This ethnographic study will describe mother-child behavioral interaction patterns and their cultural meanings to young Cambodian mothers, who spent their early childhood during the Khmer Rouge regime. Cambodians living in the United States want to recover and preserve Cambodian culture, which was once forcefully taken away from them, while becoming productive participants in the U.S. society. These are especially salient issues in raising children. With the help of the Cambodian Association of Illinois, at least five Cambodian mothers with children under three will be recruited. The data collection methods include structured and unstructured observations of the mother-child interaction, and in-depth interviews with the mothers. In addition interviews will be conducted with various community informants. The data from observations, interviews, and field notes will first be coded to identify themes within each method. The themes identified from multiple sources and by multiple methods will be analyzed to explore the inter-relation of (1) the behavioral interaction patterns, (2) the context in which the interactions are embedded, and (3) maternal goals and strategies for the child development. Finally, cultural meaning systems shared by and varied among the mothers and children will be synthesized. This research will contribute conceptually and empirically to strengthen the family and child nursing by exploring the relation of the mother-child interactions to the broader complex context.
