Development and Preliminary Validation of the ...

Journal of Counseling Psychology 2001, Vol. 48, No. 1. 17-27

Copyright 2001 by the American Psychological Association, Inc. 0022-0167/01/S5.00 DOI: 10.1037//0022-0167.48.1.17

Development and Preliminary Validation of the Cultural Values Conflict Scale for South Asian Women Arpana G. Inman

Nicholas Ladany

Seton Hall University

Lehigh University

Madonna G. Constantine

Cathleen K. Morano

Teachers College, Columbia University

Temple University

This article describes the development and validation of the Cultural Values Conflict Scale (CVCS) for South Asian women in the United States. Three hundred nineteen participants were administered the CVCS. Exploratory factor analysis supported a 2-factor model of cultural value conflict, namely intimate relations and sex role expectations. Results indicated that the internal consistency and test-retest reliabilities were adequate. Discriminant validity was demonstrated by differences shown between 1st and 2nd-generation South Asian women. Convergent validity was demonstrated by a positive relationship between the CVCS and measures of anxiety and cultural adjustment difficulties. Finally, it appears that social desirability plays a role in the self-representation of this group of South Asian women.

cussed (Berry, 1980) as well as empirically studied (Sodowsky & Carey, 1987). Acculturation is a bidirectional process whereby an individual selectively adapts and incorporates behaviors, values, and cultural practices of the new culture into currently held behaviors, values, and cultural practices (Berry, 1980). Review of the current literature on the acculturative experiences of South Asians in the United States suggests variations in their adherence to the cultural behaviors and values (Naidoo, 1985; Wakil, Siddique, & Wakil, 1981). Research suggests that behavioral aspects of the new culture are acquired more rapidly than cultural values of the new culture (Szapocznik & Kurtines, 1980; Kim, Atkinson, & Yang, 1999), with values being the last to be influenced (Marin, 1992). Some evidence suggests that South Asian women experience psychological conflicts when negotiating White American and South Asian cultural values (Inman, Constantine, & Ladany, 1999). Although measures have been developed to assess behavioral and cultural acculturation, there has been no objective measure developed to assess "cultural value conflict." Thus, the primary purpose of this investigation was to develop and validate a self-report measure assessing cultural value conflicts for South Asian women as a function of their acculturation to the United States. The South Asian culture has a set of beliefs and values about human beings that have been shaped by the mythology and philosophy of their country of origin (Dasgupta, 1986), giving rise to specific values and behavioral expectations that come from these values. Thus, South Asian women raised in South Asia typically have a well-developed, well-learned repertoire of behaviors and values that are appropriate to the situation encountered within their own culture. However, when encountering influences from the mainstream culture in the United States, they are confronted not only with new attitudinal options but also with new values and lifestyles (Dona & Berry, 1994). Berry (1980), in his cultural adaptation model, proposed the acculturation process to be stressful and conflictual based on the degree of accommodation to the dominant culture and the degree of retention of the ethnic culture.

Asian Americans represent the third largest racial/ethnic minority group in the United States (Ponterotto & Casas, 1991), with South Asians being the fourth largest ethnic subgroup. According to the 1990 U.S. Census data, there were more than 800,000 South Asians in the United States (Uba, 1994). As the current population of South Asians increases both in "absolute and relative terms" (Leong, 1999/2000, p. v), the struggles and concerns within their families and daily lives in the United States become significant. In particular, the marginalized status of the women of South Asian descent (i.e., India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal), the disproportionate burden placed on these women to perpetuate an "authentic" culture with its traditions and customs, and the close monitoring of their conduct within the United States (Dasgupta, 1998) are some important factors that might predispose these women to counseling. Thus, studying the experiences of these women in the United States becomes paramount. In understanding the experiences of South Asians in the United States, the concept of acculturation has been theoretically dis-

Arpana G. Inman, Department of Professional Psychology and Family Therapy, Seton Hall University; Nicholas Ladany, Department of Education and Human Services, Lehigh University; Madonna G. Constantine, Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, Teachers College, Columbia University; Cathleen K. Morano, Department of Psychological Studies in Education, Temple University. This study is based on the doctoral dissertation of Arpana G. Inman. Earlier versions of this article were presented at the 105th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Chicago, August 1997, at the 107th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Boston, August 1999, and at the Annual Conference of the American Counseling Association, Washington, DC, March 2000. We are thankful to Elizabeth Hofheinz for her assistance with data entry. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Arpana G. Inman, Department of Professional Psychology and Family Therapy, Seton Hall University, 400 South Orange Avenue, South Orange, New Jersey 07079-2696. Electronic mail may be sent to [email protected]. 17

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INMAN, LADANY, CONSTANTINE, AND MORANO

South Asian women who have internalized the traditional value set and encounter the pressures from the messages based in the American value structure are likely to experience a dissonance within their values and behaviors. This may pose significant dilemmas in terms of their choices to accommodate to the host culture as well as retain aspects of their own culture, resulting in a cultural value conflict. Cultural value conflict is defined as an experience of negative affect (e.g., guilt, anxiety) and cognitive contradictions that results from contending simultaneously with the values and behavioral expectations that are internalized from the culture of origin (South Asian culture) and the values and behavioral expectations that are imposed on the person from the new culture (White American culture; Inman et al., 1999). Research on South Asians indicates that there is a strong tendency to hold onto "central" values related to family relationships, marriage, dating practices, sex role expectations, and religion, while adapting to the pragmatic aspects of survival such as the use of the English language, disciplining practices, dress style, artistic expression at home, career decisions, and division of responsibilities at home (Dhruvarajan, 1993; Ghadially & Kazi, 1980; Kazi & Ghadially, 1979; Naidoo, 1985; Wakil et al., 1981). Thus, to understand the acculturative experience of South Asian women, it becomes important to understand the potential conflictual experiences they may encounter within the context of a South Asian value structure and a White American cultural value set. Measurement of acculturation and acculturative strain has focused primarily on behavioral indexes of acculturation (e.g., food practices, language usage, participation in traditional activities) (Sodowsky, Lai, & Plake, 1991; Suinn, Rickard-Figueroa, Lew, & Vigil, 1987) and experiences related to first generations, sojourners, and foreign students (e.g., homesickness, perceived haterejection, guilt over leaving family members behind; Sandhu & Asrabadi, 1994; Sandhu, Portes, & McPhee, 1996), with little emphasis on cultural values. Other related research (Kim et al., 1999; Sodowsky & Lai, 1997), although addressing the adherence to cultural values and experiences of marginality and cultural difficulties for Asian Americans, does not capture the culturally relevant aspects of the South Asian culture. To this end, the purpose of this investigation was to develop and validate a selfreport measure that examines cultural value conflicts experienced by South Asian women. Specifically, the scale explored conflictual experiences within four central values identified in the research (Dhruvarajan, 1993; Ghadially & Kazi, 1980; Kazi & Ghadially, 1979; Naidoo, 1985; Wakil et al., 1981), namely family relations, dating-premarital sexual relations, marriage, and sex role expectations. FAMILY RELATIONS Family, within the South Asian context, refers to an extended network of relationships encompassing several households (Das & Kemp, 1997; Prathikanti, 1997). The notion of privacy, personal space, and individualism are antithetical to this collective value orientation (Hines, Garcia-Preto, McGoldrick, Almeida, & Weltman, 1992; Prathikanti, 1997). South Asian women socialized within this context experience a de-emphasis on developing an identity separate from their family. Their actions and behaviors are considered to both affect and reflect the welfare and integrity of the family. Conversely, the emphasis within White American

