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Everyone’s Playing Among Us

YouTubers, influencers and streamers popularized Among Us, a multiplayer game. Now it’s everywhere.

By Taylor Lorenz

When an indie game company created Among Us in 2018, it was greeted with little fanfare. The multiplayer game remained under the radar as many games do — until the summer of the pandemic.

Eager to keep viewers entertained during quarantine, Chance Morris, known online as Sodapoppin, began streaming the game, created by InnerSloth, to his 2.8 million followers on Twitch in July.

By mid-September, Among Us caught on like wildfire. Suddenly major YouTube stars, TikTok influencers and streamers were playing it. PewDiePie, James Charles and Dr. Lupo have all played the game for millions.

RETWEET to be the next video's sister shoutout!! PLAYING AMONG US FOR THE FIRST TIME! featuring some very special guests 😇🔪 https://t.co/NhpxZf4mdR pic.twitter.com/KkOCQJf3Qk — James Charles (@jamescharles) October 6, 2020

Among Us is a multiplayer game where between four and 10 players are dropped onto an alien spaceship. Each player is designated a private role as a “crewmate” or “impostor.”

Crewmates must run around the ship and try to complete a set of tasks while trying to root out and avoid getting killed by the one or several impostors. Players can be voted off the ship, so each game becomes one of survival: Successfully vote off the impostors, or complete all your tasks to win. It’s simple, cartoony and easy enough for a five-year-old to play on an iPhone.

The young fans of online influencers weren’t just watching Among Us streams, they began playing the game too. Millions of teenagers and kids across the country have become hooked on Among Us, which has begun to serve as a default social platform for young people stuck in quarantine.

“A few weeks ago I went from not hearing anything about it to hearing everything about it everywhere,” said Judah Rice, 16, a high school student in Texas. “People are texting about it, I know people who are on dedicated Discord servers and Among Us group chats. I have friends who get together all the time and play it.”

Among Us Discord servers began cropping up in early September. In one, more than 98,000 teenagers connect, socialize, discuss and play the game. Benson, a 13-year-old administrator of the server, said that there are often 30 to 40 different Among Us games at any time of day happening over voice chat channels in the server. “Everyone is aged 13 to 20,” he said. “My friends, if their teacher doesn’t show up to their online class, they play, it’s a way to pass the time when you don’t have anything else to do. Since we can’t really congregate in a public area like the park, Among Us allows us to be online social distancing.”

Among Us is very different than other highly social video games like Fortnite, for instance. It’s more similar to a board game like Monopoly, or a party game like Werewolf, where players need to read personalities and determine if they’re being lied to in order to win. The large group size makes it easy to invite new friends into the group.

“You can meet a lot of people from Among Us, I’ve made a few friends off of it,” said Juan Alonso Flores, 17, a high school student in Florida. “Once you start playing with the same people you start getting to know each other. You get their phone numbers, Discord tags.”

It’s not just teenagers who are bonding over the game. Adults who can no longer hit a bar or swing by a party after work are also finding community through Among Us. Ricky Hayberg, 36, writer and host of Internet Today , a culture and tech YouTube channel, said he’s developed stronger friendships with people he met through playing Among Us over the past two months than those he’s known offline for years.

“There’s more natural conversation that arises from it. It’s more of a party game. You’re kind of just hanging out with friends and the game is secondary,” Mr. Hayberg said. “To excel at the game, you have to know if people are lying, telling the truth and their general personality.”

The game’s continued success is further propelled by a never-ending stream of Among Us-related content on the internet. Twitter accounts like No Context Among Us and Among Us Struggle Tweets publish memes about the game to hundreds of thousands of followers. Videos on TikTok including the Among Us hashtag have amassed more than 13 billion views.

“The hype keeps growing because everyone is playing it,” said Nicole Draper, 17, who posts Among Us memes on Bruhloon , her Instagram meme page. “My TikTok For You page is flooded with Among Us memes. People are making parodies and voice-overs of Among Us scenes. It grew bigger than any other game.”

Throughout the game’s ascendance, streamers on Twitch continue to power it all. “If anyone had any doubt that Twitch streamers were influencers before now, we’ve proven that to be true,” said Erin Wayne, director of community and creator marketing at Twitch.

Twitch fans have watched more than 200 million hours worth of Among Us gameplay on the platform so far this year. Nathan Grayson, a writer at gaming site Kotaku, said that the game was uniquely designed in a way that makes it far more entertaining to watch than your average first person shooter game.

Viewers get to see influencers let their guards down and express how they really are. “The game is about deception and the personalities of people playing,” Mr. Grayson said. “It brings back the spirit of being around your friends. It’s designed for streamers to play off one another and they can also have streams where all of them are streaming on separate channels with their audiences speculating on chat about which person is an impostor.”

Phil Jamesson, 28, a comedian who streams on Twitch, said that the game is similar to a series like “ Hot Ones ,” where fans get to see their favorite celebrities drop the facade as they struggle to tolerate increasingly spicy chicken wings.

“There’s a barrier that gets lowered when there’s heightened emotions. When someone is accusing you of killing a friend in the game, you get a peek into how they actually are, as opposed to how they want to present themselves,” he said.

