INTERGENERATIONAL VALUE TRANSMISSION AND THE ROLE OF MOTIVATIONAL PROCESSES IN MIGRANT AND NON-MIGRANT FAMILIES

The intergenerational transmission of values from one generation to the next is essential for the continuity of a society as it facilitates communication between members of different generations and within families, where shared values constitute a part of the family identity. In the context of acculturation, traditions can provide a secure base for migrants who have to adapt to a new living context. On the one hand, parents in migrant families might find it particularly important to transmit traditional values to the next generation, on the other hand offspring can be confronted with diverse value orientations in the receiving culture, and therefore special efforts might be needed to transmit traditional values.
The current study is part of the larger FNR-funded IRMA project and presents a crosscultural comparison of n = 154 triads of parents and their (young) adult children from Luxembourgish native and Portuguese immigrant families in Luxembourg, as well as a subsample of Portuguese families living in Portugal. Participants from both generations filled out a standardized questionnaire assessing general value orientations, perceived value similarity as well as parental motivation to transmit respectively children’s motivation to take over parental values.
Results showed that parental motivation to transmit values was particularly high in Portuguese families (in Portugal and Luxembourg), although no differences in perceived value similarity between the three subsamples occurred. Whereas parental motivation for transmission was related to the value of tradition in all three subsamples, perceived similarity between parents and their adult children was related to their selforiented values. Concerning consensus in value profiles, the role of motivational processes will be further explored, and effects of culture and migration will be discussed in an integrative framework of intergenerational relations in light of migration and ageing.