Asian American Journal of Psychology, Vol 16(4), Dec 2025, 339-352; doi:10.1037/aap0000383
This qualitative study uses grounded theory to uncover cultural factors that promote resilience in 1.5 generation Korean American emerging adults. A total of 14 Korean Americans recruited from Los Angeles and surrounding areas completed demographic questionnaires and semistructured interviews ranging from 1 hr to 1.5 hr. The data were then analyzed using grounded theory, which yielded three categories and a model of cultural factors that promote resilience in 1.5 generation Korean American emerging adults. Results indicated several themes in each of the three main categories of resilience-promoting factors, cultural context, and understanding of cultural context. From the findings, we developed a conceptual model of 1.5 generation Korean Americans’ resilience process in the intersection between culture and resilience. The model involved cultural context, resilience-promoting factors, and meaning-making between culture and resilience, adding onto ecosystemic, socioecological frameworks of resilience. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)