Already, people are leveraging excitement around the game for political ends. MoveOn, a progressive advocacy organization and political action committee has been streaming Among Us games on Twitch with organizations like Justice Democrats and Crooked Media and well-known activists to encourage young viewers to vote. On Oct. 20, Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar played the game on Twitch ; hundreds of thousands of people tuned in to watch on Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s stream.

“Virtual organizing is really popping off right now,” said Cameron Kasky, 19, a student and activist. “Among Us is a great place to talk about really anything you want to get out there. You’ve got people’s eyes and attention and the game is not too complicated where it’d be distracting to talk about voting. It leaves the viewers visually engaged while you talk about whatever you want.”

Taylor Lorenz is a technology reporter in Los Angeles covering tech culture and online creators. Before  joining The New York Times , she was a technology and culture writer at The Atlantic. More about Taylor Lorenz

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Among Us: the ultimate party game of the paranoid Covid era

Launched into obscurity in 2018 but now hugely popular, this online version of wink murder, with its focus on fabrication and blame-shifting, is scarily on point

T here are 10 crew members trapped on a spacecraft, carrying out menial tasks to maintain vital systems, but at least one of them is an imposter who wants to sabotage their work and if possible, murder them. What sounds like the premise of a particularly bleak science-fiction movie is in fact the set-up of one of the most popular video games of the year. Developed by a three-person team at InnerSloth and launched to virtual obscurity in 2018, Among Us has suddenly become one of the biggest games on PC and mobile, attracting more than 85m players in the last six months. It’s so successful, InnerSloth recently abandoned plans to work on a sequel, instead piling their resources into the original. No one, it seems, is more surprised about the success of this game than its creators.

So why has this happened? Among Us is essentially an online multiplayer version of the party game wink murder, but set on a constantly malfunctioning spaceship. Up to 10 players take part, and at the beginning, you’re told whether you’re an innocent crew member or an imposter. While the former carry out jobs such as rebooting the communications systems or cleaning out the air ducts, the latter stalk the corridors breaking vital equipment or looking for victims to kill.

When a crew member discovers a body, they call a meeting, at which point all the players are allowed to talk to each other for a limited time. During these discussions, the crew needs to try to work out the identity of the imposter(s) by comparing alibis and reporting on which other players seem to have been acting suspiciously: what was Tim doing so close to the scene of the crime, and why can’t Emma recall what task she was apparently working on? Accusations fly, temporary alliances form and whopping lies are told. Sessions can often descend into anarchic shouting matches, with players frantically justifying their movements around the ship. Then a vote takes place, one player is hurled from the spaceship’s air locker, and the others discover if they’ve just saved themselves from certain death or murdered an innocent workmate.

As the game continues, the paranoia ramps up. Crew members can use security cameras to spy on others, while imposters can use air ducts to sneak around. Although there are traditional video game objectives to fulfil – the crew members can win the game if they complete all their allotted tasks before everyone is dead – this is essentially a game about acting; or, more accurately, it’s a game about lying to your friends. (You can play against strangers but it’s not as fun and there are a LOT of cheats out there.) The beauty of the game is the way in which it allows players to exploit the personality traits of their peers, tapping in on the neuroses of anxious players to create plausible guilt scenarios, or flattering egotists so that they don’t suspect you.

In short, this is all the fun of a slightly drunken board game night, but virtual, which makes it perfect for the semi-lockdown situation a lot of us are in right now. Brighter, cuter video games such as Fortnite and Animal Crossing proved popular during the early weeks of the coronavirus crisis, but now, after months of this horror, and with patience fraying, we’re ready for something more cynical and spiteful, something more akin to the end of a game night, where players are seconds from dropkicking the Trivial Pursuit board into next door’s garden.

There is, you may have spotted, something particularly 2020 about Among Us. Its emphasis on fabrication, on blame-shifting, and on reporting other people to the authorities is extremely on point. As writer Sean Sands points out in his excellent Vice article , “Among Us is rife with ever-cascading crises, and people trapped in a sense of isolation while they try to solve problems for which they are woefully unequipped. Into this crumbling world the game introduces a dash of bad-faith actors whose purpose – as much as open violence – is to sow distrust and distraction.”

What Among Us understands, and why it has been such a huge hit (not just to play, but to watch on Twitch, where superstar streamers have contributed to its sleeper success) is that we need recrimination and drama in our social lives. Frankly, when smiley Zoom chats start to grate, Among Us will be there, ready to whisk you into your own private version of The Thing , where the chat isn’t about who’s gotten into sourdough or knitting, but whether or not Kev was the one who sabotaged the oxygen supply and should therefore be jettisoned into the cold vacuum of space. In this age of widespread home working, Among Us simulates the only part of office life that most of us secretly miss: gossip and in-fighting. No amount of Microsoft Teams meetings can ever replicate that drama.

If 2020 is putting a strain on your relationships, Among Us could be the ultimate test – or indeed, the final push.

Among Us is playable on PC and smartphones

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How ‘Among Us’ Helps Students Master Argumentative Writing

In the popular online strategy game, students make claims, listen to counterclaims, and reach a conclusion—skills they need to write a strong argumentative essay.

Like many other teachers in the world, I have been tasked with the incredible challenge of teaching online to a sea of students who are used to being in a classroom learning, discussing, and connecting with their peers. In just a couple of days, I went from a loud, bustling classroom full of energetic 10th graders to an eerily quiet Zoom call full of black boxes and muted mics. Hearing and seeing my students became a thing of the past. When I began to notice my students struggling to understand argumentative writing, I knew I had to get creative.