culture is on an individualistic relational style, with priority given to individual goals and self-sufficiency in relationships (Carter, 1990; Ibrahim & Kahn, 1987; Triandis, 1989). Focus is placed on differentiation of the self, and family involvement is limited in the day-to-day aspects as one grows into adulthood. Thus, South Asian women encountering both value sets might struggle in an attempt to balance their personal identity with their family identity. Because familial values serve as a foundation within which South Asian women are raised, family relations was the first facet within which cultural value conflict was considered. DATING PRACTICES AND PREMARITAL SEXUAL RELATIONS Dating is acceptable only in the context of marriage and, hence, contradictory to South Asian cultural values (Dhruvarajan, 1993; Segal, 1991). Furthermore, with the emphasis placed on chastity and virginity before marriage, premarital sexual relations are considered unacceptable (Saran, 1985). Typically, sexuality in South Asian women poses a threat not only to the family but also to the community. Engaging in sexual behaviors is seen as being "Americanized" and betraying the South Asian culture (Dasgupta & Dasgupta, 1996). Thus, when South Asian women living in the United States encounter a society and culture in which dating and exploring sexuality are important parts of identity development and individuating from one's family, they may experience some guilt when digressing from their own cultural value and behavioral expectations. Thus, a second area within which cultural value conflict was examined in the current study was the dimension of dating and premarital sexual relations. MARRIAGE Within the South Asian context, marriage is seen as an alliance between famines rather than between two individuals (Prathikanti, 1997). Choice of a partner is left to the elders. Thus, arranged marriages continue to be the expected practice among South Asians in the United States (Jayakar, 1994). The fear of "cultural obliteration" in immigrant children typically pushes immigrant parents to impose stricter restrictions on their children (Dasgupta & Dasgupta, 1996). This results in a greater emphasis on marriage within the same community, ethnicity, and religion (Das & Kemp, 1997; Prathikanti, 1997). Additionally, great importance is attached to the "marriageable age" for women, especially in relation to career aspirations and higher education (Ghadially & Kazi, 1980; Kazi & Ghadially, 1979). In contrast, within American culture, there is a notion that love and marriage are inseparable; romantic love is a prerequisite for marriage (Lindsey, 1994). South Asian women who are socialized within these two cultural contexts are likely to experience being pulled between the two cultural expectations. Thus, a third component of cultural value conflict addressed the issue of marriage. SEX ROLE EXPECTATIONS The fourth realm within which cultural value conflict was investigated was the area of sex role expectations. Within South Asian culture, gender roles are clearly defined, with structured role expectations based on kinship, authority, position, status in the

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CULTURAL VALUES CONFLICT SCALE family, and social hierarchy within the society (Jayakar, 1994; Ramisetty-Mikler, 1993; Sodowsky & Carey, 1988). Women's status primarily comes from marriage and children (Ibrahim, Ohnishi, & Sandhu, 1997), and education serves as a marketable tool for marriage (Almeida, 1996). Respect toward elders is implied in obedience, formality, and social restraint in relationships. Women's socialization occurs within the context of a predominantly patriarchal society that conflicts with the Western concepts of autonomy and equality. Conversely, although many White American women are also socialized within a patriarchal ideology, they have had an opportunity to experience a feminist movement. This process has allowed them to achieve greater equality, autonomy, individuation, and self-definition in their roles and rights as women within their families and society (Jayakar, 1994). Thus, women engaging in sex role behaviors that may be inconsistent with their own cultural expectations may experience significant internal conflict. The first purpose of this investigation was to construct a scale that assessed cultural values conflict for South Asian women, henceforth known as the Cultural Values Conflict Scale (CVCS). For the purpose of the study, a South Asian woman was one who was of South Asian descent (i.e., from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, or Nepal). The study was designed to test a theoretically proposed model. It was hypothesized that a confirmatory factor analysis would produce a four-factor (i.e., family relations, dating/ premarital sexual relations, marriage, and sex role expectations) model of cultural value conflict among South Asian women, with items depicting adequate indexes of internal consistency. The second purpose of this study was to address a series of validity issues related to cultural values conflict. The first validity issue assessed was discriminant validity. Previous literature (Kim et al., 1999) indicates that different levels of acculturation influence variations in adherence to behaviors and values. Although recognizing that there is much diversity within the South Asian community, it is expected that, in comparison to first-generation South Asian women (who entered the United States as adults), second-generation South Asian women who are educated and raised in the United States would be significantly influenced by American culture and, thus, potentially experience greater cultural conflict in negotiating the two cultural value sets. Thus, it was hypothesized that a measure of cultural values conflict would adequately discriminate between first-generation (i.e., those who came to the United States after the age of 20 years) and secondgeneration (i.e., those who were either born in the United States or immigrated before the age of 12 years) South Asian women. A second validity issue to be assessed was convergent validity. Convergent validity was addressed by examining the relationship between cultural value conflict and cultural adjustment difficulties. The acculturation process can be a chronic and consistent struggle because it is a "long-term change process" (Sodowsky, Kwan, & Pannu, 1995). Such a chronic struggle not only creates general stress (e.g., anxiety, tension) in an individual but also has the potential for cultural stress (e.g., feeling caught between two cultures), a concept that Sodowsky and Lai (1997) termed acculturative distress. This distress resulting from the acculturative process can pervade different aspects of one's life (e.g., family, career, social, and personal development), creating concerns about one's intercultural competence (Sodowsky & Lai, 1997). To this end, it becomes relevant to examine the impact of cultural values

