American girls and young women ages 15–24 have the highest suicide mortality rates across any racial or ethnic group (national Center for Health Statistics, 2003) and the highest rates of depression of any racial, ethnic, or gender group in the uS (Schoen et al., 1997). understanding the constraints these girls experience is important to disrupt this pattern. However, it is equally important that scholars explore the girls’ agency, capacity ‘for desiring, for forming intentions, and for acting creatively’ (Sewell, 1992, p. 20) in navigating these constraints.
This data truly caught me off guard. I had not previously recognized the extent to which family influences a student’s outcomes. Prior to engaging with this article, I held the belief that expectations were prevalent not only among Asian American girls but across all cultures and families. However, I have come to realize that the pressure exerted by Asian American parents can be excessively formidable, potentially leading to tragic consequences.