In addition to teaching English, I run my school site’s gaming and e-sports clubs. Advising those club meetings was like night and day compared with teaching my English class; I could barely say a word during our meetings because my students were so excited to play games with each other.

It all clicked when my gaming students asked if they could play a game called Among Us . As my students worked together to find the imposter, I noticed them using all the skills I was teaching in my classes; I heard each of them formulate a claim using multiple pieces of evidence. I listened to them respectfully disagree, negotiate, and work together with their peers to analyze the claims they were hearing and ultimately decide as a team which claim was strongest. The best part? None of them even realized that what they were doing was academic. That’s when I knew I needed to bring it into my classroom.

What Is ‘Among Us’?

Among Us is a free-to-play social deduction game, in which you work together with a group of up to 10 people to figure out who is the imposter. You can download the Among Us app or purchase the game for your PC or Nintendo Switch. At the beginning of each game, you are deemed either a crewmate or an imposter. If you are a crewmate, you are assigned tasks to complete as fast as possible without getting killed by the imposter. The violence in the game is pretty cartoonish, and Common Sense Media rates the game as appropriate for kids 10 and older. To win, you must finish your tasks or work with your fellow crewmates to find the imposter(s). If you are an imposter, your job is to eliminate as many crewmates as possible and sabotage the game without getting caught.

When a crewmate finds a dead body, all players are forced into a discussion and voting time that allows them to report out what they saw and who they were with, and raise suspicion against other players. This means that no matter what role you are given at the beginning of the game, strong argumentative skills are key.

Prior to entering my class, most of my students were familiar with the basics of argumentative writing through the claim, evidence, and analysis (CEA) paragraph structure. After putting out our first writing assignment, though, I noticed that there was a disconnect between the claims they made and the evidence they chose. I found myself writing the same feedback over and over again, asking them, “How does this evidence support the argument you are trying to make?”

Integrating ‘Among Us’ in the ELA Classroom

One of the biggest differences between teaching online and in person is the lack of class discussion. Four-corner activities and casual debate warm-ups were no more, once we transitioned to distance learning, because no one felt comfortable unmuting their mics. I was struggling to show the students the connection between argumentative speaking and writing. The second I announced to my class that we were going to play Among Us , I couldn’t get them to stop talking. I even had a group of students stay through their 30-minute lunch break to keep playing with their classmates.

I began by walking through my Emergency Meeting Argumentative Speeches slides to set up the rules and game-play structure. The biggest change I made between the common game mode and my persuasive speech activity was the structured discussion time.

During the 90-second discussion period, all students must have their mics unmuted and participate so that everyone’s voice is heard. The first 30 seconds are reserved for each student to make a claim. I ask them to report out where they were, what/who they saw, who they believe the imposter is, and why. The next 30 seconds are for counterclaims where students can defend themselves or others. The last 30 seconds are for students to state whose claim they agree or disagree with and why. At the end of discussion time, they each have the option to vote for who they believe the imposter is or skip. This continues until the imposter is caught or the crewmates finish their tasks.

Connecting ‘Among Us’ to Argumentative Writing

Next came the task of connecting what they just did in their favorite game to the not-so-exciting article we were reading as a class. Using Pear Deck , I set up an interactive slideshow with claims from the article with a few pieces of direct evidence. Their goal on each slide was to find the “imposter,” or rather the piece of evidence that did not support the claim, and explain why. Everything finally clicked when I made that small shift in word choice for unrelated evidence, and my students’ writing became much more accurate.

After months of teaching into the abyss, bringing Among Us into my classroom gave my class a breath of fresh air it desperately needed. Not only did playing the game with my students help them refine their writing skills, but it built the classroom community that distance learning had taken away. If you’re struggling to teach writing remotely or looking for an activity to build community and get your students to unmute their mics, mention Among Us  and watch what happens.

'Among Us' Is Not Just the Game of 2020, It's '2020: The Game'

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Red Is Lowkey Sus: A Political Reflection on “Among Us”

2020, despite its travesties, won in the gaming world. When Animal Crossing: New Horizons   dropped  earlier this year, Nintendo Switch consoles sold out  everywhere  in America. The Honeybee Inn dance in Final Fantasy VII: Remake  went viral as we re-fell in love with Cloud Strife’s  narrative . One of 2020’s most anticipated releases, The Last of Us Part II , infuriated some lifelong fans with its vengeance-denying resolution and  inspired  others with a lesson about the futility of violence. Now, indie game Among Us  has entered the chat, bringing gamers from around the world together in chaotic gameplay as impostors kill innocent crew members while denying their murderous intent.  

