Social+Structure

Social Structure
//(Compiled by Lydia Sarraille) //

Hmong social structure is based on clans: family groups that stay together and live in geographically close proximity to one another. Traditional gender roles tend to be advocated and education is valued despite older generations of Hmong immigrants usually having only minimal education.

Children in Hmong families are expected to be obedient and to respect their elders. Because of the emphasis on the clan, individual needs are put aside in favor of what benefits the group. In immigrant populations, these values shift to reflect the incorporation of modern American values adopted by the younger generations. Hmong women face a certain amount of discrimination from their own culture, since they are still largely expected to become wives and mothers and their education still tends to take a backseat to the education of males. Hmong women today attend college, but at a much lower rate than Hmong men.



Hmong social structure is traditionally patriarchal, with the father as head of household and a main patriarch as head of the clan. Women become members of their husbands' clans when they marry and cease to be a part of the clan of their birth. It is not allowed to marry a member of one's own clan.

Because of strict gender roles, Hmong mothers tend to discipline their daughters while the fathers tend to their sons. Unmarried children tend to remain in their parents' households even into adulthood. They value family highly, and take care to keep track of familial ties and kinship.




 * Works Cited:**

Cooper, R.G. 1978 "Unity and Division in Hmong Social Categories In Thailand", in Chen, P.S.J. and Evers, H.D. eds. // Studies in ASEAN Sociology // (Singapore: Chopmen) 1983 "Sexual Inequality among the Hmong", in McKinnon, J. and Bhruksasri, W. eds. //Highlanders of Thailand// (Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press).

Lee, Gary Y. "Hmong World View and Social Structure." Retrieved on November 27, 2011 from []