Charting our own course : Korean American women in relation to gender, race, culture and our mothers

This paper attempts to describe and analyze the experiences of Korean American women who came of age in the U.S. by answering questions with regard to issues of racial and cultural identity, gender expectations, and the mother-daughter relationship. In order to answer these questions, in-depth interviews were conducted with five women as a method of primary research. In addition, current research on Korean American women as well as personal narratives in the form of fictional and autobiographical works supplement and reinforce information gathered from the interviews. Two theories frame this analysis: the ethnic identity development stages of Sue & Sue, and Tan\u27s theory of Asian oppression taken from the perspective of Re-evaluation Counseling. The analysis finds that Korean American women share common experiences and common challenges along the dimensions of race, gender, and culture