US Society in Global Perspective

Topic: intergenerational transfer of cultural norms and values: interview exercise and paper

The goal of this assignment is to learn more about how cultural norms and values are negotiated in new contexts. You will interview someone you know (e.g., a childhood friend, a professor, another AU student, etc.) and speak with that person about how cultural norms and values are negotiated in their family. This could be someone who came to the U.S. as a young child, or who was born in the U.S. but whose family members are immigrants; or it may be someone whose family members grew up in a rural part of the United States and who now lives in a major city (or vice versa). Your task is to conduct the interview, describe the intergenerational transfer of culture, examine how culture is negotiated and changed in the context of the family, and well as reflect on what you discovered.”

When you interview someone. Questions you could ask include:

1. What is your cultural background?
2. Tell me your story when it comes to your upbringing – the household in which you were raised.
3. How did your family celebrate or recognize your cultural heritage?
4. What norms or values did your family hold that were different from larger society’s, if any?
5. How did your family adapt or not as far as your family’s culture vs. the society in which you were raised?
6. (If applicable) How did your parent(s) maintain a sense of connection with the family’s cultural heritage, e.g., language, holidays, belief system practices, if at all?

MLA format, double space, 5 pages.