Comments on: Asian American Academic Pressure

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 20:36:44 +0000

Thanks Eugene; I agree, this blog can definitely be the place for venting such frustrations. It’s a very important topic. Perhaps we should delve into it further here, in another post. Hmm.

By: Eugene

Eugene — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 16:07:12 +0000

This could be the blog for venting.

I think Asian Americans have a higher disproportionate rate of suicide among 18-24 year olds. Part of it is immigrant culture. You know, parents who moved here in hopes of a better life of their children emphasize the importance of doing well in school. (I could go into a whole discussion about the myth of meritocracy in the United States, but that would be a serious digression.) Part of it is the ethnic background. There is a Chinese idiom that roughly translates as: “Those who can bear the bitterness of life will achieve greater success than those who cannot.” Another part of it, in my opinion, is the stigma associated with seeking out mental health support within the Asian community. I’m talking about the “therapy is for white people” belief.

Solutions? Personally, I don’t think we need any more media coverage (see recent suicides at MIT and Stanford). We need support from within the community. We need to say to our friends, our children, our parents, that it is okay to seek help; depression is normal and you are not along. Go and talk about your pressures. It is okay to be Asian and voice your concerns.

By: David

David — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 00:17:33 +0000

I think there should be a website, a blog where Asian Americans can vent about their pressures. I think that we keep too much in our minds — very unhealthy.

By: tsibugan

tsibugan — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 09:59:44 +0000

In addition to the huge amount of pressure that a lot of Asian kids might feel to perform well in school, there simply aren’t enough resources to help them cope with it. An example being the Jennifer Tse case. I actually go to UC Davis and remember Jennifer Tse being in a few of my science classes. It was pretty tragic on campus, and I remember there being a very limited response to it. So until this kind of thing gets any media coverage, I don’t think anything’s going to be done about it.

By: Akrypti

Akrypti — Thu, 31 May 2007 20:00:56 +0000

A solid post by Mike. What a fantastic topic you’ve presented for all of us to discuss over coffee among friends. Well done.

By: jozjozjoz

jozjozjoz — Thu, 31 May 2007 17:48:08 +0000

I hadn’t seen Aric Chen’s article… very interesting.

I agree… globalization is going to affect people all over the world in ways we can’t even imagine yet.