conflict on one's adjustment in different aspects of one's life. Examining the relationships among acculturative distress, intercultural competence concerns, and cultural values conflict was the first means of establishing convergent validity. It was hypothesized that cultural values conflict would relate positively with acculturative distress and intercultural competence concerns. Convergent validity was also assessed by examining the relationship between cultural values conflict and anxiety. Anxiety, characterized by subjective feelings of tension, worry, and nervousness, is typically experienced in stressful situations (Sue, 1996). Because inconsistencies in the acculturation process can create anxiety and stress in an individual acculturating within two cultures (Berry, 1993), examining the relationship between inconsistencies in the value sets and anxiety becomes salient. Examining the relationship between anxiety and cultural values conflict was the second means of establishing convergent validity. It was hypothesized that cultural values conflict would relate positively with anxiety. A third area of validity to be assessed was construct-irrelevant test variance. Specifically, it is important to determine whether the scale developed to measure the construct under study contains any irrelevant aspects that either make it too difficult (i.e., in terms of knowledge) or too easy (i.e., in terms of transparency of items) to respond to the measure. Typically, social desirability can play a major role if items are transparent. Thus, it becomes important to examine the relationship between cultural values conflict and social desirability. It was hypothesized that there would be a minimal relationship between social desirability and cultural values conflict. Finally, test-retest reliability is another test of construct validity (Messick, 1989). Stability of the CVCS across time was examined by using test-retest reliability analysis.

GENERAL METHOD Items were generated on the basis of a review of the empirical and theoretical literature (Dasgupta, 1986; Dhruvarajan, 1993; Naidoo, 1985; Ghadially & Kazi, 1980; Kazi & Ghadially, 1979; Sethi & Allen, 1984; Vaidyanathan & Naidoo, 1990/1991; Wakil et al., 1981). Items covered the four areas reviewed earlier and focused on South Asian experiences as a function of acculturation; particular emphasis was placed on the interplay between South Asian and White American cultures and values. The initial scale contained 40 items rated on a 6-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = neutral, 4 = agree, 5 = strongly agree, 6 = not applicable). The measure consisted of four subscales with 10 items in each. To control for response bias, items were presented in random order. To assess substantive validity (i.e., to ascertain that the structure of the items was consistent with the theoretical conceptualization of the construct of cultural value conflict [Messick, 1989] and the actual experiences of South Asian women), 3 first- and 3 secondgeneration South Asian women completed a demographic form and then responded to 10 of the 40 items preselected as most representative of each realm within the CVCS. Participants were asked to process aloud their thoughts while responding to the items and provide their rationale for each response. On the basis of qualitative feedback, specific wording for some items was taken from the discussions and revised to reflect the experiences of South Asian women.


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To assess content validity, 3 first- and 3 second-generation South Asian women were contacted. They were considered experts on the basis of their research experience and interests in the area of South Asian and White American cultures. Raters assessed clarity, representativeness of the items, omissions within realms, and the extent to which an item reflected a cultural values conflict experience. Those items that reflected a 100% (i.e., agreement on all six items) and 83% (i.e., agreement on five of six items) interrater agreement on categories were retained, and changes were made based on feedback provided. First, unclear items were clarified; second, items were moved from one category to the other based on interrater agreement (e.g., some items were seen as being more representative of the family relations category rather than the sex role expectation category); third, omissions primarily pertaining to the Asian culture and those that had been suggested by a majority of the raters, such as going against family wishes, pressures related to arranged marriages, double standards for males and females in careers, were added in the item pool. Also, because the scale primarily reflects a heterosexual experience, aspects related to a homosexual experience were not included. The revised CVCS consisted of 40 items, with 10 items in each subscale. To assess further clarity, readability of items, adequacy of directions, flow of items, and time taken to complete the instrument, 2 first- and 3 second-generation South Asian women evaluated the questionnaire packet consisting of a cover letter, a copy of the revised CVCS, and a demographic form. Participants took 12 to 20 min to complete the questionnaire and the demographic form and to provide feedback. Because of a lack of serious problems indicated, no changes were made to the questionnaire at that time.

Study 1: Internal and External Validity of the CVCS The purpose of Study 1 was to examine the internal and external validity of the CVCS through two phases: (a) The internal structure of the CVCS was achieved through factor analysis and internal consistency analyses; and (b) the external structure of the CVCS was assessed through obtaining discriminant validity, convergent validity, and construct-irrelevant test variance.

Method Phase 1: Factor Analysis and Internal Consistency Sample. Participants were solicited through a nonrandomized "snowballing" or reputational sampling method (Hessler, 1992). The snowballing method was used so as to have greater access to participants. Efforts were made to identify South Asian women nationwide through universities, South Asian organizations, and various academic and personal-social circles. The scale was mailed to 1,014 English-speaking South Asian women. Of these, 348 women returned completed questionnaire packets, resulting in a response rate of 34%. However, 29 of these questionnaires were not usable, resulting in a total sample of 319 South Asian women (i.e., 147 firstgeneration women and 172 second-generation women). These 319 South Asian women ranged in age from 20 to 44 years (M = 27.2 years, SD = 5.54 years). Of these women, 55% were single, 40% were married, 2% were divorced, 2% were cohabiting, and 1% was separated from her spouse. With regard to birthplace, 59% were born in India, 2% in Pakistan,

