在美出生台裔小孩認同的探索性研究 - 政大學術集成

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(1)國立政治大學亞太研究英語碩士學位學程 International Master’s Program in Asia-Pacific Studies College of Social Sciences National Chengchi University 碩士論文 Master’s Thesis. 立. 政治大. ‧ 國. 學. ‧. 在美出生台裔小孩認同的探索性研究 Identification of Unanchored Anchor Babies: An Exploratory Study in Taiwan. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. a. v. i l C Nicole Kozlowski Student: n h n g c h i U Chen Advisor:eKuang-Hui. 中華民國 102 年 7 月 July 2013.

(2) 在美出生台裔小孩認同的探索性研究 Identification of Unanchored Anchor Babies: An Exploratory Study in Taiwan 研究生：李蘊曦指導教授: 陳光輝. 立. Student: Nicole Kozlowski Advisor: Kuang-Hui Chen. 國立政治大學治政大. 學. ‧ 國. 亞太研究英語碩士學位學程碩士論文. ‧. Nat. io. sit. y. A Thesis. n. al. er. Submitted to the International Master’s Program in Asia-Pacific. Ch. e nStudies gchi. i n U. v. National Chengchi University In partial fulfillment of the Requirement For the degree of Master in Taiwan Studies. 中華民國 102 年 7 月 July 2013.

(3) Acknowledgements Research is a result of group effort, and this thesis would not have been possible if it were not for the efforts of many. Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to my thesis advisor, Professor Kuang-Hui Chen of National Chung Cheng University, for his help and support. Thank you for the many weekend trips up to Taipei as well as making sure there was always time to arrange a meeting between your other meetings. Secondly, I would like to thank the rest of my thesis committee, Professors Ching-Hsin Yu of National Chengchi University, and Chiung Chu Lin of Soochow University. This thesis would have been. 治政大 a mere idea, in addition to supporting me since the very beginning when this thesis was 立 introducing me to Professor Chen. Thank you all for your support. incomplete without their critiques and suggestions. Special regards to Professor Yu for. ‧ 國. 學. I would also like to extend a heart-filled thanks to all the participants— my thesis. ‧. would not exist if it were not their cooperation. To each one of them, thank you, thank you and thank you. Thank you for taking time of your busy schedules. Thank you for having the. Nat. sit. y. patience to deal with what may have felt like an endless amount of questions. Thank you for. io. er. supporting this graduate student’s hopes and wishes in completing a thesis on a topic that academia has yet to research. I would especially like to thank the participant that was the. n. al. i n U. v. inspiration for this research and how well his family has treated me during my stay in Taiwan.. Ch. engchi. A big thank you to all those at the IMAS program, thank you to all the professors I have had the graces to encounter, and to all my peers who have provided me with two wonderful years of support and laughter. It has been a blessing to have met you all, and I hope we have the chance to meet again.. Lastly I would like to thank my mom, family, and friends. Life would not be as sweet without them. Thank you to all that listened to my problems, provided insight, and expressed interest in this thesis.. i.

(4) Abstract In Taiwan there is the preconception that being an American is and can be a wonderful thing. The importance that is stressed on learning English, the boom of English language cram schools, bilingual education and educational curriculum, the notion that studying at an American university will provide a surge in opportunities are some of the examples that perpetuates this concept. With the idea that all these things will make life better, it is not surprising to. 政治大. know that there are many children who are born in the United States and then. 立. raised in Taiwan. What identity has permeated the lives of these children who. ‧ 國. 學. were born in the United States and have kept their American passports in addition to their Taiwanese passports? Through factors such as place of. ‧. residence, educational background, and differences in life experiences we can. y. Nat. come further to determine how and what identity these children associate with.. sit. Many of these dual citizens that have earned their American citizenship. er. io. by being born in the United States, but are psychologically attached to the. n. a lprimary/current citizenship.i vThrough qualitative data country that may not their C. n. gathered in personal interviewshofeseven h i U participants, we can n g canonymous. further find indicators of how and why an individual has developed a certain identity regardless of the identity they technically have. .. Keywords: Anchor Baby, Birthright Citizenship, Dual Citizenship, Identity, Taiwan, United States.

(5) TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………...i Abstract…………………………………………………………………...………..ii Tables and Figures………………………………………………………………….iv CHAPTER 1: Introduction 1.1 Motivation and Significance ………………………………………………1 1.2 Research Questions………………………………………………………...3 CHAPTER 2: Literature Review 2.1 Defining and Redefining the “Anchor Baby”……………………………...4 2.2 Possible Factors for Foreign-Born Boom……………………………….…6 2.3 Figure 1: Identity Changes in Taiwan 1992-2012………………………….9. 政治大. CHAPTER 3: Research Method 3.1 Participants and Categorization…………………………………………....10. 立. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. CHAPTER 4: Participant Case Studies 4.1 Postgraduate Cases 4.1.1 Case A: 31 year-old male…………………………………………….13 4.1.2 Case B: 26 year-old female…………………………………………..16 4.2 Collegiate Cases 4.2.1 Case C: 24 year-old male…………………………………………….19 4.2.2 Case D: 22 year-old female…………………………………………..22 4.3Adolescent Case. sit. y. Nat. n. al. er. io. 4.3.1 Case E: 16 year-old female…………………………………………...25 4.4 Pre-Adolescent Case 4.4.1 Case F: 8 and 6 year-old sisters.………………………………….…..27 4.5 Control Case 4.5.1 Case G: 36 year-old male…………………………………………….30. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. CHAPTER 5: Analysis 5.1 Part One: Residency………………………………………………………..33 5.2 Part Two: Education………………………………………………………..37 5.2.2 Figure 2: Parents’ Education…………………………………………37 5.3 Part Three: Life Experiences.……...…………………………….………....42 5.3.1 Life Experiences with the United States……………………………..43 5.3.2 Life Experiences with Taiwan………………………………………..47 5.4 Success: Being an “American?”…………………………………………....49 CHAPTER 6: Conclusion………………………………………………………….52 References………………………………………………...……………………......55 Appendix A: Participant Questionnaire……………………………………………57.

(6) TABLES AND FIGURES FIGURES 1. Identity Changes in Taiwan 1992-2012………………………………...9 2. Parents’ Education……………………………………………………...37. TABLES 1. Participant Overview…………………………………………………….12 2. Participants and Earliest Childhood Memories………………………….33 3. Education Overview……………………………………………………..38 4. Positive Experiences with the U.S……………………………………….43 5. Negative Experiences with the U.S……………………………………...44 6. Positive Experiences with Taiwan……………………………………….47 7. Negative Experiences with Taiwan………………………………………48 8. Participant Anticipated Future Residency……………………………….52. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v.

