Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Diego L. Colon earned his Ph.D. from New York University. He was a director of the College Discovery Program of Bilingual Studies and professor at Kingsborough Community College of CUNY for over twenty-five years. He is currently completing research in achievement values in Puerto Rico, New York City, and Florida."

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Puerto Ricans

iUniverse, Inc.

Contents

Introduction...................................................xiiiChapter I The Study...........................................1Definition of Terms............................................3Operational Definitions........................................3Conceptual Definitions.........................................4Statement of the Problem.......................................4Subproblems....................................................8Hypotheses.....................................................8Delimitations..................................................9Limitations of the Study.......................................10Chapter II Achievement Potential..............................11McClelland's Achievement Motivation Theory.....................12Cultural Context of Achievement................................14Chapter III Value Orientations................................23Variations in Value Orientations...............................25Relational Value Orientation...................................28Value-Orientation Profile......................................29American Value-Orientation Profile.............................30Hispanic Value-Orientation Profile.............................33Puerto Rican Value-Orientation Profile.........................34Acculturation of Immigrant Groups..............................37Summary........................................................40Chapter IV Methodology........................................43The Participants...............................................43Research Instruments...........................................45The Kluckhohn Value-Orientation Schedule.......................45The California Psychological Inventory.........................47Data Collection................................................48Statistical Analysis...........................................48Hypothesis 1...................................................49Hypothesis 2...................................................49Hypothesis 3...................................................50Chapter V Results.............................................51Preliminary Analysis...........................................51Hypothesis Testing.............................................54Hypothesis 1...................................................54Hypothesis 2...................................................56Hypothesis 3...................................................58Supplementary Analysis.........................................62Chapter VI Recommendations....................................67Summary of the Study...........................................67Discussion of the Findings.....................................69Implications of the Findings...................................73Recommendations................................................75Appendix A Specimen Questionnaire.............................79References.....................................................87

Chapter One

This type of study was of particular need, given the uniqueness of the Puerto Rican immigration as compared to other immigrant groups. Some of the factors that make this group different have been pointed out by Fitzpatrick, Anselmo, and Lopez: (1) the first group to come in large numbers from a different cultural and linguistic background (Spanish speaking) who were, nevertheless, citizens of the United States; (2) the first airborne migration to the United States; (3) the first massive immigration of a group with widespread intermarriage across racial lines; and (4) the first group of Catholic immigrants unaccompanied by their own clergy.

In light of the uniqueness of this immigrant group and these differentiating factors and given the large numbers of individuals of second-generation Puerto Rican background residing in the United States, it is plausible, therefore, in cultural contact situations such as those inherent in the United States and Puerto Rico, that differences between the relational value orientations of mainlander and islander Puerto Ricans may be viewed as indicators of the modality in which their achievement potential is actualized. Although under Kluckhohn's model, Wurzel (1979) and Sjostrom (1983) investigated Puerto Ricans' value orientations and other variables, no empirical study had been conducted that examines value orientations and mode of achievement potential for mainland Puerto Ricans with their island Puerto Rican peers, ascertaining the relationship of the relational value orientations and mode of achievement potential for both groups. The need for such a study is emphasized by Vazquez (1979) when he shows that the process of formal socialization that is transmitted to Puerto Rican students is plagued with value contradictions at two levels: (a) in the instrumental-rational content of those value orientations conceived as basic to social change and (b) in the degree of consistency between corresponding value orientations. Moreover, Gray (1975) highly recommends research in the area of cultural and sex differences in achievement motivation when she states that future investigations are needed to determine whether the differences in mode of achievement revealed in her study might also hold for students in other cultural groups and different age groups. Further recommendations are to study differences in mode of achievement in other countries, such as Mexico and Japan, and compare the results with those for Mexican Americans and Japanese Americans to evaluate the impact of acculturation on mode of achievement.

The basic assumption of this study is that mainland and island schools reinforce a modality to achieve which stresses contrasting achievement values. For example, the value placed on competitive education in United States school seems to contradict the value placed on cooperative and collaborative education in Puerto Rican school. In order to bridge the gap between the school policies and practices of these two different educational systems, in the sense that the school reflects an understanding and acceptance of differences in the values underlying achievement potential, it was imperative to undertake empirical exploration of the relational value orientations and achievement mode differences of islander and mainlander Puerto Rican college students. Knowledge about these two areas facilitate an understanding of the relational value orientations and achievement potential the children bring into the school and any changes undergone as a result of the school's socializing function. The work of educators in multicultural settings of the United States as well as in Puerto Rico, especially in the areas of curriculum and instruction, may be enhanced by a comprehension of the relational value orientations and preferred mode of achievement potential prevalent among multicultural learners in their classes. Data regarding the relationship of relational value orientations and mode of achievement potential may be of importance in ascertaining whether this relationship is in fact a behavior pattern, culturally and or situationally prescribed. Youngsters of Puerto Rican parentage reared on the mainland, as well as native Puerto Rican youngsters of the same age group and comparable socioeconomic background reared on the island, may thus have learned different modes of achievement potential and different relational value orientations.

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