2% in Sri Lanka, 2% in Bangladesh, 30% in the United States, and 5% were born in other countries (e.g., Africa, Europe). Length of stay in the United States for the first-generation women ranged from 6 months to 22 years. Age at arrival ranged from 1 month to 42 years. With regard to education, 2% reported completing high school, 13% completed some college, 24% held a bachelor's degree, 11% completed some graduate work, 32% held a master's degree, and 18% held a doctorate degree. In terms of employment, 46% were professionally employed, 41% were students, 10% were homemakers, 1% were either unemployed or between jobs, and 2% did not respond. Religious breakdown consisted of 9% Christians, 70% Hindus, 11% Muslims, 2% Sikhs, 3% Jains, 1% Buddhist, and less than 1% Parsi; 3% were raised in more than one religion, and less than 1% did not respond. In terms of religiosity, 16% reported being very religious, 57% were somewhat religious, and 27% were not religious at all. With regard to self-identification, 9% of the participants identified themselves as very South Asian, 27% as more South Asian than American, 48% as bicultural, 13% as more American than South Asian, and 2% as very American; 1% did not respond. Preliminary analyses. Preliminary analyses were conducted for the normative sample (N = 319). Missing values and items that had a "not applicable" score were treated similarly. A scale score ranging from 1 to 5 was inserted for a missing value or a "not applicable" response based on a participant's mean for the particular subscale. For example, if the mean for a subscale (IR/SRE) for a participant was less than 1.49, a score of 1 was given to the item for that participant; if the mean was greater than 1.50 and less than 2.49, a score of 2 was given to the item. Based on an item analysis performed on the original 40 items, the items with the lowest item-total correlations were deleted. We decided to delete items to reduce the length of the instrument by retaining the better items. We decided to maintain an equal number of items in each subscale to obtain reasonably comparable subscale reliabilities and to provide a total score that equally represented each of the subscales. Initially, Nunnally and Bernstein's (1994) suggested criteria of a corrected item-total correlation of at least .30 was used to delete these items. However, the Marriage subscale seemed problematic because of a large number of items having a low item-total correlation. Because each subscale was conceptually considered to be of equal importance, the decision was made to delete for each subscale the three items with the lowest item total correlation. This resulted in a scale of 28 items, with 7 items within each of the previously identified four factors/subscales. Results of the confirmatory factor analysis. The present study was designed to test the theoretically proposed four-factor model of the CVCS. Confirmatory factor analysis (LISREL 7.20 program of Jdreskog & S6rbom, 1989), using the maximum likelihood estimation procedure, was used to test the parameters of the measurement model. Because of the desire to identify independent factors based on the theoretically proposed model, an orthogonal model was used to assess the fit of the model. Thus, each observed variable (i.e., item) had only one path to its respective latent variable (i.e., factor/subscale). That is, no secondary loadings were allowed. LISREL 7.20 provides modification indexes showing the minimum improvement needed to change the model to fit the data. The only modifications made were to allow certain error terms to correlate with each other. However, no structural changes were made. This was done to maintain the integrity of the model and to avoid compromising the theory. However, the orthogonal model was too restrictive, and the data were a poor fit for the model. Hence, to improve the fit of the model further, the four latent variables were allowed to correlate freely; correlations between the four factors were found to be fairly significant. Several other criteria were used to assess further the adequacy of the confirmatory solutions and the fit of the model. The first criterion used was the t value, which reflected that all parameters were within an acceptable range of significance (i.e., 3.71—13.03). The second criterion was the squared multiple correlations (Fassinger, 1987), which ranged from .06 to .63, suggesting a fair-fitting model. Other fit indexes used to assess how

CULTURAL VALUES CONFLICT SCALE well the hypothesized model actually fits the data included the chi-square value, ^(318, N = 319) = 658.55, p < .001, the Q value or a chi-square to degrees of freedom ratio (/; df = 2.07, N = 319), the goodness-of-fit index (GFI = .86), the adjusted goodness-of-fit index (AGFI = .83), and the root-mean-square of the residual (RMS = .14; Bentler, 1990). Although the AGFI and the RMS suggested a reasonable fit, the majority of the GFIs revealed that the hypothesized four-factor model was not the best fit for the sample data. Moreover, because of the fairly high correlations between factors, the data suggest a possibility that a different model might be a better fit. Because the hypothesized model did not provide the best fit for the data, an exploratory factor analysis was performed as a means of finding a more plausible model for the data. Results of the exploratory factor analysis. A common factor analysis with an orthogonal varimax rotation and a Kaiser-Guttman criterion of eigenvalue greater than 1.00 was used for the 28-item scale (Floyd & Widaman, 1995). Two-, three-, four-, and five-factor solutions were obtained. Although all the factor solutions except the five-factor solution met the eigenvalue criteria, the two-factor solution had the highest eigenvalues (Factor 1 = 6.00, Factor 2 = 3.87). The general rule of eigenvalue greater than 1.00 may at times misjudge the most suitable number of factors (Gorsuch, 1983). Thus, the second criterion looked at was the scree test. The scree test extracted two, three, and four factors; the majority of the variance was accounted for by the first two factors (i.e., 21.4, 13.8, 3.7, 3.6). Because the purpose of the exploratory factor analysis was to identify the most plausible model with meaningful factors underlying the CVCS, three criteria were used in retaining a preliminary factor structure: (a) retaining factor loadings that exceeded .40 (Floyd & Widaman, 1995); (b) retaining factors that had at least three items per factor (Comrey, 1988); and (c) items loading significantly (i.e., .40 and above) on more than one component after the rotation was eliminated. The intent was to maintain theoretical as well as conceptual meaningfulness. The two-factor solution provided the cleanest factor structure. Only four items loaded on more than one factor; these items were deleted. The two-factor solution not only was statistically sound but also maintained the theoretical integrity of the model. Thus, in examining the interpretability and conceptual resilience of the loadings (Gorsuch, 1983), the two-factor model made the most sense and hence was retained. Neither the four-factor nor the three-factor solutions provided a clear conceptual difference between factors. Furthermore, there was a significant overlap between factors; a majority of the items loaded on more than one component. This would have resulted in deleting even more items from the scale, thus compromising the theory as well as conceptual resilience. The new model reduced the 28-item set to a 24-item set with two factors. Table 1 presents the two factors with their respective items, factor loadings, communality estimates (h2), means, and standard deviations. Factor 1 consisted of 11 items, including all the previously hypothesized items from the Dating/Premarital Relations subscale, three items from the Marriage subscale, and one item from the Family Relations subscale. Thus, Factor 1 was renamed "Intimate Relations" because it deals with intimate/sexual relations. Factor 1 had an eigenvalue of 6.00, accounting for 21% of the total variance. Factor 2 consisted of 13 items, including 6 from the Sex Role Expectation subscale, four from the Family Relations subscale, and three from the Marriage subscale. Factor 2 was renamed "Sex Role Expectations" because it deals with themes related to familial and societal expectations of the South Asian female gender role. Factor 2 had an eigenvalue of 3.87, accounting for 14% of the total variance. The interscale correlation coefficient between the two factors-scales was .11. Internal consistency. The corrected item correlations were all positive and ranged from .11 to .56. The coefficient as for the entire normative sample of 319 women were .84 for the total scale score, .87 for the Intimate Relations subscale, and .85 for the Sex Role Expectations subscale.