Straight out of a science fiction movie, Among Us ’s gameplay is violent, yet simple: five to ten crew members are trapped on a spacecraft, fighting to keep the vehicle up and running by completing minigame tasks with a very limited visual scope. One to three impostors sabotage the crew by tinkering with the spacecraft’s mechanisms and, occasionally, murder an innocent crew member or two. The minigame tasks are unique to each of the game’s three maps: The Skeld, Polus, and Mira HQ. When a player discovers a dead body (a halved avatar with flesh and bone exposed), they report the death, calling a meeting in which all remaining players discuss who the impostors might be. Often, they compare alibis: “I was scanning in Medbay”; “I was taking forever to calibrate in the electrical room”; “You think my ass can fit in the vent?” In other, more intense discussions, accusations come flying: “I saw fake tasks!”; “Guys, if I’m wrong about them, vote me out next”; “But I saw them kill.” Breaching anarchic destruction, the gameplay frequently dissolves into furiously-typed deductions and empty promises to partner up to ensure temporary survival. After discussion, players vote out one player at a time (or skip, sparing all from death), and discover if they killed a fellow crew member or succeeded in finding the impostor. The game ends when there is an equal number of impostors and crew members (resulting in the impostors’ victory), all the impostors are discovered, or all tasks are completed. 

Panic ensues with the game’s additional mechanics: the impostor can sneak into the air vents to teleport between rooms and assassinate a player. Everyone aboard can access the security cameras to spy on other players. An emergency meeting can be called, should someone see a suspicious action from one avatar…or if the impostor wishes to throw suspicion elsewhere. In sum, Among Us  is a game of manipulation, deceit, and paranoia. You lie to your friends about your whereabouts, desperately coerce people into believing your task list, or descend into feigned madness as the impostors falsely accuse your innocent avatar of murder. It is best played with friends who believe your real, out-of-game life aspirations, thus allowing you to either exploit their trust or, at the very least, startle them with your brutal ability to cleave a body in half and deny the blood on your hands.  

The timing of Among Us ’s popularity is no coincidence: developed by a three-person team at  InnerSloth  in 2018, the game caught the attention of zero gamers until Twitch streamer “sodapoppin"  displayed  it earlier this summer. Now with over  86 million  downloads, the violent nature of the gameplay appeals to the cynicism and impatience of the frustrated and socially distanced in quarantine. At its release, Animal Crossing: New Horizons  offered an opportunity to build an eternally peaceful world that transcends the death and violence ravaging our own reality. It was solace in the face of pestilence. On the contrary, Among Us ’s Impostor character grounds us in our lived chaos, embodying the backstabbing tendencies of real-world political leaders who swear  they are working hard to keep all of us alive while reaping personal reward at the expense of countless dead innocents. Meanwhile, the crew members live with the ironic belief that they have authority over the spacecraft, which is throttling toward an unknown location and on the brink of breakdown. After all, it is  within their abilities, and only their own abilities, to fix the wires, dump the trash, and fill up the fuel tanks to sustain the condition of the spacecraft. It is a beautiful, optimistic illusion: as long as the majority of us work together to save our habitat in time, the Impostor can’t stop us. 

However, power actually  rests with the impostors, who keep the crew members wary of each vent, sabotage, and ultimately, avatar. The Impostor figure controls the failing state of the ship—and hence the crew members—who must desperately run to every leaking oxygen tank or reactor on the brink of meltdown or face total death. The crew members live in fear and anticipation of the Impostor’s next move, awaiting the inevitable death of the next avatar or praying their democratic, yet blind, vote brings justice to the murdered. Each crew member, besides temporary alliances, feels ill-equipped and isolated: the only person they can trust is their own self. And the Impostor relishes in an unspoken power they possess: the scary ability to turn the crew members against each other, despite their collective innocence in the face of mismanaged power. 

Among Us  is a game I log on to after burning my eyes out in back-to-back Zoom meetings, which I suppose is the greatest ironic parallel of all: my avatar in Among Us  is merely fixing wires and buying beverages as the world burns around her. I’m a student studying undergraduate-level politics as the presidential election threatens to shake the very infrastructure of the nation I’ve always known. Eerily, the narrative of the game reflects the bleakness of our own political reality—and whether we’re aware of it or not, as the crew members, we project the frustrations that the pandemic has encouraged and inflated upon the general public. We facepalm in frustration when the Impostor wins because the guilty has emerged victorious from an unjust bloodbath, and our blame-shifting has brought our demise. We find catharsis when the crew members win not simply because of a game well-played, but because Among Us  has created an imaginary scenario in which we serve justice regardless  of a flawed system that has kept a majority of us unaware of the violence committed. Additionally, when we are impostors, we come to realize how easy it is to cheat the system and place blame on an unaware player. All it takes is manipulative persuasion, scapegoating and, above all, extra added powers not bestowed upon the common crew member.  

The objective of the game is an exhausting, disintegrating environment rigged against the crew members. Perhaps the most infuriating part comes not as a crew member, but as a murdered ghost, flying around the spacecraft to complete your tasks. You watch crew members discuss at the meeting table, unable to scream at them who the true impostors are, as they vote out another innocent player. The tension this deception capitalizes on reaches its most infuriating, posthumous peak when Armageddon ultimately crashes: the penultimate crew member is thrown out of the airlock, leaving the impostors victorious. Death is no release from the chaos of the spacecraft: in fact, it is another kind of isolation that forces you to watch faith between your crew members disintegrate. It’s torturous, and for lack of a better phrase, a metaphor for 2020 at best. 

