction therapy will be considered. This review shows that both an awareness of Asian cultural values and the application of the Asian Values Scale can be useful in a family-centred speech and language therapy programme, involving a child from an Asian minority background.