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Phase 2: Discriminant Validity, Convergent Validity, and Construct-Irrelevant Variance Discriminant validity was obtained through the group differences approach; convergent validity was obtained by correlating cultural value conflict with constructs (i.e., acculturative distress, intercultural competence concerns, and anxiety) theoretically conceptualized as related to it; and construct-irrelevant variance was assessed by examining the relationship between cultural value conflict and social desirability. Randomly ordered questionnaire packets consisting of a cover letter, a copy of the CVCS (original 40-item scale), the demographic form, and one of the three instruments (Cultural Adjustment Difficulties Checklist [CADC], State Anxiety Scale, Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding [BIDR]) were used to obtain empirical validation. The cover letter explained the voluntary and anonymous nature of the study along with a statement that completion of the questionnaire reflected consent to participate. A "request for study results" slip was also inserted.

Measures CVCS. A self-report measure developed by the investigator was used to assess the degree to which South Asian women living in the United States experience cultural value conflicts. The final version of the scale contained 24 items with two subscales: Intimate Relations (IR) and Sex Role Expectations (SRE). As indicated earlier, the IR subscale contained items related to the dating-premarital sexual relations and the marriage realms, and the SRE subscale contained items reflective of the family relations and sex role expectations. To control for response bias, items were presented in a random order. The a coefficients for the normative sample (N = 319) for the current study were .84 for the full scale, .87 for the IR subscale, and .85 for the SRE subscale. CADC (Sodowsky & Lai, 1997). This is a 6-point scale (1 = very inaccurate description of you to 6 = very accurate description of you) used to assess the acculturation-induced stresses of Asians in the United States. The 59-item scale consists of two subscales: Acculturative Distress (AD) and Intercultural Competence Concerns (IC). AD consists of general stress items and cultural stress items. The second subscale, IC, refers to concern over social, cultural, academic, and career competence. The CADC is reported to have coefficient as of .90, .88, and .92 for the AD and IC subscales and the full scale, respectively. For the current study, coefficient as were .91, .88, and .93 (N = 80) for the AD and IC subscales and the full scale, respectively. The factorial congruence of the factor structure for the CADC indicated a Pearson correlation of .92 and .94 (Sodowsky & Lai, 1997). State Anxiety Scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, Gorsuch, Lushene, Vagg. & Jacobs, 1983). The State Anxiety Scale (S-Anxiety Scale [SAS], Form Y-l), a subscale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, was used to assess anxiety related to the negotiation of two cultural value sets. This scale consists of 20 statements, and it typically evaluates how respondents feel "right now/at this moment," with modifications allowed in the instructions based on different situations. In the current study, participants were asked to indicate how they felt when negotiating aspects within the South Asian culture and the American culture. Respondents are asked to rate their answers on a 4-point scale (1 = not at all to 4 = very much so). The score ranges from 20 to 80. The SAS is reported to have a coefficient a of .93. Coefficient a for the current data was .91 (N = 101). The SAS has been shown to discriminate between contrasted groups. Concurrent validity with the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale indicated a correlation of .80. Convergent validity with the Psychasthenia subscale on the MMPI showed a correlation of .79 (Spielberger et al., 1983). BIDR. The BIDR (Paulhus, 1984, cited in Paulhus, 1991; Paulhus, 1988, cited in Paulhus, 1991), which assesses social desirability and response bias (SDR) in participants, was used to assess the relationship

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Table 1 Items, Component Loading, Communality Estimates, Means, and Standard Deviations for the Two-Factor Cultural Values Conflict Scale Item

Factor loading

Factor 1: Intimate Relations (11 items) I believe dating is acceptable only in a mutually exclusive relationship leading to marriage. (DPR) I would experience anxiety if I decided to marry someone from another racial/cultural/ethnic group. (MAR) I feel guilty when my personal actions and decisions go against my family's expectations. (FR) I would feel guilty if I were dating someone from another cultural/ ethnic group. (DPR) Despite cultural expectations, I would not experience anxiety if I engaged in premarital sex with someone I was in love with. (DPR) I would not experience discomfort if I were to engage in premarital sexual relations with someone I was physically attracted to. (DPR) I would experience guilt engaging in premarital sexual relations due to the social stigma attached to it within my culture. (DPR) Marrying within my own ethnic group would be less stressful than marrying outside of my racial/ethnic group. (MAR) The idea of living with a partner prior to marriage does not create anxiety for me. (DPR) I believe that premarital sexual relations are acceptable only after being engaged to the person. (DPR) An interracial marriage would be stressful to me. (MAR)

h2

M

SD

.53

.40

2.35

1.24

.67

.61

3.24

1.30

.40

.33

3.76

.99

.79

.62

2.48

1.25

.68

.57

2.95

1.45

.70

.57

3.32

1.36

.64

.51

2.91

1.28

.57

.41

3.93

1.18

.56

.36

3.41

1.25

.41 .65

.26 .61

2.19 3.19

1.05 1.26

.44

.29

2.88

1.32

.53

.32

3.71

1.24

.64

.51

2.93

1.26

.54 .42

.42 .35

3.17 2.52

1.32 1.17

.69

.51

2.98

1.14

.71

.54

2.83

1.09

.56

.43

3.01

1.09

.57

.36

3.60

1.10

.49

.43

3.15

1.25

.43

.24

2.98

1.29

.40

.36

3.69

1.18

.51

.36

2.75

1.18

Factor 2: Sex-Role Expectations (13 items) I feel that I do not belong to either the South Asian culture nor the American culture when it relates to my role as a woman. (SRE) I experience anxiety at the thought of having an arranged marriage. (MAR) I feel like a pendulum in my role as a woman, wherein within my ethnic culture, I am expected to be dependent, submissive, and putting other's needs before mine, but in the American culture, I am encouraged to be independent, autonomous, and self-asserting of my needs. (SRE) I struggle with the value attached to needing to be married by age 25. (MAR) I feel guilty for desiring privacy from my family. (FR) I feel conflicted about my behaviors and options as a woman within the South Asian and in the American culture. (SRE) I feel frustrated in going back and forth in my role as a woman within the South Asian community and within the American community. (SRE) I often find it stressful balancing what I consider private and what my family considers to be public and vice versa. (FR) I struggle with the double standard within my ethnic culture, wherein women more so than men are expected to be equally attentive to both their professional roles (e.g., maintaining career) as well as their home lives (e.g., household chores, parenting). (SRE) I struggle with the pressure to be married and the lack of option to remain single within my culture. (MAR) My family worries about me becoming too Americanized in my thoughts and behaviors. (FR) I am bothered by the fact that in my ethnic culture marriage for a woman is considered to be more important than having a career. (SRE) I struggle with my family's need to be involved in my day-to-day activities. (FR)

Note. DPR = dating/premarital sexual relations; MAR = marriage; FR = family relations; SRE = sex role expectations; h2 = communality estimates.

