Adopting Amy Chua's values and methods of upbringing

To discuss the possible consequences of adopting Amy Chua’s values and methods of upbringing, we must first summarize these values and methods found in “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior”.

Values and methods

First, Chua is a firm believer in the fact that perseverance and “tenacious practice, practice, practice” (l. 49) will lead to excellence. This is why one method of upbringing is forcing one’s child to be the best at what he/she does. Chua also states that it does not matter whether a child does not like a particular thing; satisfaction will bring the child joy once the child excels at something.

Then, Chua states that shaming one’s child brings their potential forward and makes him/her aware of what needs to be improved:

Once when I was young – maybe more than once – when I was extremely disrespectful to my mother, my father angrily called me “garbage” in our native Hokkien dialect. It worked really well. I felt terrible and deeply ashamed of what I had done. But it didn’t damage my self-esteem or anything like that. I knew exactly how highly he thought of me. I didn’t actually think I was worthless or feel like a piece of garbage. (ll. 54-59)

Chua also believes that children owe everything to their parents and that they should behave accordingly, while parents believe that they know what is best for their offspring.  

When it comes to Amy Chua’s values mentioned in the article, we must also mention her belief that parents are responsible for their children’s academic success, which ultimately reflects the way the children were raised:

Chinese mothers said that they believe their children can be “the best” students, that “academic achievement reflects successful parenting”...

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Possible consequences

When discussing the possible consequences of adopting these values and methods, think about the society in which they are adopted. On the one hand, the society of countries such as China, Japan, or South Korea encourages these types of actions, so in these countries, such methods will be considered normal. On the other hand, adopting Chua’s methods in a Western country would certainly prove problematic.

Western parents will probably be criticized by other parents, and Chua’s methods of parenting will most likely be considered borderline abusive. Children will probably resist these methods and rebel against their parents, and the rest of the Western society will probably turn against the tough parents, too.

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