(7) Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Motivation and Significance In Taiwan there is an immense pressure to start learning English at a very early age. Learning English begins at an elementary school level in most public schools here in Taiwan and where that education is not enough, these same children are then enrolled in privately owned afterschool programs, also known as cram schools, where they do exactly just that: cram information into their delicate little minds. Lien Luyi experienced this kind of mentality. 政治大 for her dissertation, “ Obtaining Dual Citizenship for Their Babies: The Experience of 立 Taiwanese Women Giving Birth in the United States.” She states that there was a type of. when interviewing mothers who planned on giving birth to their children in the United States. ‧ 國. 學. xenomania, where Western culture and society is favored (2006:34) over the local culture and society. This would also help explain why so many Taiwanese go abroad after university. ‧. and pursue higher education in Western countries.. With the emphasis on the importance of English proficiency in Taiwan, as well as the. Nat. sit. y. Taiwanese impression that American university education has a je ne sais quoi that. io. er. indubitably makes it better than Taiwanese universities, it is not surprising to see a raise in interest in international education facilities. Furthermore, to be a part of the elite membership. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. of private international educational institutions such as Taipei American School, offers. engchi. Taiwanese a higher status in society. To have a child already born and automatically have an American citizenship can not only boost the status of the family, but also provide alternate educational benefits and opportunities that being born in Taiwan may not present to said child. The generation that is being examined in this thesis is a younger generation, those who are in their early thirties or younger. In Taiwan many children have been sent abroad for a different educational experience. There are bilingual schools, such as Kang Chao Bilingual School in New Taipei City, that prepare their students for life abroad after high school. There are the Taiwanese youths who have been sent abroad for a year or two to experience and. 1.

(8) usually complete school at an American high school. Then, there are the ones whose identity is in question: the dual citizen who may or may not have a dual identity. It is through this generation of children who had a part of their fates planned by their parents by a purposeful birth in the U.S.A. and those parents kept the citizenship of a country of a child who has yet to establish his/her identity. In this thesis’s participants, this is quite obvious as the majority of these children were born at the very end of their parents’ stay in the United States. Although these children have the “anchor” of being American, the families did not have any intentions of immigrating over permanently to the U.S. themselves, nor do many of the children plan on immigrating either. The motivation behind this qualitative research is that these technical Americans are. 政治大 thesis refers to the children who were born abroad, but did not necessarily grow up in their 立. virtually the non-American Americans. Therefore, the redefinition of “anchor babies” in this. country of birth, and are essentially unanchored anchor babies. That is to say, the child is an. ‧ 國. 學. anchor to the United States, but there are not many cases in which this “anchor” will be used for immigration purposes.. ‧. Through different one-on-one interviews, the purpose of this thesis is to reveal the deeper layers, the intricacies of what it means to be a dual citizen as well as Taiwanese, and. y. Nat. sit. what different influences may influence and result in different identity factors within a. al. er. io. person. Research done on identity for this specific situation is lacking, therefore it would be. n. an honor to conduct research in order to further explain the occurrence of anchor babies. Ch. growing up and living in Taiwan.. engchi. i n U. v. Anchor babies, birth tourism, and other related fields are all prevalent to Taiwanese culture today. However, the significance of this thesis is to add to the lack of academia, research, and overall information deficiency that is relevant to this subject. Anchor babies are not just a part of Taiwanese culture, but also exist throughout different countries Asia. The concept of going one step further and examining the identity of these children is novel in this field. This concept is not new in Taiwan, however the lack of research of about this mix of identities is quite upsetting. Without research, this group of mixed identification has already expanded to several generations; there are different types of unanchored anchor baby whom have dual citizenship but chose one identity over another..

(9) It is important to investigate and research how this generation of children who blend in and can only be distinguished as American by their American passports, what identity they associate with. Through their ties they can establish what differences in growing up and through adolescence has on molding an individual’s identity. It will also help to define the conception of Taiwan-U.S. relations and how Taiwanese view the importance of American citizenship in relation to their own.. 1.2 Research Questions: The objectives of this qualitative study is to further investigate what molds an identity. 政治大. and/or national loyalties within a person who has been born in the United States, but raised in Taiwan. These questions, which will be key components in analysis, are:. 立. 1. How important is location and/or changes in location throughout one’ life in relation. ‧ 國. 學. to defining an individual’s relationship to a country?. 2. In contrast, how important is educational and changes in educational institutions in relation to creating loyalties to a particular country?. ‧. 3. How direct is the influence of the family and family opinion in relation to the. y. Nat. individual?. io. sit. 4. Ultimately, by analyzing the response to these questions, to what culture or nation do. al. er. these individuals feel most closely tied to? What occurrences and/or patterns exist. n. iv n C These points will be addressed through h enoninvasive i U in interviews with selected n g c hquestions that changes how they perceive their ties with Taiwan versus the United States?. participants. Through several series of interviews with different participants of various backgrounds, the questions will become more specific as each person has different experiences that could be further investigated by tailoring the research questions..

(10) Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1 Defining and Redefining “Anchor Baby” In Taiwan a new unspoken generation of people have arisen, the oldest being in his/her early thirties have prompted a new wave of foreign born “Taiwanese.” I have based the age of this new generation on the change in U.S. foreign policy towards Taiwan in 1979. The idea of being born abroad is quite common in Taiwan, each person has a person they know or is directly related to someone who has been born abroad and kept his or her foreign. 治政 were born in the United States of America, his/her parents 大utilizing the American 立granting the child birthright citizenship, in which anyone born constitution’s 14 amendment citizenship. In this thesis, the interest is specific to the children of Taiwanese descent who th. ‧ 國. 學. within the fifty states of the United States of America qualifies for an automatic American citizenship. The concept of non-citizen parents purposely coming over to give birth to their. ‧. children in the U.S. exploiting the 14th amendment is usually referred to as have given birth to an “anchor baby.” The concept that a child could be an “anchor” developed because it is. Nat. sit. y. often conveyed that these non-citizen parents can pave an easier path in immigrating to the United States. An anchor on a boat is dropped into deep sea to stabilize the boat in a new. io. al. er. location. Through this “anchor” that is their child, the path of becoming a U.S. citizen is. n. iv n C h e nconnotations used within the U.S. does not have positive g c h i Uand often refers to the loophole of faster and easier than other methods of naturalization. However, this term especially when. which illegal immigrants take advantage of to change their status. Although “anchor babies” usually refer to the illegal status of parents within the United States, the Taiwanese situation strays from the typical anchor baby scenario. What is interesting about the differences of a typical “anchor baby” and those that are from Taiwan is that many of these children are not anchored in the United States. Instead, the parents give birth to an American born baby, and within the child’s early years, return back to the motherland, which in this case is Taiwan. These children, who keep the American citizenship along with their Taiwanese citizenship, often do not have memories of their birth country. However, if the child was allowed more time in the United States, or in an international atmosphere, parallel growth of dual identities can be quite possible. However, with the.