23

CULTURAL VALUES CONFLICT SCALE between CVCS and social desirability. The 40-item questionnaire measures two constructs: (a) self-deceptive positivity (SDE), the tendency to give self-reports that are honest but positively biased; and (b) impression management (IM), a deliberate self-presentation to an audience. Respondents rate their agreement on a 7-point scale (1 = not true to 7 = very true). Scores range from 0 to 20; high scores indicate a tendency toward high social desirability. Coefficient alphas have ranged from .68 to .80 for SDE and .75 to .86 for EM, with a total a of .83 (Paulhus, 1991). The a coefficients for the current study (N = 86) ranged from .62 to .84. Concurrent validity with the BIDR and the Multidimensional Social Desirability Inventory of Jacobson, Kellogg, Cauce, and Slavin (1977) has shown correlations ranging from .71 to .80. Convergent validity for the BIDR with the Byrne Repressive style scale has shown a correlation of .51 (Paulhus, 1991). Discriminant validity data have shown to discriminate between the two subscales of the BIDR (e.g., SDR and DM; Paulhus, 1991). Demographic form. The demographic questionnaire was used to gather information on participants' age, education, age at entry to the United States, generation status, religious affiliation, level of religiosity, and occupation.

Results Discriminant Validity To establish discriminant validity by group differences (i.e., whether the specific CVCS subscale scores (IR, SRE) varied according to generation (first, second), a one-way multivariate analysis of variance was performed. The two CVCS subscales were the dependent variables and generation with two levels (first, second) served as the independent variable. The hypothesis for the main effect of level of generation was significant (exact F = 8.97, Pillai's trace = .08, p < .001). Results of univariate tests revealed significance for the SRE subscale, F(l, 317) = 22.15, p < .01, if = .78, but not for the IR subscale, F(l, 317) = 2.31, p > .05, if = .78. Specifically, the second-generation women scored higher than the first-generation women on the Sex Role Expectations subscale. This suggests that the second-generation women were experiencing greater conflicts within the SRE realm when negotiating the two cultures.

Convergent Validity To establish convergent validity of the CVCS and to test the hypothesis that CVCS scores were related to the CADC scores, a multivariate multiple regression analysis was performed. For this analysis, the predictor variables were the two subscales, IR and SRE of the CVCS and the criterion variables were the two subscales, AD and IC on the CADC. The overall proportion of the variance in the ratings of AD and IC accounted for by the combination of the CVCS subscales was significant, Pillai's trace = .31, F(2, 105) = 9.98, p < .01, TJ2 = .15, in which if is the multivariate effect size (Hasse & Ellis, 1987). Thus, the CVCS scales in combination were related to cultural adjustment difficulties. Because multivariate significance was reached at the .05 level, follow-up univariate analyses were conducted. These analyses revealed that in the partial model only the SRE subscale was related to both AD (F(l, 105) = 40.07, p < .01, TJ2 = .29) and IC (F = 27.39, p < .01, TJ2 = .29). This suggests that the higher the acculturative distress and the higher the intercultural competence concerns, the greater is the cultural value conflict within the Sex

Role realm. Correlations, means, and standard deviations are presented in Table 2. Convergent validity was also assessed by examining the relationship between scores on the CVCS and the SAS. To test the hypothesis that CVCS scores are related to SAS scores, a multiple regression analysis was conducted on the two predictor variables, namely the two subscales of CVCS (IR, SRE) and one criterion variable, namely SAS. Results indicated that the overall proportion of the variance in SAS accounted for by the combination of the CVCS subscales was significant, F(2,104) = 19.06, p < .001, if = .26. Follow-up univariate tests revealed that only the SRE subscale contributed uniquely and significantly, F(l, 104) = 35.08, p < .001, if = .25, to the proportion of variance accounted for in SAS. This suggests that the greater the Sex Role Expectations, the greater is the anxiety experienced by the South Asian women. Correlations, means, and standard deviations are presented in Table 2.

Threat to Construct Validity To assess whether the CVCS contained any construct-irrelevant variance, the BIDR was used. A multivariate multiple regression analysis was conducted to test the hypothesis that there would be a minimal relationship between the CVCS and the BIDR. The predictor variables were the subscales (IR and SRE) of the CVCS and the criterion variables were the two subscales (SDE and IM) on the BIDR. The overall proportion of the variance in BIDR accounted for by the combination of the CVCS subscales was significant, F(2, 100) = 4.94, Pillai's trace = .18, p < .001, TJ2 = .09. Thus, the CVCS scales in combination were related to BIDR scales. Because multivariate significance was reached at the .05 level, follow-up univariate analyses were conducted. These analyses revealed that in the partial model SRE was significantly but negatively related to self-deceptive positivity (the tendency to give self-reports that are honest but positively biased, F(l, 100) = 5.87, p < .01, TJ2 = .14), as well as impression management (a deliberate self-presentation to an audience, F(l, 100) = 5.95, p < .01, if = .14). On the other hand, IR was significantly but positively related to IM alone (F = 5.95, p < .01, if = .05). These results

Table 2 Correlation Matrix, Means, and Standard Deviations for the Cultural Values Conflict Scale (IR and SRE Subscales) and the Cultural Adjustment Difficulties Checklist (AD and IC Subscales); IR and SRE and SAS, and IR and SRE and SDE and IM of the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding Variable

IR

SRE

M

SD

AD IC SAS SDE IM

-.01 .10 -.01 .06 .19*

.52* .46* .50* -.35* -.19*

2.53 2.36 2.09 4.18 4.27

0.70 0.64 0.58 0.64 1.03

Note. IR = Intimate Relations; SRE = Sex Role Expectations; AD = Acculturative Distress; IC = Intercultural Competence; SAS = State Anxiety Scale; SDE = self-deceptive Positivity; DM = impression management. *p< .01.

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suggest that the greater the pressures experienced in the SRE realm, the greater is the conflict and hence the lesser is the tendency to present an image that is not only self-serving but also socially desirably. Conversely, the greater the conflict in the IR realm, the greater is the tendency to present a positive social image so as to avoid social disapproval. Correlations, means, and standard deviations are presented in Table 2. Study 2: Test-Retest Reliability The purpose of Study 2 was to assess the stability of the CVCS through test-retest reliability.