This isn’t to suck the fun out of Among Us —I’ve pulled all-nighters playing this for a reason. Seeing the self-destructive capabilities of the crew members is highly entertaining, and every wrong vote is a giddy guarantee that the impostor lives to see another murder spree. The best games I’ve played are a showdown between the last three avatars standing, a gamble of paranoid guessing with a sliver of hope that crew members might win, an exhilarating climax I, and many others, chase every game. With a fantastic player in the impostor role, we can recreate a fun, chaotic gameplay of bad faith actors, trolls, and a community of casual gamers. After the game ends, regardless of outcome, we return to the lobby to congratulate a successful impostor, share each other’s socials, and join Discord calls to babble about how stupid our logic was when Red was “lowkey sus” but no one acted on it. Among Us  capitalizes on tension and disaster but offers a time to unravel with newfound peers. Sure, I might be salty at my friend who voted incorrectly when we depended on her, but the bitterness dissolves instantly after a “gg.” That’s the final framework that appeals to Among Us  gamers: yes, the avatars exist within an Armageddon-like nightmare, but at the end of the day, we find ourselves coming back to this game because it’s like we’re at home, catching up with old friends when the world has returned to its normal state. 

Among Us  developers  promised  updates to the game: friends lists, a new map, more colors. I’m excited to say that I will eagerly await these updates. Until then, I will be fucking up my “Swipe Admin Card” task in The Skeld to the annoying, diegetic beeps. 9/10, InnerSloth. 

Among Us  is available for purchase on Steam ($4.99), and free in the App Store and Google Play for mobile. I encourage you to actually legally purchase or download this game: support indie gaming companies. 

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Four ways to use the game Among Us in the English classroom

Online problem-solving role-playing game Among Us has taken the world by storm. In this reader submission, Lecturer Flora D Floris and colleagues from Indonesia’s Petra Christian University suggest four activities that teachers can use to incorporate the game into their English classrooms.

Among Us is a multiplayer game developed by Innersloth that was released in June 2018, but rose to fame in 2020, just when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold. Google Play Store data from December show it had garnered over 100 million downloads and it was the number one game downloaded from the Apple Store last year (Webster, 2020).

Among Us is set on one of three locations: a spaceship, above-Earth base, or planet base. The game follows the story of a spaceship crew trying to get by in their voyage, only to find that there is a parasitic shapeshifter – an impostor – among them. There can be a total of 10 players in an online game, with up to three impostors.

Players are given either one of these two roles: crewmate or impostor. As a crewmate, a player has to go around completing tasks. As an impostor, a player has to pretend to do the assigned tasks while going around killing crewmates. If a body is discovered, a crewmate can call an emergency meeting to figure out who the imposter is. The game ends when the impostor is found.

The benefits of multiplayer games

Multiplayer games, in general, offer the potential to be used in English classrooms. The game format automatically provides a linguistically rich and cognitively challenging virtual environment. Meeting and playing with global players in a real-world English language environment exposes learners to natural speech, a wide variety of Englishes, and various basic language functions – such as asking and answering questions, sharing items or locations, praising, and warning.

Studies have shown that having an immersive experience in a fun, informal, and interactive digital space is conducive to English language learning (Sylvén & Sundqvist, 2012). Among Us has some distinctive features compared to some other multiplayer games, and these features bring added benefits to its use in English classrooms:

• It is suitable for a class setting, as it can be played by up to 10 people. Depending on the class size, the teacher can assign students into groups to play the game in multiple rounds.
• Each game round lasts roughly five to 20 minutes. It does not take a long time to play, so it will not disturb the class.
• Among Us is rated 7+ on the Play Store and Everyone (E) on Apple Store. It is labelled as non-threatening; thus, it is suitable for some younger students.
• The game requires a lot of social interaction and deduction skills. Each player needs to be able to verbally express their thoughts about who the imposter is and defend themselves if they’re suspected as the imposter. In addition, all players need to work together to win the game or figure out who the villain is.

Suggestions for classroom activities

Though many teachers might be aware that multiplayer games such as Among Us can help students in their English language learning, weaving the game into English lessons can be tricky. Here are four fun ideas for how teachers can incorporate Among Us into their English classrooms (similar ideas might be applicable to any other multiplayer games).

Activity #1

• Prior to this assignment, the teacher has discussed the features of descriptive writing.
• The teacher assigns the students into groups depending on the class size and asks each group to play Among Us for a round (maximum 20 minutes).
• The game must be recorded and saved.
• One of the impostors and one of the crewmates also need to take notes of important things that happened or the strategies that they employed.
• After playing (and recording the game), the next assignment is to come up with a piece of descriptive writing about the gaming experience from the impostors’ and the crewmates’ points of view. The writing is based on the recording and the notes taken during the game.
• Students will then submit the recording and their writings to the teacher.

Activity #2

• The teacher refers to a recording of people playing Among Us (such recordings can be found easily via YouTube ).
• The teacher asks the students to watch the video and pay attention to the expressions used when the gamers are having a discussion to find the imposter.
• The teacher then asks the students to note down the expressions that they have noticed from the video.
• A classroom discussion follows.
• As a final follow-up activity, ask the students to either: Create a short conversation (or role play) in which the characters use the expressions that they have learned; or play the game and use the expressions that they have learned (the game playing should be recorded and submitted to the teacher).

Activity #3

• There are some online articles about Among Us. The teacher chooses one or two articles for a reading lesson.
• The teacher asks the students to find the main ideas, specific information, complex vocabularies, etc., based on the selected reading text.

Activity #4

For a writing class, the teacher can ask the students to write either:

• A compare-and-contrast essay about Among Us and another popular multiplayer game.
• A narrative or descriptive essay describing their experience in playing Among Us .
• A poster presenting some tips for playing Among Us . (As an alternative, the teacher can ask the students to generate tips for an imposter or crewmate only).

