Blog Post 4: Research Part 2

As stated in the last blog post, Andy has few friends due to prioritizing studying and grades. (1) This stems from his family being influenced by Confucianism, a series of teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. (2) These teachings include corporal punishment, filial loyalty, and a heavy emphasis on grades. Chinese students are very hardworking and unhealthily grades-obsessed, which is regarded as a flex rather than an issue to Chinese people. Andy, like many other Chinese immigrants, is often compared to these very smart kids in the mainland. (3) (4) Additionally, Andy’s parents have found success in STEM fields, so he is expected to measure up to their greatness and bring their bloodline to greater heights. Thus, Andy is a very quiet, independent, and obedient student.

(Chinese students are some of the most stressed people in the world.)

A negative experience from school for Andy is that he has been bullied on multiple occasions, including trash being thrown at him, his possessions being touched and taken without his consent, name-calling, which he has brought to teachers’ attention. Unfortunately, the bullying never quite stopped.(5) Andy has never found out the root cause of the bullying, which contributes to his low self-esteem. (6)

In terms of romance, Andy has had crushes, though they are few and far between. However, after a bad experience of being mocked for confessing to a girl(7), he no longer talks about his love life and prefers to keep to himself.

(This is a picture and what I headcanon Andy would look like)

Sources:

1. Authoritarian Parenting: Definition, Characteristics, & Effectiveness. (2023, July 3). Parents. Retrieved December 25, 2023, from https://www.choosingtherapy.com/authoritarian-parenting/
2. Huang, G. H.-C., & Gove, M. (2015). Confucianism, chinese families, and academic achievement: Exploring how confucianism and asian descendant parenting practices influence children’s academic achievement. In M. S. Khine (Ed.), Science Education in East Asia: Pedagogical Innovations and Research-informed Practices (pp. 41–66). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16390-1_3
3. China’s schoolkids are now officially the smartest in the world. (n.d.). Fortune. Retrieved December 25, 2023, from https://fortune.com/2019/12/03/china-students-prisa-oecd-education-survey-smartest/
4. Dewar, G. (2019, February 2). Traditional Chinese parenting: What the research says. PARENTING SCIENCE. https://parentingscience.com/chinese-parenting/
5. Bullying will never end | bullying education. (n.d.). Retrieved December 25, 2023, from http://www.bullyingeducation.org/bullying-will-never-end/
6. The broad impact of school bullying, and what must be done | psychology today. (n.d.). Retrieved December 25, 2023, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/experimentations/202105/the-broad-impact-school-bullying-and-what-must-be-done
7. Mind, T. (2022, November 20). Understanding the root of mockery: Why people mock and how to deal with it. Thinkable Mind. https://www.thinkablemind.com/understanding-the-root-of-mockery-why-people-mock-and-how-to-deal-with-it/