(11) majority of these cases, they will have different life experiences in regards to where they are living, and the child is more likely choose one ethnicity over the other. In this thesis, the term of “anchor baby” will be redefined instead refer to the children who were born abroad, but did not necessarily grow up in their country of birth. In Taiwan, this is a common phenomenon, and many people know of or are a part of this specific situation. However, when a person of dual citizenship enters the country, they are free to use whichever passport they would like to use. Therefore, instead of being documented as a dual citizen, they are documented merely by which identity they would like to present at the time. Therefore, if they use alternate documents, they will be listed only as a visitor, or only as a national citizen. The choice of which identity they use is not specified when looking at raw. 政治大 When applying for a visa to the U.S. there are also no questions pertaining to 立. data of percentages of immigrants/visitors into the country.. pregnancy status, therefore when a women enters the U.S. she does not need to specify if her. ‧ 國. 學. stay would include the birth of her child. Lien Luyi’s dissertation includes interviews with mothers who have traveled over when pregnant and how they try to conceal their pregnancy. ‧. to past through customs more easily (2006:34). The market directed to those that can afford it is called Birth Tourism. Some are catered especially to Taiwanese women, coaching them on. y. Nat. sit. how to enter the U.S. without many difficulties, as well as having traditional Taiwanese style. al. er. io. postpartum care that mimics the traditional postpartum care available in Taiwan. However,. n. not all mothers have traveled over to the United States for the sole purpose of giving birth.. Ch. i n U. v. Some of these anchor babies are the byproduct of students who come to the United States in. engchi. pursuit of higher education, such as a doctorate. Although there is a market for those who merely come over to give birth to an American child, other anchor babies are not a part of this case. In regards to this thesis, the interviewed participants were later found out to not have been a part of the birth tourism market. Instead the mothers of the participants have had other situation all but with the same outcome: American born babies. In Asia, academic success can also be measured by how much education you have achieved abroad. To increase one’s desirability and status, one may go abroad to complete higher education. Many professors here in Taiwan have received higher education in the United States and therefore have a competitive edge when coming back to Taiwan’s the job market. It is not an uncommon occurrence that Taiwanese professors have received a.

(12) doctorate from a country outside of Taiwan, and that his or her degree usually derive from an English speaking country such as the United States. In order to receive a PhD from the United States, one must put in a lot of time and effort into pursuing their education. Therefore, a portion of these anchor babies in Taiwan are the result of academics around their early thirties deciding to have children and then bringing these children back with them when the parents have finished their educational journey abroad. These children usually have a dual citizenship due to the international status that their parents have had. However, many children enter the respective countries using their respective passports, therefore there are no percentages relating to the immigration patterns of dual citizenship children. There are merely percentages that combine all foreign passports, versus. 政治大 anchor baby phenomenon is still technically a mystery. They are legitimate citizens of both 立. combing all national passports. The actual percentage of children that qualify under this new. countries, and they have the freedom to select the passport they wish to use upon entry in. ‧ 國. 學. either country. Finding the patterns, or even finding percentages of anchor babies in Taiwan, is something that does not show in normal immigration records. Therefore this thesis will not. ‧. conduct or include percentages relating to the amount of anchor babies in from the United States in Taiwan.. sit. y. Nat. io. al. er. 2.2 Possible Factors for Foreign-Born Boom. n. What is the cause for the boom in foreign-born Taiwanese births, to the point where it. Ch. i n U. v. has become a common occurrence in Taiwanese life and culture? One of the possible factors. engchi. is the change in U.S. foreign policy during the late 70s, early 80s. “The Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, which redefined U.S. policy towards Taiwan in the wake of normalizations of relations with the PRC, stipulated that the island would receive an independent per country limit of 20,000 per year (Waters & Marrow 2007:360). Although this policy did not go into effect until 1982, it allowed Taiwan a new wave of migrants to the U.S. it “reduced pressure on applications and allowed chain migration of relatives” (Walter & Marrow 2007:360). In addition to this change, “the Taiwanese government liberalized its emigration policy in 1980, which allowed ordinary citizens to travel freely” (Walter & Marrow 2007:360). Not only were there a larger variety of people from different social statuses travelling, but many of them were also U.S. bound. Rather than just having educated professionals enter academia or.

(13) the technological workforce, it also permitted students and working class families to enter the United States as well (Walter & Marrow 2007:360). This further allowed newer generations of immigrant children, as students are young and many decide that after studying that they would like to settle down in the United States rather to return to their homeland. Due to earlier migration patterns of Taiwanese professionals, rather than being limited to coastal areas that welcome working-class families, they created their own ethnic enclaves where the job market lead them: Like earlier Chinese immigrants, those from Taiwan and Hong Kong have settled predominantly on the two coasts, with nearly half living in California because of the superior transportation links to Asia. […]. 政治大 Midwest and the South, forming sizable communities in Texas and Illinois. 立 Substantial numbers of Taiwanese professionals have also settled in the. (Waters & Marrow 2007:362). ‧ 國. 學. These sizable communities are built around technology systems and their companies. Although the coastal regions remain friendlier and more welcoming for Chinese immigrants. ‧. due to previously established Chinese communities, many of the Taiwanese students who came to the U.S. were often were science or engineering majors (Waters & Marrow. y. Nat. sit. 2007:363). Later, after graduating, these young students would look for jobs in the places. al. er. io. that would apply their academic strengths, i.e. technologically advanced areas of Texas, and. n. then settle there. Opportunities flourished in the U.S. and with it the technologically related. Ch. i n U. v. students who came to study in the U.S. had the opportunity to start their careers and settle. engchi. down rather than leaving. This new wave of advanced academic professional can also be referred to as a “brain drain” of Taiwan. However, not all students made the decision to settle down in the United States and instead returned to Taiwan. Another factor is Taiwan’s political stance, in the 1980s, Taiwan had not yet been democratized, and the feelings between Taiwan and Mainland China are not one of close friends. With the ever-existing threat of China looming over the small island, Taiwanese people have felt this political turbulence directly, and this may have influenced the investment of allowing their child to be a dual citizen with another country that has more political stability..

(14) However, what is more important and applicable to this research is not the new generations of ABC/ABT (American Born Chinese or American Born Taiwanese), but the identity of the children whose parents go back while the children are young. There are instances of children who are born in the United States and at a young age, around or before early primary school, the children then taken back into their parents’ country. “Taiwanese American families are now engaging in transnational lifestyles” (Waters & Marrow 2007:368). However, can a transnational lifestyle be applied to the situation of children who may be partially educated in two different nations due to their dual citizenship? Birth tourism, which markets to mothers who come to the United States merely to give birth to their child, what is their motive? Lien Luyi’s 2006 dissertation observes and. 政治大 research done behind the mother’s point of view, the identity of the child is who is raised 立 further analyzes the mother’s perspective in this phenomenon. Although there has been. with a foreign passport, while he/she grows up in a completely Taiwanese environment, has. ‧ 國. 學. yet to be explored. Depending the parents, the child may attend public school with other local Taiwanese children, or they have the option of enrolling in a private international school such. ‧. as Taipei American School, where one of the requisites is the possession of a foreign passport. Whichever educational track is chosen, if the child continues on to go to. y. Nat. sit. school/university in the U.S., the fact that the child would not have to take English as a. al. er. io. second language proficiency tests. This will help the transition of getting admitted to an. n. American university a lot smoother, rather than entering college as a complete foreigner with more requisites to fulfill.. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. What is the result, then, with a citizenship of another country, but growing up in their parents’ country? Many boys who have been born in the U.S. in the 1980s end up returning to the U.S. before they are 18, is their planned American birth a way to avoid military consignment? When the children return to the U.S., the country they first belonged to, where exactly does this generation of children fit socially and culturally? In academia there has been research on what it means to be Taiwanese and concept of Taiwanese identity, several papers published through the Issues & Studies periodical utilizes survey data that has been collected by the Election Study Center at National Chengchi University about Taiwan’s evolving identity changes (See Figure 1) from Chinese to Taiwanese. However, what.