Method Sample Participants were 91 (35 first generation and 56 second generation) South Asian women ranging in age from 20 to 38 years (M = 26.37 years, SD = 4.50 years). Age at arrival to the United States ranged from 1 month to 37 years. In terms of marital status, nationality, education, occupation, religious affiliation, level of religiosity, and self-perception, the women who participated in this phase of the study were comparable to the breakdown within the larger study.

Procedure Participants were asked of their interest in participating in a follow-up study and to check off this item on the demographic form. The follow-up study was to assess stability of the scores over time (i.e., test-retest reliability). Of a total of 207 participants who agreed to be part of a follow-up, the first 170 received the follow-up questionnaire 2 weeks after the initial packet was completed. A total of 100 completed packets were received, resulting in a response rate of 59%. Of these, 9 questionnaires were not usable. Thus, a final usable sample of 91 participants, resulting in a response rate of 54%, was used to assess test-retest reliability. Because this part of the study was conducted through mailings, the range of time between first and second responses was tracked. The time between the first and second responses ranged from 2 weeks to 10 weeks and 5 days.

Results Pairwise correlations were computed on the total scores and the subscales of the test-retest sample. The scores were .63 for IR, .82 for SRE, and .81 for the total scale. The fact that IR had a lower correlation than SRE may be due to IR being a transient interpersonal issue and hence a temporary situational dilemma. On the other hand, expectations related to SRE may be ongoing issues in the lives of South Asian women. Discussion The current research sought to develop and validate the CVCS, a self-report instrument measuring cultural values conflict for South Asian women as a function of their acculturative experience within a bicultural context. Validation of the CVCS was achieved through several procedures recommended by Messick (1989). The net result of the validation procedures was a 24-item, two-factor self-report measure, with adequate internal consistency and testretest reliability.

Because a confirmatory factor analysis did not confirm the four-factor hypothesized model, an exploratory factor analysis was performed to find a better fitting model (Floyd & Widaman, 1995). A two-factor model (24 items) accounting for 35.2% of the total variance was better reflective of the major themes and dimensions identified in the literature. The overlap of themes within the IR factor appears consistent with the literature in that the concepts of dating, premarital sexual relations, and marriage seem intertwined within the South Asian culture. The beliefs that dating will inevitably lead to sexual involvement (Segal, 1991), that premarital sexual relations are acceptable only if engaged to be married (Vaidyanathan & Naidoo, 1990/1991), and that dating is only acceptable in a committed relationship all point to an interrelation between the two themes. Specifically, the subscale captures the South Asian expectations about intimate relations and the context within which it should occur (i.e., sex within the context of marriage) and the pressures imposed on by the dominant culture regarding intimate relations (i.e., acceptability of dating and premarital relations before marriage). The overlap of the family relations and sex role expectations themes on the SRE factor highlights ideas proposed by several researchers (e.g., Segal, 1991; Sodowsky & Carey, 1987). Specifically, these researchers suggested that differences in acculturation levels typically cause family members to fear that their children will lose their sense of ethnic identity behaviorally through gender roles. For example, women may be seen as more American if they are more vocal and self-directed in their relationships. This atypical gendered behavior of internalizing the value attached to equality in relationships can be seen as threatening to the family system (Segal, 1991). Specifically, the subscale addresses the pressures from the family and ethnic society to maintain and perpetuate traditional gender roles identity (Guzder & Krishna, 1991), while receiving messages related to privacy, independence, and pursuing personal goals (Fernandez, 1988) from the dominant White culture. Discriminant validity of the CVCS was established by using the group differences approach. The CVCS discriminated between the first- and second-generation South Asian women, providing further evidence for the construct validity of the instrument. Specifically, the finding that second-generation South Asian women experienced a greater cultural values conflict than the firstgeneration women in the areas of sex role expectation seems consistent with the literature. Researchers (Sodowsky & Carey, 1987; Saran, 1985; Wakil et al., 1981) discussed the notion of cultural conflicts between family members resulting from differences in acculturation levels. On one hand, parents who maintain a stronger tie to their culture of origin may enforce pressures because of a fear that their children will lose a strong sense of their ethnic identity (Segal, 1991; Wakil et al., 1981). On the other hand, second-generation women may struggle with a need to feel a sense of belonging and legitimacy within both the Asian community as well as the American culture. Both of these forces may cause these women to experience a pull between loyalty to their families and loyalty to themselves in pursuing their personal goals (an emphasis in Western culture; Fernandez, 1988). Additionally, the pressures for women to perpetuate the South Asian culture and traditions by gender role behaviors (Guzder & Krishna, 1991) may result in greater struggles.

CULTURAL VALUES CONFLICT SCALE The finding that the second generation did not score higher than the first generation on the IR subscale may be accounted for in part by the combination of the two original factors (i.e., dating/premarital relations and marriage), resulting in an inadequate conceptualization of the factor within the construct. It is also possible that the current research captures the transitional pattern that may be occurring with changing times and values (Murthy, 1997). Convergent validity of the CVCS was established using measures of cultural adjustment difficulties and anxiety. The finding that the sex role expectations were significantly related to adjustment difficulties and intercultural competence is consistent with the literature that suggests that living within two cultures requires negotiating two different sets of cultural values and behaviors (Sodowsky & Lai, 1997; Sue & Chin, 1983), and the scales tap into these respective themes. The fact that no significant relationships were found between intimate relations and the two CADC subscales seems reasonable given that neither of the CADC subscales capture themes or issues related to marriage/romantic relations. Thus, it appears that the CVCS taps some unique dimensions within the construct of cultural conflict/difficulties (e.g., marriage and dating/premarital sexual relations) that go beyond the construct measured by the CADC. In assessing convergent validity by examining the relationship between cultural value conflict and anxiety, results showed that, although cultural value conflict factors in combination were related to anxiety, only sex role expectations was significantly related to anxiety. This finding may be related to the difficulty that may be experienced in negotiating two potentially conflicting value systems. The pressure from the family and the Asian community to conform and identify with the South Asian culture (Segal, 1991), the fear of losing legitimacy within the Asian community while maintaining a sense of a bicultural identity, and the fear of being seen as too American or ethnic may be some of the experiences with which these women are struggling when negotiating values implicit in their sex role expectations. This experience may create anxiety, characterized by feelings of guilt, tension, and nervousness typical of stressful situations (Sue, 1996; Sue & Chin, 1983), thus indicating a stronger relationship between this area and anxiety. The fact that intimate relations did not relate significantly with anxiety may be explained in a few ways. The finding may be a function of an atypical sample. The majority of the participants had a university education and may be more liberal in their attitudes toward these factors. Also, there may be a growing trend toward adopting a more liberal attitude, with an attempt to adapt to the changing times and changing values by the older generation (Murthy, 1997; Vaidyanathan & Naidoo, 1990/1991). A third reason may be accountable to the fact that a large percentage of the first-generation women were married and were not able to relate to either the dating/premarital sexual or marriage factors. Finally, it is possible that the theory itself is inadequate in its conceptualization of the construct. Finally, analyses conducted to assess construct-irrelevant test variance by examining the relationship between cultural value conflict and social desirability provided some mixed results. Cultural values conflict factors in combination were significantly related to social desirability. Specifically, SRE was significantly but negatively related to both SDE and IM on the BEDR. Thus, the greater the conflict within the SRE realm, the lesser was the