Many academics agree that multiplayer games provide a meaningful context for language use, encourage students to communicate, and help students sustain their interest and effort to learn a target language.

In making the above suggestions for how to bring Among Us into your classroom, we argue that language learning and gaming can go together, and using gaming to support learning in the classroom is not a waste of time.

Innersloth. (2020). Among Us . https://www.innersloth.com/gameAmongUs.php .

Sylvén, L. K., & Sundqvist, P. (2012). Gaming as extramural English L2 learning and L2 proficiency among young learners. ReCALL , 24 (3), 302-321.

Webster, A. (2020, December 2). Zoom and Among Us dominate Apple’s most downloaded charts in 2020 . The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/2/21890489/apple-iphone-ipad-most-downloaded-2020-chart-zoom-among-us .

Have you ever considered using multiplayer games in your classroom? Is this something your students are interested in outside of school? If you’ve used these kinds of games before, what learning outcomes did you hope to achieve and was the experience successful?

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Old Gold & Black

• Issue 8 Out Now!
• Arts & Culture

Among Us: A Short Story

It was Red. It had to have been Red. 

There were five of us left, so we had to be careful. Me, Red, Green, Blue, and Light Blue. One among us had already managed to kill three of our crew, and in our efforts to quell the threat, two others had been ejected into the cold abyss of space.

“I was on cams,” I said. “Red and White went into Reactor, so I followed to see if anything had happened. When I got there, Red was staring over White’s dead body.”

“Is this true, Red?” said Green.

“Absolutely not,” said Red. “I was doing a task when the body was reported. I didn’t even see it.”

The emergency meeting table got louder as everyone else interjected and interrogated each other, voices rising.

“I was in medbay,” said Green.

“Weapons,” said Blue.

“And Light Blue?” I asked.

“Cyan,” he corrected me. “I was with Blue before going to Navigations.”

“It could be any of us,” said Green. “Red, what were you doing as your task?”

“I don’t remember,” said Red. “Start reactor, maybe? It was the one where you have to go up to ten.”

“And it took you how long?” I said.

Cyan and Blue had grown mysteriously quiet.

“A while,” said Red. “I kept messing up.”

“I’m voting Red,” said Green.

“As am I,” I said with absolute certainty.

“So, Red then?” said Cyan.

“It seems,” said Blue.

“Wait, guys, I-”

The emergency meeting timer went out, and four of us had voted.

All four for Red.

The meeting ended, and the door to the ship slowly creaked open. The vacuum of space began ripping the air out of the ship, the four of us somehow kept still as Red flew out of the ship, doors closing behind him. He was gone.

A light flashed on in my helmet, the third time that this light had appeared.

“Red was not the Imposter,” it said.

“Oh for fu-” said Green, his mic cutting off.

The Imposter was still alive, and there were only four of us left. We just had to do our tasks and the ship would be fixed. That’s all we had come here to do. We just had to finish, and the Imposter would lose. Hopefully everyone else understood this.

I began my descent from the cafeteria into storage, wherein I filled a container of fuel that’d go in Upper Engine. The trip was rather uneventful, and I managed to fill the tanker with fuel before then going down to storage, refilling, and going across to Lower Engine, wherein I did the same thing. I passed by Blue on the way, who was going leftward towards Lower Engine, but I thought nothing of it.

A body was reported. Cyan’s. Green must’ve found it.

“Where?” said both Blue and I in unison.

“Electrical,” said Green.

“Electrical?” said Blue. “I just saw Yellow pass near Electrical.”

“Yeah, and I saw you,” I said. “Don’t jump to conclusions.”

“Green, where were you?” said Blue.

“I was in Security and then went down to Electrical to finish my tasks,” said Green. “The body was near a vent, so it could be any of us.”

Previously, they’d found bodies near vents. The vents were small and no one could fit in them, but it seemed that somehow the Imposter could, whoever they were. The vent in Navigation was where they’d found the first body — Purple’s — and realized that something was terribly wrong.

“It has to be Blue,” I said. “He’s been awfully accusatory and was completely silent last round while we voted out Red.”

“Speaking of Red,” said Blue, “You were absolutely adamant that he was the Imposter. Are you sure it isn’t you?”

The two immediately voted for each other.

“Wait, so what’s happening?” Said Green. “Should I skip?”

“No, vote for him,” we said in unison.

“If we don’t vote someone out, the Imposter wins,” I said.

“But if we vote the wrong person out, the Imposter will also win,” said Green.

“Just vote Blue.”

“Just do it! He’s too suspicious not to.”

“Okay…” said Green.

The numbers were revealed. Two votes for Blue, one for Yellow.

The meeting concluded and the massive doors of the spaceship opened once more. Blue was ejected into the vacuum of space.

Blue was not the Imposter.

I took a nervous gulp and looked at Green, who looked back at me. There was something hollow yet full about his space suit, now that I gazed over it. It was as though there were something stirring below, ready to finally escape.

Green’s suit expanded, the glass visor of his helmet quickly popping off to reveal a pale, constantly-moving mass. The rest of the suit was ripped apart, and the creature standing in front of me was revealed.