(15) research has been conducted to find out the results of the trends in identity in relation to these unanchored anchor babies? Are they only American on paper? \. 2.3 Figure 1: Identity Changes in Taiwan 1992-2012. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Source: Election Study Center, National Chengchi University http://esc.nccu.edu.tw/english/modules/tinyd2/content/TaiwanChineseID.htm.

(16) Chapter 3: Research Method 3.1 Participants and Categorization There are seven groups of participants in this research. They will be referenced to by an alias and separated by age group. Each person will be contacted and asked a short series of questions (Appendix A), and from these questions different point of interest could be built upon and then new questions will be proposed to further fit the individual experiences. Due to the nature of the participants, some where available for one-on-one interviews, others are not currently located in Taiwan and therefore had either phone interviews or had the. 政治大. questions presented to them through a series of emails.. This is a qualitative study built upon personal interviews. There will be seven. 立. different individuals interviewed. Cases A, B, F, and G are all located in Taipei City and. ‧ 國. 學. therefore were available to meet up for a personal one-on-one interview. Cases C and D are currently living in the U.S. so I had a phone interview Case C and Case D was through a series of emails. Case E was also interviewed through a series of emails due to the fact that. ‧. she was not quite a free to meet up for an interview.. y. Nat. These cases are then split into three different age categories: postgraduate, collegiate,. sit. and pre-adolescent. Although it is common to know someone who was born in the United. al. er. io. States, it is not the easiest to find participants where were willing to be interviewed. Some. n. iv n C with a graduate student. However, through exposure h e nmuch i U and friends of friends, there were h c g enough participants who were willing to be interviewed about their lives. Due the personal potential participants were contacted, but were not willing to talk about their personal lives. nature of these interviews, each participant will keep their anonymity by having their name changed to “Case” and an assigned alphabetical letter. A summary of these interviewees can be seen in Table 1. The first age category of post-graduate consists of two individuals who have already graduated from university. Case A is a 31 year-old man, currently living in Taipei with his wife. He has been born in the US, completed his college education in Taiwan, went to an American university for a postgraduate degree and currently works in the technology field. Case B is a 25 year-old woman currently living in Taipei. She gradated from Taipei American School and went to university in the United States..

(17) The second category, collegiate, consists of those who are currently in university or have not yet graduated from university. Case C is a 24 year-old man, currently living in California. He was educated in Taiwan, but left to complete high school in Los Angles. He has been enrolled, but has not yet graduated from community college. Case D is a 22 yearold woman who is currently getting her degree from an American university. She was educated in Taiwan until high school, and is currently working on her four-year degree at University of Washington-Seattle. The third category, adolescent, is a high school student at a private bilingual school. Although she is only a junior in high school, she is a part of the OP (Overseas Program) class offered at her school that is prepares their students for university abroad.. 政治大 same family, both of which are currently enrolled in a Taiwanese elementary school. They 立. The last category of pre-adolescent refers to Case F, consisting of siblings from the. will be interviewed with their parents, together, as the children have not yet reached the stage. ‧ 國. 學. of solid identification.. As with each experiment there is a controlled factor, a case of which in this case. ‧. would be comparing the background of a typical immigrant household with children who were born and raised in the United States for a majority of their childhood. The idea of. y. Nat. sit. having a control case to compare to the rest of the participants the difference feeling. al. er. io. associated with an American identity, even though the control case has split his time between. n. the United States and Taiwan. Case G was born and raised in the United States, but his. Ch. i n U. v. family move to Taiwan where he completed high school at an international American school. engchi. and then went back to the U.S. to complete university. He is currently living in Taiwan and has started a musical career here. As each story is their own, each case will have their own chapter..

(18) 3.2 Table 1 - Participant Overview. Gender. Age. Place of Birth. Current Location. Work Status. Case A. Male. 31. NJ, USA. Taipei, Taiwan. Parents’ Company. Case B. Female. 26. CA, USA. 立. Taipei, Taiwan 政治大. Unemployed. 24. WA, USA. Los Angeles, CA. Unemployed/ School Hiatus. Case D. Female. 22. NY, USA. Seattle, Washington. College Student. Case E. Female. WI, USA. Taipei, Taiwan. Nat. io. al. er. 16. sit. y. ‧. ‧ 國. Male. 學. Case C. Female (Sisters). 8/6. Case G. Male. 36. WA, USA. n. Case F. iv n C CA,hUSA Taiwan e n g cChiayi, hi U. (Control). Taipei, Taiwan. High School Student. Elementary/ Kindergarten. Music Producer.

(19) 4.1 Postgraduate Cases 4.1.1 - Case A: 31 year-old male Current Location: Taipei Relationship: Met him through an exposition held in Taipei during my internship with American Institute in Taiwan. Case A, is the eldest subject, an only child, and family has relatives that immigrated over to the United States. Although he currently holds an American passport, and an Alien Resident Card (ARC), he introduces himself as Taiwanese. He admits that he was born in New Jersey, but does not feel any relation to that place other than it being where his aunt is from. Some relatives have immigrated over to the United States, and his mother stayed with. 治政大 months old, Case A was taken back to his mother’s homeland. 立 The second time he would return to the United States, the country of citizenship that them for a short period of time. However, at an age where he has no memories, around six. ‧ 國. 學. he currently holds, was only for a short visit when he was three years old. However, the memories he has of his childhood are firmly nestled into those of the typical Taiwanese. ‧. youth. He remembers the small shop near school and how the could buy snacks and baseballs cards. Although he did enroll in cram school, his elementary years were more relaxed with. Nat. sit. y. some television before dinner.. io. er. All of his school years were spent in Taipei City, growing up and going to school close to where he lived. Although he has always known that he was born American, he did. n. al. i n U. v. not flaunt it. In middle school, those who knew he had an American citizen often correlated. Ch. engchi. that with English language skills, and since Case A was raised in Taiwan, his English skills were lacking, just as those of his peers. However, as a child there was that pressure to have better English merely based on the fact that he held citizenship there. Through this experience, Case A, would not openly express his alternative citizenship, although sometimes during high school it would be mentioned since he did not have to complete military service. In Taiwan, for young men approaching the end of high school, the discussion of when to complete military service (whether before or after pursuing higher education) is often a topic of debate. Although Case A never grew up with an American background, his parents were prime candidates for immigration. Both parents were a part of the wave of scholars that went.

