The Legacies of Confucian Filial Piety and the Model Minority Myth: A study of cultural and societal effects on Asian American voter turnout

Abstract

Scholars often consider the question of immigrant integration in the US through the lens of their integration into American political processes and practices. Naturalized Asian American citizens have the lowest voter turnout rate, suggesting that their race and immigrant status may be doubly influential in deterring voter turnout. The scholarly literature consistently shows that voter turnout decision-making varies by to race. The question this thesis then focuses on is: Why do Asian Americans consistently report low voter turnout rates despite prominent theories such as the socioeconomic theory of voter turnout predicting that they should turnout at high rates? This thesis approaches the question through an approach of voter psychology, asking whether low Asian American voter turnout rates are specific to the population’s culture, familial structures, and experiences from American race relations. More specifically, it considers the potential effects of filial piety and the model minority stereotype in deterring voter turnout due to prioritization of personal academic/economic success and lessened desire to change the current political climate. The work hopes to allow us to gain a better understanding of the degree to which current immigrant incorporation processes in the US are successful while also aiding the integration of Asian Americans into the American political system. Notably, this is the first time that a study has connected either filial piety or the model minority stereotype to political participation. Research was collected in the form of an online survey through CINT of 1,170 participants, comprising of 568 Asian American respondents and 602 General Population respondents (all other demographics), limited to US citizens of voting age. The study confirmed that Asian Americans have lower overall political participation and voter turnout than the General Population. Findings with regards to filial piety and the model minority stereotype are less straightforward. Data showed that filial piety does have a significant negative effect on voter turnout, but that it is not a phenomenon unique to Asian Americans. On the other hand, perceptions of Asian Americans as the model minority stereotype and the resulting psychological effects were proven robustly. Model mionrity perceptions of oneself do not directly negatively impact voter turnout, but accompanying psychological effects such as prioritization of a successful career did. Finally, the findings confirmed the importance of factors related to migration and sense integration into American society and politics as positive effects on voter turnout, all of which were deterrents to Asian American voter turnout rates. Ultimately, the survey did not find robust confirmation of the hypothesis. However, factors that were related to the independent variables were found to be significant, suggesting that future work may benefit from exploring these inputs from different approaches. The policy implications of this thesis are far and wide. Improved immigrant incorporation has the potential to boost global productivity and wealth. Targeted policy efforts that acknowledge race or culture specific experiences and psychology can result in more effective results. Higher voter turnout could change power balances between political parties, and increase government efficacy as a whole. Finally, low Asian American voter turnout has far-reaching implications for treatment and perceptions of Asian Americans in general, as well as for race relations vis-à-vis other minorities.