Embracing American culture: structures of social identity and social networks among first-generation biculturals

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between bicultural individuals' identity structure and their friendship network. A key dimension of identity structure for first-generation immigrants is the degree to which the secondary, host-culture identity is integrated into the primary, ethnic identity. Among first-generation Chinese Americans, regression analyses controlling for cultural identification strengths show that more integrated identity structures are associated with larger and more richly interconnected circles of non-Chinese friends.