(20) to pursue higher education in the United States, staying there for about six to eight years. However, after his birth, the whole family moved back to Taiwan and has only seen the U.S. as a destination for summer vacations. Case A recalls the summers he spent with his aunt, and the obstacles he encountered as a teenager who was in a country where he could not communicate very well. Although his parents have received their higher education in the U.S. they did not pressure their son to go and study in the states. In the end, Case A went through the entire Taiwan education system, and only later did he go on to pursue a Master’s degree in the United States. While in the United States, getting a Master’s in Human Resources, he was considered a normal student due to this passport, but he couldn’t help but to think that he felt. 政治大 events to help international students feel more at ease, but because he came as an American, 立 more like an international student. Universities often have special programs and welcoming. he went unnoticed. It wasn’t until he went looking for the international community did he. ‧ 國. 學. find the comfort of international community who he could relate to more. In the American atmosphere of education, he has learned that American education is. ‧. more about passion, the journey to getting the answer, not necessarily getting the right answer in the end. Taiwanese education has a reputation of getting the right answer, even if. y. Nat. sit. the journey is incorrect. Case A pointed to the phrase “填鴨式教學法” the concept of force-. al. er. io. feeding, or cramming method of teaching, that has negative connotations. However, since. v. n. Case A only pursued a higher education in the United States at the age of 23, he realizes the. Ch. i n U. differences, but he also knows himself— he would have never have left behind his life in. engchi. Taiwan in exchange for the educational opportunities that were in the U.S at the age of 18. He currently lives in Taipei with an Alien Resident Card provided through his parents’ company. Since he is guaranteed this visa through the company there is nothing to lose, nor any reason to go back to the U.S. His lives with his wife in the same neighborhood he grew up in, although not with his parents. His life here is stable, but he does encounter problems when it comes to inheriting real estate from his parents. In Taiwan the importance of real estate is essential as it determines factors as where you live, which district you can vote in, as well as the fact that Taipei City is prime real estate. Due to the fact that he is a “foreigner” on paper, the changing of the household land to his name would encounter many problems, as.

(21) well as incur extra taxes. This is one of the larger reasons why Case A has contemplated giving up his American status and reclaiming his Taiwanese identity. Case A will never introduce himself as anything but Taiwanese. He grew up in Taiwan, and does not see himself any different from any other local Taiwanese except for that fact that on paper he is technically American. His parents used the opportunity, and kept him as an American, however, Case A does not feel there is anything American about him. As the only participant who is married, he feels that there is no other place for him than Taiwan. He would not want his future children to encounter the communication issues that he had as an adolescent, and he wants to have children in a place and society he understands and knows best: Taiwan.. 政治大 identity is completely attached to another country. He is an unattached anchor baby, having 立 Case A is the prime example of how a person can be American on paper, but their. thought about the future and how he needs nothing to do with the United States. He has dual. ‧ 國. 學. citizenship, but he has not used his citizenship in order to stay exempt from military service. He will keep using the Alien Resident Certificate that his parents’ company will always. ‧. provide in order to keep his lifestyle as Taiwanese as possible.. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v.

(22) 4.1.2 Case B: 26 year-old female Current Location: Taipei Relationship: Met at a mutual friend’s birthday party. Case B is a bubbly, cute girl that is sweet and always has a smile on her face. Running into my group of (foreign) friends at the same restaurant she would introduce herself as being from California. But when exactly was the last time she lived there? She can remember clearly as if it was yesterday— June 20th, 1992, twenty-one years ago. Why did the date stay prevalent? She contributes remembering the day she left the United States for Taiwan because of her childhood friend’s birthday. In 1992, she was merely five years old,. 政治大. but it made such an unforgettable impact on her life.. Her childhood memories are quite mixed, she remembers the suburban lifestyle that. 立. California had to offer: her neighbors, family friends, birthday parties in the back yard, and. ‧ 國. 學. watching the fireworks on the Fourth of July. In a way, the way she thought of her past, the hazy, but happy way she reminisced really showed her love and her happiness as a child.. ‧. Perhaps some of these memories are a bit contrived, as an indirect influence of looking over past photo albums, but the tendency to embellish upon past memories is simply a part of. sit. y. Nat. human nature.. However, her currently life is here, in Taiwan, and has been this way for most of her. io. al. er. life. Although she is currently using her Taiwanese identity to leave and enter Taiwan, this. n. iv n C normal school like any other locals would. h e nDifference g c h i is,Uher Chinese was not up to level, as. was not always the case. In her younger years, when she first moved to Taiwan, she went to a. she was in an English dominant atmosphere for the first five years of her life. However, as. she spent the next five years of her education in local Taiwanese facilities, she also had the same experience as her local peers. She was enrolled in a local kindergarten, put into her neighborhood elementary school, went to a branch of one of Taiwan’s largest English after school programs (cram schools), and had an experience similar to what any local Taiwanese child at the time would have had. The turning moment came was in fifth grade. Perhaps it was that her scores were not as high, or her parents did not care for the atmosphere, but Case B has passed the entrance exam and was to complete middle school and high school in the international school, Taipei American School. Taipei American School, often referred to as TAS, is a private.

(23) international school of which you must hold a foreign passport in order to enroll. Her parents decided that her time would be spent in this school, and upon entry, Case B was ironically placed into an “English as a second language” course program. Eventually by the beginning of high school at TAS, she was placed into the normal courses with offered academic support. In order to maintain status and stay in the international school, during this period Case B only used her American identity and did not start using her Taiwanese identity until after college. As with many international schools, the goal is to have the students study a curriculum similar to that of the country that they plan on attending college. Case B, as with all other TAS students, knew that their end goal of their TAS career leaned towards an acceptation and enrollment at an American university or college. Case B did just that; she. 政治大 College was great for her, and she loved it. Surprisingly enough, as much as she embraces 立 enrolled and finished a four-year college program in an accredited California college.. the American side of herself, she feels quite mixed, and home is not California.. ‧ 國. 學. Home is with her parents, in a popular night market district of Taipei. For her, the thought of staying in the U.S. after finishing college was not even plausible. College in. ‧. California was merely a four-year educational vacation from the place she calls home, Taiwan. Being brought up in an English environment in Taiwan, she admits it is easier to. y. Nat. sit. read, write, and text message in English. However, she usually only reserves English. al. er. io. speaking to other English speakers. Case B loves her hometown of San Matteo, but she is. n. distant enough where it is merely a part of her history, not her future. Currently she is in. Ch. i n U. v. Taiwan and has no future plans to go to the U.S. outside of vacation purposes.. engchi. Case B identifies with both aspects of her identity. She herself admits she feels like she is a mixed identity, akin to that of an American Born Chinese (ABC). However, she has more physical ties to Taiwan. Her parents both pursued higher educational in the United States, and lived there for quite a while, their return was based on the father’s new job. Case B’s mother currently teaches at a well-known university in Taipei. Case B is also happier in Taiwan, not just because her entire family is based here, but because of the medical care that Taiwan provides. Case B suffers from a specific extreme acid-reflux disorder and needs to be under lots of care. In the United States, the medical care she would need would not be provided, and even if she had health insurance back in the States, it would cost more than she could pay for..

