Due to rapid transitions of life events, changes in essential relationships, low self esteem and
conflict within the family, depression can impact on adolescents in Vietnamese migrant families
in Australia (Beyer & Reid, 2000, as cited in Tran, 2003). These adolescents may suffer from
depression due to their reactions to cultural conflicts they experience in adapting their traditional
family values into the context of Australia society (Vu, 2006). This depression can lead to
serious drug abuse and suicidal ideation (Greenfield at al, 2006; Webber, 2002). In this context,
this thesis discusses impact of the high expectations in maintaining Vietnamese traditional values
in migrant families, and how this can affect adolescents' psychological well being. Therefore, as
this thesis clearly implicates that the conflict between Vietnamese cultural values and Australian
cultural values are associated with Vietnamese adolescent depression, a greater understanding of
the specific needs of Vietnamese adolescents will assist counsellors and health professionals to
provide more effective interventions during their treatment process.