25

tendency to present an image that is socially desirable. One explanation for this may be the collective value system (e.g., interdependence, conformity) within the Asian culture (Segal, 1991; Sodowsky et al., 1995; Triandis, 1989). In the collective value system, one's identity and behaviors are a reflection on one's family and community. These "behaviors and desires, real and imagined, become the litmus test for the South Asian community's anxieties or sense of well-being" (Dasgupta, 1998, p. 6). The pressures experienced within this realm may cause immense anxiety for these women, resulting in adherence to expected behaviors rather than working at creating a socially desirable image. Another explanation may be related to the concept of "loss of face." Loss of face, operationalized as "the threat [to] or loss of one's social integrity" (Zane, 1992) has been perceived as an important dynamic in handing social interactions for Asian Americans. Traditionally, Asians feel the need to save face in social situations (Kwan & Sodowsky, 1997; Sue, 1996; Zane, 1992), and this may also apply to their role in personal relationships. On the other hand, intimate relations was significantly but positively related to only impression management (i.e., engaging in a deliberate self-presentation of oneself to others). That is, the greater the conflicts within the realm of intimate relations, the greater is the tendency to present an image that shields them from bringing on social disapproval. South Asian women may do so because sexual intimacy before marriage, merely for gratification of the sex instinct, is seen as unacceptable within the South Asian culture (Vaidyanathan & Naidoo, 1990/1991). Thus, it is possible that South Asian women would refrain from disclosing aspects related to their behaviors within the realm of intimate relations and present an expected public image of chastity and purity (Dasgupta & Dasgupta, 1996). In light of these results, it is suggested that social desirability should be used as a covariate in future research in this area. Although results provide some preliminary validity evidence for the CVCS, the results must be tempered in light of the limitations of the design. Because the two factors accounted for only 35.2% of the variance, the construct may not have been comprehensively conceptualized. It is possible that either the realms need to be further defined or there may be other potential factors not accounted for in the scale (e.g., social desirability). A second potential limitation is related to selection bias (Heppner, Kivlighan, & Wampold, 1999). The participants in this study were chosen from a convenient, nonrandomized sample consisting of Englishspeaking, highly educated, middle-class South Asian women. Thus, the results may not be reflective of the diversity (e.g., language, socioeconomic status) within the South Asian group and hence not generalizable to all South Asian women in the United States. Despite these limitations, there are some important implications of this research. Acculturation models have typically discussed various aspects of the acculturation process, namely accommodation of the host culture and retention of the culture of origin; modes of adaptation, selective acculturation, and so on. Researchers within the acculturative literature have also highlighted the complexity of the acculturation process by distinguishing between behavioral and cultural acculturation (Kim et al., 1999; Phinney, 1996). Furthermore, the role of adherence to cultural values within the acculturative experience has been stressed (Kim et al., 1999). Although understanding the struggles experienced within the ac-

26


culturative experience is considered to be important in understanding the psychosocial adaptation of an individual (Williams & Berry, 1991), little attention has been given to the role of internalized cultural values within the acculturative literature. Theoretically, this study goes beyond the current literature by measuring not only the extent to which individuals incorporate both implicit and explicit aspects of a particular culture's value orientations but also the extent to which these values are manifested both overtly and covertly in their social behaviors. Specifically, this study empirically examines the potential dissonance and conflicts that can exist in negotiating two distinct internalized value systems within the acculturative experience. In terms of research, scores on the CVCS can be interpreted contextually with regard to generational status as well as specific realms. Also, because few instruments have been normed on this population, it is hoped that the CVCS will provide a helpful research tool for counseling psychology researchers. Although the current findings provide validity evidence for the CVCS, there are some recommendations for future research. It would be beneficial to conduct a confirmatory factor analysis to assess the fit of the new hypothesized model to new crossvalidation sample data. A second recommendation is to develop a more comprehensive conceptualization of cultural values conflict and explore further the relationship between cultural values conflict and social desirability. Exploring this relationship may not only highlight the sensitive nature of the items but also provide some information on the extent of variance caused by social desirability. A third recommendation is to examine within-group differences to reflect the immense diversity within the South Asian community (i.e., religious, regional, subregional/subcommunities, class). These data would allow results to be generalized to a larger South Asian group. A fourth recommendation is to assess the influence of cultural values conflict on ethnic/racial identity and behaviors. Comfort with one's ethnic/racial identity may create less intrapsychic cultural dissonance, leading to greater life satisfaction. Finally, the fifth recommendation involves assessing coping styles that may be used to deal with the conflicts. Coping strategies developed to deal with pressures experienced within the acculturative experience can have important implications in terms of one's psychological functioning and life choices (Taft, 1977). Finally, this study has implications for practitioners. The CVCS can help counselors become more culturally competent through increased awareness and knowledge about the South Asian group. It is important for counselors to understand not only South Asian women's cultural heritage but also the degree to which they identify with their cultural heritage. In planning culturally sensitive counseling interventions, counselors will need to assess South Asian women's levels of acculturation and their adherence to cultural behaviors and values (Ibrahim et al., 1997). Additionally, with continued validation studies, the CVCS has a potential to serve as an assessment tool for counselors. Current acculturation scales typically ignore the role of ethnic values when assessing one's psychosocial adjustment within the acculturative experience (Kim et al., 1999; Phinney, 1996). By using the CVCS in conjunction with a behavioral acculturation measure, counselors may be able to assess the degree of cultural dissonance experienced as a function of acculturation and treat psychological factors associated with this complex phenomenon.

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Received April 13, 2000 Revision received July 31, 2000 Accepted August 11, 2000 •