By 1990, the group numbered over 615,000, a 40-fold increase in just 15 years. The Vietnamese came to the United States from a culture vastly different from most American cultures. Settled into socially isolated and poor ethnic enclaves with inferior local schools and streets beset by gangs and drugs, adult refugees remain poor but want desperately to get ahead without abandoning their native values, norms, beliefs, behavioral standards, and expectations. Thus, Vietnamese children often find themselves straddling two social worlds. These contradictory messages have produced a variety of responses.
Some Vietnamese children have scrapes with the law, and even commit violent crimes.
In order to help educators and counselors deal effectively with the problems of Vietnamese children and encourage their achievement, this digest discusses the impact of traditional Vietnamese culture, family relationships, and bicultural conflicts on the children's development and adjustment. Though they work hard to improve their lives by taking advantage of American opportunities, they are also strongly committed to retaining their culture, values, and customs. This apparently paradoxical situation may be understood by recognizing the value of traditional customs in eliciting the most productive behavior by children. Lower performing children who exhibit nonconformist attitudes and behavior are likely to be rejected and stigmatized by Vietnamese communities. This ostracism places these children at risk in two ways.