Second-Generation Vietnamese Americans

The graph depicts a phenomenon known as the Asian second-generation advantage (Tran et al)

The second-generation Vietnamese Americans are those born in the US to Vietnamese immigrant or refugee parents. Research has shown that the second-generation Vietnamese Americans have significantly higher levels of educational attainment compared to their parents and other non-Asian ethnic groups. There are several factors that may contribute to the educational success of second-generation Vietnamese Americans.

One of the main factors contributing to the success of the second-generation is the emphasis on education in Vietnamese culture. Vietnamese families place great value on education and often view it as a path to upward social mobility and success. This emphasis on education is reflected in the sacrifices made by the first-generation Vietnamese refugees and immigrants, as many of them work hard to prioritize and provide educational opportunities for their children. For second-generation Vietnamese Americans, their parents’ sacrifices serve as motivation to succeed academically, as they feel a sense of responsibility to honor the sacrifices and take advantage of the opportunities that their parents did not have. Furthermore, the second-generation does not share the language barrier struggles of the first generation. Many are bilingual as well as bicultural, allowing them to navigate between their Vietnamese heritage and American identity.

However, the second generation faces their own unique set of challenges in developing their identity as they are forced to reconcile cultural, language, and intergenerational conflicts (Tran). For Vietnamese Americans who were born after the war and in the United States, understanding the collective trauma inflicted by the war and the loss of home is difficult and often muddled (Pham). While the Vietnam War is one of the most researched and reported wars in history, much of the literature and archival materials accessible in the US does not represent the perspectives of the Vietnamese survivors, on either side of the struggle (Pham). This lack of representation can lead to feelings of isolation and disconnection from their cultural heritage, complicating their perception of identity and belongingness.