(24) Case B is also a part of the “boomerang” generation in youths of today. Commonly referred to as boomerang, these children have left their parents, only to go back to them because they have yet to build a life independent from their own. This can be seen as a part of the poor economic status in the United States. However, this is not a phenomenon in Taiwan, and is seen as part of the culture instead. Taiwanese families are not just the parents and children, but often consist of grandparents as well. The daughter in the household usually lives with the family until she is married, and then she moves into her husband’s household. There are instances where the children of the household move out of the house due to job locations, but this is just a temporary leave. The idea that the family will always live in that house is also why household registration is so important, as in Case A. The household. 政治大 Although she graduated college several years ago, and has held several different jobs 立. registration is usually passed down through the men in the family.. and/or internships in Taiwan, Case B does not see herself going back to the United States. ‧ 國. 學. anytime soon. Her home is in Taipei, not California. Idealistically, she would love her children to have the same privilege of growing up with a dual identity as she has. She would. ‧. love her children to have a part of their childhood in the United States, but leave early enough to also set the foundation for their Chinese reading and writing abilities. Case B feels. y. Nat. al. er. io. Taiwan.. sit. she is equal parts of both cultures, even though she has lived more than half of her life in. n. The drastic differences between Case A and Case B are two different worlds.. Ch. i n U. v. Whereas Case A had a negative feeling, an unwanted stress about his English capabilities and. engchi. the summer of miscommunication in the states, Case B had positive feelings towards her experiences in both worlds, even though she admits to her own struggles with both languages. Having a more positive experience with the United States allows Case B to feel like she can still identify more with the United States and what it means to be an American than Case A will ever feel..

(25) 4.2 Collegiate Cases 4.2.1 Case C: 24 year-old male Current Location: Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. Relationship: Met through mutual friends while he was on holiday in Taiwan. Case C was born in Seattle, Washington, one November evening. Although he has no memories of where he was born, Case C’s older brother remembers vividly the great time he had in Seattle, thinking that every single family has their own park (or what we would call, a backyard). Case C was not even a year old when he was taken back to Taiwan. Although Case C’s mother did not use birth tourism, she did stay with a relative while in the United. 政治大. States. Outside of this one relative, the family has no other connections to the United States. Case C is the beginning of my interest in this mixed identification studies.. 立. Case C is wildly charismatic and can light up a room in an instant with his presence.. ‧ 國. 學. He has a million friends here in Taipei, and whenever he is back here, he is busy every single hour of the day seeing friends, and occasionally family. Case C has been away from Taiwan since he was 16 years old. Calculating the years, he has spent at least five years living in the. ‧. United States. However, this does not mean he relates to anything American at all.. y. Nat. When asked where he’s from, he will always say without fail that he’s Taiwanese,. io. sit. from Taipei. That is who he is, no matter where he is located. However, since high school, he. al. er. has not used his Taiwanese passport. This is because he is still in the age range of which. n. iv n C he will be forced to participate in mandatory enlistment. h e n garmy chi U. military consignment is required. If he were to ever enter Taiwan with his Taiwanese identity,. Although Case C’s family still has that one relative in Seattle, the second time that. Case C ever returned to the States was in 2006, and he went to Rowland Heights, Los Angeles. Rowland Heights is known for having a large Asian population, many of which are Taiwanese, to the extent of which it is known as “Little Taipei.” Case C’s mother found a “host family” who runs the business of operating a house where foreign students can live. This host family is Taiwanese, and they open their homes to other high school and/or college age children who come over alone to the United States. If Case C has such a wonderful family and life here in Taiwan, why would he ever leave? Case C went to his local elementary and middle school, and tested into an Arts Vocational high school. However, as with all things in Taiwan, the test will mark what.

(26) schools and what level you rank. Case C did not perform as well on the tests, and therefore only made it to the night school portion of this arts-oriented high school. After two years of sleeping during the day, and night classes that felt unfulfilling, his family decided to think of taking the American option. Therefore, in 2006, Case C enrolled in a high school in Los Angeles using his American citizenship, which provided him with the luxury of an alternative education. Unlike Case A and B, who do not have any siblings, Case C is a younger brother, and the only one with American citizenship in the family. His older brother was born and raised in Taiwan, but went traveling with the family due to their father’s translation job placement. However, after Case C was born, the traveling stopped, the parents divorced, and the brothers. 政治大 United States, did not feel that there was anything different about him than any other 立. grew up under the wing of their mother in Taipei. Case C, who was conveniently born in the. Taiwanese child. The fact that he had an American citizenship was found out in elementary. ‧ 國. 學. school, possibly because it was marked on his national identification card. He then went on to his neighborhood’s zoned middle school, where he had all the same friends. However, by. ‧. the time he was in high school, his American citizenship was something that was not mentioned, or even a part of who he was.. y. Nat. sit. Oddly enough, he would rather give up his Taiwanese citizenship. Case C is currently. al. er. io. located in the U.S. and sees the American citizenship as something more useful than the. n. Taiwanese citizenship. A major choice of why he would not choose the Taiwanese. Ch. i n U. v. citizenship over the American citizenship is due to his unwillingness to be a part of the. engchi. mandatory military enlistment. In Taiwan he feels no different than his local peers, however, he would rather not say that he has an American citizenship for fear that other would think he was from a wealthier family. This is to indirectly say that often children who have been born in the United States, but have not immigrated over are often from rich, privileged families. This is not what Case C can identify with, having come from a single-family household in Taiwan. Another factor to consider about Case C is his language ability. My interviews with Case A and B were held in English. Case A could go back and forth, sometimes in English, sometimes in Chinese. However, he noted that he has a slight accent in both his English and Chinese. Case B’s interview was completely held in English, and you could not tell she has.

(27) been living here her entire life. Her Chinese is usually complimented for being so good for an “ABC,” but it still is not quite perfect. Case C is the opposite of both of these cases. He is also more Taiwanese because of his resistance to learning English. Although he spent the last five years of living in the United States, he has kept up his Mandarin and Taiwanese, only speaking English when he needs to, such as ordering food. He holds on through his identity through language, and cannot express himself very well through English communication. The fact that he is in a Taiwanese atmosphere in Taiwan enables him to have a lifestyle that can resist fluency in the English language. Case C often experiences the same negative feelings as Case A in being frustrated and insecure in their English abilities. Case C is also in-between phases of his adolescent life. He has not fully completely. 政治大 community colleges, upon completion, will guarantee a GED (high school diploma 立. high school, and therefore does not have a high school diploma. He has enrolled in other. equivalent) in addition to a community college, two-year degree program. However, as he. ‧ 國. 學. has also indirectly stated, his family is not from money. So for a year or two he has taken a break from community college and held a variety of entry-level jobs. He is currently twenty-. ‧. four and realizes the need to finish his education, but at the same time he also feels the financial burden he has on his family. As a man, it is a part of his pride to keep finances in. y. Nat. sit. check, which he cannot do if he is in school. So, unfortunately, he is not sure what direction. al. er. io. is life is going in, but he feels the need to have a job over everything else.. n. Case C is fiercely Taiwanese; he does not feel American at all. However, he does see. Ch. i n U. v. the United States as a window of opportunity. He would prefer if he could raise his children. engchi. in the United States, as so they would not have an accent (which he feels impedes his English). However, he would only communicate with his children in Mandarin or Taiwanese. He feels that it is up to the job market, if the jobs are better in the United States, then the children will stay with him there. However, if the job scenario is better in Taiwan, they will move after receiving a basic foundation in American English. Case C is not ABC, and he knows it. If he had done better in the Taiwanese method of testing into high school, he would probably not go to the United States at all. But that moment has already passed, and he does not regret the direction of which his life is currently heading..