I backed up as I looked upon Green’s new form, a horrid, terrifying beast standing where I had once stood. It croaked a terrible croak, an almost-laugh which permeated my head.

I tried to run but was grabbed by two of the creature’s tendrils and was forced backwards, trying with all my might to escape. But I knew, however, that there was no escape. 

I heard the creature open its enormous mouth, jaw snapping out of place as I got picked up and turned around. I was confronted by its rows of teeth and a needle-like tongue which looked to be as sharp as a razor.

As I got thrown into its mouth, one last message appeared in my helmet before it popped from the pressure. One last signal to confirm what I’d already known had happened.

Written by Dylan Carter

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Comments (1)

Red • Apr 21, 2021 at 12:32 am

i did not like this among us should be banned

10 Fun Ways to Use Among Us in Your Lessons to Boost Student Engagement

by Jenna Kimber

TikTok is no longer the latest craze amongst students (and adults). Among Us is the new favorite! And teachers, we’re here to show you how to incorporate Among Us into the classroom to up student engagement and make you an instant cool teacher!

Among Us is an online game that requires players to figure out who is an imposter amongst a group of players. Some players (known as crewmates) must complete tasks while playing, while the assigned imposter’s main task is to kill all other players. Players must look for clues to figure out who the imposter is. At the end of the game, players vote to guess who the imposter is.

Students are instantly engaged when they realize their teacher knows about their favorite video game or phone app. Teachers have found some really creative ways to incorporate Among Us into the classroom, and students are LOVING it!

Here are 10 ways teachers are using Among Us in the classroom.

1. Plan a virtual escape room activity that is Among Us themed.

Via: Witty Name TBA

Students are assumed to be the imposter in this version of the classroom game. The teacher will prepare 15 questions and/or puzzles for students to solve individually, in small groups, or as a whole class. In order to “escape” as the imposter, students must answer the questions or solve the puzzles.

Questions can review content or be used to challenge certain students. As students answer questions correctly (or “complete tasks,” as they would call it in the real game of Among Us), they will get closer to escaping.

But, if questions are answered incorrectly, they risk being caught and losing the game! If students miss three questions, game over!

Want more information on this? Check out this premade Google Forms option !

2. Use Among Us in math to have students determine an imposter amongst various numbers.

For example, write a standard number, like 82, in the middle of a piece of paper. Then, list other forms of the number around the standard form. One of the listed forms should be an imposter that doesn’t belong. So, you might list “eighty-two”, “80+2”, and “eighteen.” Students would then decide which number is the imposter, which in this case is “eighteen.”

3. Decorate your classroom with an “Among Us” theme

Via: @ theartoffunology

Check out this cool Among Us classroom door! Get your students in on the decorating. Having time to work on the designs can be part of your classroom rewards . Check out more amazing classroom door decorations here .

4. Download Gimkit for your students in order to play an academic version called Trust No One.

With a 30 day free trial, or just $4.99 a month, you can play all kinds of academic games in real-time with students via Gimkit. Students simply enter a game code on the website, similar to how Kahoot works. Recently, Gimkit developed their own version of Among Us where students will answer given questions in order to gain more power. They titled their version of the game Trust No One.

5. Use a Google Slides template to play a review game.

Via: Ms. Pat

Enter review questions for students to answer on an Among Us themed template. If students get the right answer, they move on in the game. We recommend the template from Miss5thClassroom , which is only $2 and totally customizable. You can also check out Ms. Pat’s Store for a video preview of what to expect when using the Among Us Google Slides templates.

6. Use chatbox and voting features, like in Among Us, in Zoom or Google Meet to debate topics in Social Studies.

In Among Us, players have a chat room where they debate who the imposter is, giving reasons for why they think a certain player is an imposter. They must use strong communication skills to convince other players to align with them. Players vote on who they think was the imposter at the end of the game.

Use a similar format to improve classroom debate and discussion. Set up chat rooms or breakout rooms so students can discuss their opinions on topics you assign and defend their thinking with reasoning. At the end of a debate, create a Zoom poll to do a final class vote based on the debate.

( If you’re teaching in person, this can be done in small groups.)

7. Plan an Among Us scavenger hunt!

Secretly assign students the role of crewmate or imposter. Place task cards around the classroom for students to solve independently. Tasks might include a review of content as well as clues to where to find the next task card.

For example, imposters could be told to secretly complete tasks incorrectly, like solving a multiplication problem with common mistakes. The goal should be to make simple mistakes that won’t draw too much suspicion. Because getting some answers incorrect is normal, but too many is “sus.” After students complete their tasks, they’ll reconvene in a small group and check each other’s work. A meeting will then take place where students can share with the class if they believe the imposter was in their group when checking each other’s work.

Finally, students will vote on the imposter. The imposter loses if the majority of the class votes for them. The imposter wins if they are not voted on!

8. Do a close reading lesson with articles about the game.

Popular websites, like Newsela, have articles about Among Us that can be printed or read aloud. When students are given texts with a huge picture of their favorite game on the front page, their eyes will immediately light up. You’ll instantly be the cool teacher just for knowing about the hottest apps!

Take this opportunity to practice close reading. Determine and discuss:

• the theme of the text
• author’s point of view
• author’s purpose in writing the text

Have students mark the text with their thoughts for discussion. There are also tons of options on Teachers Pay Teachers that can be downloaded for close reading lessons related to Among Us.

