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The commentators are unanimous in their support for our general orientation to culture and development, and for the pathways we have identified, and they suggest ways to enrich our approach to theory, methods, and values. We view their main suggestions as relating to trade-offs: between theories that highlight generalizations or exceptions; between methods that rely on one-, two-, or multiculture studies; and between values involving individuation or accommodation. Here, we describe ways to find an optimal balance in each instance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined cultural differences in the expression and meaning of physical closeness. Findings indicated that immigrant-Chinese parents, as compared with Euro-American parents, sleep in closer proximity with their children; more often view independence as children growing with the family; are more likely to emphasize the family unit; and place greater importance on inhibition of expression, adherence to correct values, and hierarchy of relations. Euro-Americans, by contrast, are more accepting of nudity; place more emphasis on psychological benefits of physical closeness and on the child's expression of wants and feelings; more often view independence as celebrating the child's distinctiveness; and place greater importance on intimacy, pleasure, and spousal exclusiveness. The authors suggest that closeness is characterized by an overarching theme of harmony in immigrant-Chinese families and by an overarching theme of romance in Euro-American families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]