In a recent research article appearing in The Pacific Sociological Association Journal, Assistant Professor David Rangel and Megan N. Shoji (Mathematica Policy Research) find significant similarities across social class lines of Mexican American parents in childrearing practices and beliefs, conflicting with previous research done on this topic. Drawing on interviews with 17 middle-class, working-class, and poor Mexican American parents, Rangel and Shoji's findings suggest:
- Social mobility experienced by middle-class parents complicate class-based parenting beliefs
- Variation in parenting approaches in the same household mitigates class distinctions
- Mexican America's shared contextual experiences and cultural values minimize social class differences in childbearing