Intergenerational Transmission of Cultural Values and Practices: An Ethnography of Bangladeshi Migrants in Australia

Recent developments in acculturation and culture maintenance research have led to a renewed interest in the intergenerational transmission of cultural values, beliefs, and practices among different migrant communities across the world. This article focuses on how Bangladeshi migrants transmit their cultural values and practices to their second generation with the aim of developing an overall understanding of their sense of identity in Australia. Using in-depth interviews and observation as research instruments, this ethnographic study critically examines which cultural values are regularly practiced in different domains of their host society by this group of migrants. The findings of this research show why some cultural practices are regularly practiced and transmitted while others are not. They further demonstrate their perception and mechanism for intergenerational cultural transmission in family and social domains. This article can yield important insights both on their cultural practices and the strategies of parents for intergenerational cultural transmission as an underlying process of protecting and retaining cultural identity.