(28) 4.2.2 Case D: 22 year-old female Current Location: Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. Relationship: Through a friend at National Chengchi University. Case D is the one participant of whom I have not the privilege to physically meet. She was interviewed through a series of emails, of which she wrote long and lengthy responses in English. She was born in New York City, but returned to Taiwan when she was quite young. Her lifestyle is quite different the previous cases, she has been back and forth to the United States many, many times in her childhood. Her parents are both green card holders, and her older sister has stayed in the United States since Case D was a small child. Therefore, due the. 政治大. location of her older sister, the family would make quarterly trips to visit the older sister, and stay for about two weeks.. 立. Looking at the frequency of how often the entire family would visit the older sister in. ‧ 國. 學. the United States makes Case D a child of an obviously wealthy family. Case D does not have family nor does she know why she was born in New York City, but noted it may have had to do with the fact that her father is an importer and travels around for business. Her. ‧. sister is eight years her senior and did no fare well in the Taiwanese education system. Just. y. Nat. like all these cases, Case D’s older sister is also an anchor baby and utilized the citizenship. io. sit. more than these other cases have. The older sister was in Kaoshiung American School, the. al. er. southern Taiwan equivalent of Case B’s TAS. Since both KAS and TAS are private schools,. n. iv n C through elementary school and middle h eschool h i andUinstead the family had her enroll in n gatcKAS. they also have private school tuition. Case D notes that it was not cheap to put her older sister. an American public school starting in eighth grade. The elder sister first attended school in. Texas, under the care of a family friend, and then in high school Case D’s parents bought a house in Seattle and paid a woman to take care of the sister until she entered college. On the other hand, Case D herself excelled in the normal Taiwanese standard of schooling and stayed in the Taiwanese school system. Her parents already had one daughter quite far away and kept their younger daughter by their side. As time went on, it was harder to visit the older sister every three or four months, and Case D would only go to the United States for winter/summer vacations. Although Case D has much experience in the United States, her childhood memories focus more on the Taiwanese aspects of her life. She claims to have spent at least three hours.

(29) every day watching Japanese cartoons and soap operas. Thus piqued her interest in Japanese and Japanese culture today. This is a very Taiwanese aspect of her life, since Japanese culture has infiltrated Taiwanese culture for many years. In the U.S. Japanese cartoons were all dubbed into English and therefore the actual interest in the language and culture would have been more relevant in Taiwanese where they merely subtitle these types of television shows and would have the latest updates instead of showing cartoons once they finally got dubbed into English. Case D continued her education in the traditional Taiwanese educational system. She went on to learn English through an afterschool cram school, and even took the test to see if she could get into TAS’s high school program. Although she was admitted, and also. 政治大 Taipei First Girls High School, which is the number one public high school in the country 立 contemplated the idea of doing high school in the United States, she was also admitted to. (specifically for girls). Therefore, Case D took full advantage of her Taiwanese public. ‧ 國. 學. education, going even as far as to making marks to get into the National Chengchi University, but it was ultimately decided that an American university would be more lucrative for the. ‧. future.. Case D, as with Case A, both felt out of place being a part of the regular orientation,. y. Nat. sit. rather than being a part of the international orientation at their respective schools. Although. al. er. io. on paper they were your average American citizens, in their minds they did not fit with those. n. peers and would take solace in being with the other international students. Case D. Ch. i n U. v. commented strongly on this, and felt that she did not fit in and the stress of people not. engchi. understanding her situation was not of an American born Chinese. Her lengthy responses to my survey showed her strong grasp on English, but also her insecurity. She always mentioned how she feels her English is good for a Taiwanese student, but it is not enough to be fluid and partake in a part of a culture she cannot relate to. Case D feels like language and communication are her weaknesses at her American university. Due to her American citizenship, she looks and is often regarded as any other ABC. However, this is not the case, and studying and participating in class are a lot harder for her than it would be for a native speaker. She does also not get the lack that teacher may have in approaching international students since she is not seen as an international student and therefore is not thought to have English as a second language..

(30) Case D also feels it is harder to develop relations. Not only is she shy and insecure about her language skills, but she also lives on her own off campus. In comparison to Taiwan where an upperclassman will take care of and make sure the underclassmen are adjusting (學長學妹制), there is no such culture to take care of Case D, and she feels like the friends she makes are based on her classes, and they change every quarter, not usually lasting longer than the class. She also has different interests and feels that she cannot connect with the average classmate. She claims that her classmates’ English is too fluent for her to follow and often incorporates slang that she cannot understand in relation to television shows she also has not seen. However, she does feel more camaraderie with her Japanese language. 政治大. classmates. They hold an interest in Japan, akin to her own, and through that she can practice more speaking skills as she can discuss topics she likes to talk about.. 立. She regards herself as Taiwanese, even if her citizenship status counts her otherwise.. ‧ 國. 學. However, she sometimes feels embarrassed because other people are not aware of Taiwan’s existence, or misinterprets her as Chinese, which she mentions she hates. This is probably due to the fact that more and more Taiwanese do not consider themselves to be Mainland. ‧. Chinese (see figure 1). After completion of university (and possibly graduate school) in the. y. Nat. U.S., Case D does not see herself there. Even though her family has green cards and/or. sit. citizenship, neither her parents nor herself would want to immigrate over. She contradicts. al. er. io. herself though, and thinks it would be great for her possible future children to grow up in the. n. iv n C have a future there, this is not something has a highU h ethat i probability of happening. She would h n c g rather be living in either Taiwan or Japan because that is where her interests lie. She does not United States and grasp a multilingual background. However, since she does not want to. care or even consider herself to be American, regardless of what is written on paper..

