American Indian families and socialization

• SIGNIFICANCE: Traditional American Indian cultures value harmony, balance, cyclical thinking, cooperativeness, respect for age, and interdependence, while mainstream American culture values linear thinking, time management, competition, youthfulness, and independence. These differences are sometimes a source of conflict for American Indian children raised to respect traditional values.

According to the US Census, an estimated 7.7 million people in the United States identified as American Indian or Alaska Native (alone or in combination) in 2024. Although American Indians are a diverse group, anthropologists have identified certain common characteristics and socialization patterns that apply generally to American Indian cultures, especially on reservations, where traditions are followed more closely.

Family Patterns and Characteristics

In American Indian cultures, the basic social unit is the extended family. Mothers and fathers share the responsibility for the nurturing and care of their children; however, members of the extended family are also likely to take responsibility for the care of the young. American Indian children usually know the members of their extended family and often turn to them for help and advice. It is a tenet of American Indian cultures that the older members of the family have wisdom; therefore, it is natural for children to look to their elders for advice.

Traditional American Indians believe that every child should receive unconditional love and care and that all adults are responsible for helping children develop naturally. American Indian parents are often regarded as permissive by non-Indians because they do not discipline their children or punish them physically. However, American Indians tend to believe that, rather than telling children who or what they should be, adults should help them discover who and what they are.

Spiritual values are important within American Indian cultures. Members of this culture teach their children to be respectful and generous, to live in balance, to withstand hardship, to cooperate with others, and to receive blessings appropriately. Children are also taught the proper roles for men and women, because traditionally male and female roles have been highly specific and differentiated in American Indian cultures. When teaching cultural values, American Indian parents and tribal elders use modeling, examples, and stories, training their children largely through an extensive oral tradition.

American Indian Children in School

By the time they enter school, American Indian children often have a world orientation that differs from that of their non-Indian peers. During the socialization process, they have developed learning styles and ways of thinking that are very different from those of White, middle-class children. In public schools, they are likely to be less competitive, more group-oriented, and quieter. Their learning style is likely to focus on relationships, and they are likely to be comfortable attending to several tasks at the same time and to be holistic thinkers. Therefore, these children may find it difficult to meet the expectations of public schools where competition, independence, and assertiveness are generally prized and where abstract problem-solving, specific thinking, and performance of discrete tasks usually dominate the curriculum.

Civil rights activity during the 1960s and 1970s and the many problems experienced by American Indians in schools run by White people caused Congress to pass laws that give American Indians control over reservation schools and that encourage them to develop curricula that include both Indian cultural values and native language study. The process of returning control of the schools to the tribes began with the Indian Education Act of 1972 and was carried further by the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975. Both the 1978 American Indian Religious Freedom Act and the 1990 Native American Languages Act encouraged self-determination and the preservation of native cultures.

To help parents train their children to participate in the mainstream culture, many tribal colleges have Head Start programs that not only teach preschool children but also offer instruction in parenting skills. To help non-Indian educators and others understand their culture, several well-known American Indians developed teaching programs to explain Indigenous values. Activist and singer Buffy Sainte-Marie, for instance, developed the Cradleboard Project. Integrating modern technology and using standard learning tools, this curriculum introduces children to American Indian ideas and values. Furthermore, writer and Iroquois oral historian Paula Underwood developed Native American Learning Way, part of the Past is Prologue Educational Program, which follows a Native American learning approach. The Native American Learning Way consists of a curriculum that brings American Indian ideas into all subjects taught in elementary schools.

Bibliography

“American Indian/Alaska Native.” Office of Minority Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Mar. 2026, minorityhealth.hhs.gov/american-indianalaska-native-health. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.

“Cradleboard History.” The Cradleboard Teaching Project, www.cradleboard.org. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.

“National Native American Heritage Month: November 2025.” U.S. Census Bureau, press release no. CB25-FF.09, 20 Nov. 2025, www.census.gov/newsroom/facts-for-features/2025/aian-month.html. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.

Press, Petra. Indians of the Northwest: Traditions, History, Legends, and Life. Courage, 1997.

Red Horse, John G. “Family Structure and Value Orientation in American Indians.” Social Casework, vol. 61, no. 8, pp. 462-467.

Sita, Lisa. Indians of the Great Plains: Traditions, History, Legends, and Life. Courage, 1997.

Sita, Lisa. Indians of the Northeast: Traditions, History, Legends, and Life. Courage, 1997.

Sita, Lisa. Indians of the Southwest: Traditions, History, Legends, and Life. Courage, 1997.