(31) 4.3 Adolescent Case 4.3.1 Case E: 16 year-old female Current Location: Taipei, Taiwan. Relationship: Good friends with my English tutee. Case E is still in high school, although the high school attends, Kang Chiao Bilingual School, is seen as a private bilingual school alternative to TAS for those who do not have a foreign passport. It is also seen as an alternative to those who cannot afford the yearly $20,000 USD TAS tuition, although this is not to say that KCBS is not expensive, but less expensive than TAS. As a 16 year-old girl, I interviewed her via email, and got quite muddled and brief answers to the questions, as I suppose a teenage would give normally. Her. 政治大 strange emoticons that portray her feelings after a statement. The most commonly used one is 立 English is not a solid as Case D, but she is certainly a lot more confident. She often used. “=w=,” which gives a sense of contentment, yet with a hint of negative satisfaction.. ‧ 國. 學. Sometimes expressions speak louder than words.. Case E was born at the conclusion of her parents’ doctorate studies at a university in. ‧. Wisconsin. At the age of one month, she was taken back to Taiwan and lived with her grandparents until she was three years old. At three, she was then taken back to live with her. y. Nat. sit. parents, who akin to Case D’s sister, had the long discussion of changing out of the. al. er. io. Taiwanese school system since Case E was not doing as well as they hoped. Although they. n. discussed going to other international schools in Taipei, it was decided that she would enroll. Ch. i n U. v. in Kang Chiao Bilingual School, which would be better for her since her English level was. engchi. not enough to enter a non-ESL class. Taipei European School and Taipei American School both had higher English standards, those of which Case E could not fulfill at the time. Case E is proud of her background and flaunts the fact that she was born in Madison, Wisconsin by announcing it on Facebook. Under her basic profile information it will say that she is from Madison, Wisconsin. When people ask her about where she is from, she explains her background and people understand that she has an American passport and citizenship. She also does not feel embarrassed and is very confident as a person. Though she was in the Taiwanese educational system until the first year of junior high school, she feels the difference and would not like to return. Kang Chiao has given her confidence in her English abilities and she is thoroughly pleased, as in the previous school system she never felt she.

(32) was good enough. Kang Chiao gives Case E a little bit of both worlds, there is still a bit of formal Taiwanese education at her school, but at the same time they use an international curriculum and she gets a western feel of education through a primarily foreign teacher staff body. Case E also is confident enough to access her usage of language and thinks that she talks half of the time in English and half the time in Chinese. It is refreshing to see someone so young have such confidence, but at the same time, what will happen when she actually goes abroad? She has yet to encounter any hardships, but perhaps the positive feelings she has towards American ideals and English will help later when she experiences the hardships of living away from home.. 政治大 herself as being from Taipei. She also has not felt any negative emotions towards her when 立 With this in mind she still understands that she is Taiwanese and will introduce. she proclaims her state of origin, even though she is not familiar with the city itself.. ‧ 國. 學. As with all the cases, the general consensus is that having an American passport is more useful than having a Taiwanese passport. The topic of visa-waivers always comes up,. ‧. as if that is the most redeeming feature in having an American passport.. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v.

(33) 4.4 Pre-Adolescent Case 4.4.1 Case F: Sisters, ages 6 and 8. Current Location: Chiayi, Southern Taiwan. Relationship: Professor’s children. Case F are actually a pair of sisters, both who have citizenship in Taiwan and the United States. Case F are also the youngest participants of this survey. Their answers are also reflected as a part of their extremely young age. In fact, it was hard to ask them questions, even with their parents around, as they were so shy and sometimes didn’t understand the stranger asking them questions. They also had very short attention spans and would race around the room finding other ways to entertaining themselves that would not be answering. 政治大. my questions. As far as experiences go, the younger the participant, the tougher it would to get answers.. 立. Together, with time, patience and the help of their mother, they answered my. ‧ 國. 學. questions politely. The older sister is eight years old, and left the United States for the first time when she was just over one year old. However, since both of her parents were still. ‧. working on their doctorates in California, it was only a short visit to the relatives. Then the younger sister was born, and when she was seven months old, and her older sister, a little. Nat. sit. y. more than 2 years old, the entire family returned to Taiwan where they have lived ever since.. io. er. Neither of the children knew their timelines, and the mother had to help fill in the details. As for the first memory, the eldest daughter could not remember her life before. n. al. i n U. v. school. The youngest daughter mentions a crib and staring at the mobile hanging above her.. Ch. engchi. However, due to the random specificity of the situation, the parents concluded that this is a contrived memory built from video footage of the past that she has seen. This is relevant, because others have may have believed that they honestly remember that first memory, but it’s actually a constructed from a collection of other memories, photographs, and/or videos. The children had different answers for many of the questions, and some thoughts of whether it was they were at the age were they did not want to agree occurred to me. The younger sister often had her own opinion, usually differing from the older sister, perhaps interviewing them together had actually had a negative and not a natural of a reaction as hoped. The eldest, who spent more time in the States and knew it, also said that in school the teachers knew she was American born (i.e. having an American passport) and therefore the.

(34) students knew as well. The sister shyly said that nobody knows, as if she wouldn’t tell her classmates or think it is as important as the older sister does. There is also a difference in which adults they keep company of, as adults directly influence a child’s life. Perhaps it derives from the two year age difference, but the elder daughter was more free to live where she was told to live, she would stay with her grandparents without problems and did not think anything of it, although she is more of a daddy’s girl. The younger daughter, however, did not like the idea of leaving home, and would only want to stay with her mother. She felt the idea of leaving the nuclear family was not something she was comfortable with and would refuse to go to the grandparents’ house, even if her sister would be going.. 政治大 Taiwanese passport. In fact, every single participant thus far has agreed on this term. Having 立 The sisters did agree on is that the American passport is worth keeping over the. such younger girls agree with this concept makes the idea that the lack of confidence in. ‧ 國. 學. keeping a Taiwanese passport comes with ideas that predate the people, ideas that are a part of Taiwanese society— a type of romanticism in relation to American passports and. ‧. citizenship.. The eldest sister, who would forsake her Taiwanese passport, does not know if she. y. Nat. sit. ever wants to return to the U.S. Whereas the younger sister says she misses the U.S. and is. al. er. io. more patriotic towards a country of which she has no recollection of. Both of them are too. n. young to remember anything outside of play time at their nursery school, and currently only. Ch. i n U. v. the older sister is going through cram school to improve her English abilities as well as to. engchi. help her complete homework. The younger sister is exempt from this extra schooling, partially because she is insecure with her English abilities. The older sister is fine with studying, and liked to learn English even though it is difficult for her. Whereas the younger sister rather be with family and does not want to learn English for fear that she will be ridiculed. Due to the fact the children are not old enough to answer many of the questions, their mother was asked instead. For example, the mother spent twelve years in various cities throughout the United States, earning a higher education. The hardships that she encountered were with taking care of the children, and during postpartum the Case F’s grandma came and helped for several months. The eldest daughter was actually under the care of a Latino nanny,.

(35) so the eldest daughter had quite good English abilities as a toddler, which regressed as time went on in Taiwan. Although the kids may or may not want to return to the United States, there is a possibility that they will do so for a short time. If their parents can get a visiting scholar position, offering them a teaching job at a university in the United States for one year, and perhaps the children, who are young enough to, will come along and accompany them while being enrolled in an American elementary school. In the end, the children were still torn by the concept of being from and the overall notion of what is the United States. They think of ideas like snow, apples, and clean represent the United States. These ideas that may not have been planted there on purpose, but instead. 政治大. comes from the atmosphere they are growing up in.. 立. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v.