9. Create a behavior management system to distinguish “crewmates” and “imposters.”

At the start of each day, secretly choose a student, aka “crewmate,” and don’t tell the class who it is. Watch the student closely throughout the day to see if they are completing all “tasks.”  If they do, the teacher can reveal the crewmate at the end of the day and reward him/her accordingly.

If the student does not complete all tasks during the day to the best of his/her ability, the teacher will announce that today’s chosen student ended up being an “imposter” and the name cannot be revealed and no reward will be given.

10. Put up a COVID safety poster with an Among Us classroom theme.

Download these for free!

It doesn’t matter how you choose to incorporate Among Us into your classroom. Kids are going to be elated by any and all of it!

Here’s a great tutorial if you still don’t quite understand the game. Or just ask students to explain it to you!

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5 reasons why among us is the most overrated game (& 5 other contenders for that title).

Among Us was a hugely popular game in 2020, however, it is also overrated for many reasons. Here is how it compares to other overrated games.

As the year 2020 wore on, people found ways to entertain themselves through various games. One such game ended up being the murder mystery/ horror movie-inspired sensation  Among Us , a game many players enjoyed even if it broke a couple of friendships along the way.

RELATED:  10 Modern Successors To Classic Video Game Characters

Yet, there is perhaps evidence that  Among Us isn't as good as people make it out to be. That the game is rife with issues. From technical problems to repetitive gameplay, there's evidence of  Among Us 's overhype. But could it be said that there are other more overrated games?

Overrated: Players

Perhaps it's strange to cite players as being a reason for a game being overrated. Truth is,  Among Us has a massive fan base and a lot of the players are pretty s0lid. They play the game, they have fun and they follow the unspoken rules.

Then there are those who don't. Those who constantly chime in saying who the imposter is because their friend was killed by the imposter and told them, which is incredibly frustrating . Interactions and players like that ruin the gaming experience for other people and make the game less fun.

Contender: PUBG

In recent years, some of the more popular games happen to be those that revolve around the idea of battle royale games, which still had popularity in 2020 .  PUBG , considered to be the pioneer of the genre, is also one of the more overrated ones as well.

There are multiple reasons for this such as the try-hard gamers, the campers, the few maps, few updates, and events that only happen every now and then. Although it was fun at its start, PUBG  never really went anywhere.

Overrated: No Story

Not every game is going to have a story. Sometimes the best games are the ones that can be driven forward by the players, not the story. It can allow for interactions and gameplay a narrative could not provide.

RELATED:  Among Us: 10 Other Quick Multiplayer Games To Play (When The System Crashes

However, the idea of an imposter moving about crew members, taking them out one by one would've been such an amazing story mode. The fact that players overlook the potential and instead just focus on the derivative gameplay weakens the game as a whole and on a deeper level.

Contender: Sims

Again, not all games need a story mode to them. But that's not to say a story mode wouldn't let the game leap into a brand new frontier. For many fans,  The Sims is a great game where one gets to sadistically control the lives of humans and basically play God.

The kind of story one could get out of that, a story of NPC's actions going haywire could've been absolutely amazing. Instead, fans were given mediocre games with a fifth game on the way that never went beyond the tried and true formula the series had established.

Overrated: Been Done Before And Better

There's a killer among players. The players must work together to uncover the killers all while they have serious distrust over one another. Audiences have seen this kind of game done before time again, and other times, it's been done better.

Trouble in Terrorist Town ,  Garry's Mod Murder , and even an in-person game like Mafia work to sow the seeds of dissent and mistrust among players in ways far better than  Among Us  could ever be, even with added mods and maps adding to the already banal game.

Contender: Rainbow Six Siege

Like  Among Us, the idea of  Rainbow Six Siege is intriguing at first glance. The idea of players going up against one another in intense, personal situations that involve the destruction of property sounds like an awesome game.

RELATED:  10 Mystery Films To Watch If You Like Playing Among Us

However, actually playing  Rainbow Six is difficult for casual players, which takes away from the experience. Gamers don't always want to play competently. Sometimes, they just play for fun and  Rainbow Six takes away from that fun when dropped into matches full of competitive players.

Overrated: Too Contained

One could say that the likes of  Among Us is too contained of a game. Granted, when the idea is based around an imposter infiltrating a crew of spacemen, the limits aren't really set that high. Yet, it always feels there's more the game can do.

There could be more kill animations, more unique maps, more costumes, and more interesting tasks. While some of these have been implemented, there's still a lot of room for the game to grow, despite it being released in 2018 and having nearly three years to add content.

Contender: Fortnite

Fortnite  began as a game about survivors fighting off hordes of zombies that became a battle royale game similar to  PUBG . It could be said  Fortnite is more overrated than  PUBG simply because of its content.

There's a difference between too contained and not contained enough and  Fortnite exhibits that flaw. From popular film franchises to comic books infiltrating the world, it always feels like too much happening for the player to fully process, even when it's all released over a set amount of time.

Overrated: Repetitive

The replay value on a game is always worthwhile. Gamers are always hoping to be able to play the same game over and over and still enjoy themselves. There are times though that even replayable games can get too repetitive and outdated.

RELATED:  Tired of Among Us? Play These Popular Google Doodle Games Instead

All  Among Us has is players going one task to another, avoiding the imposters and screaming out who they think they are round after round. For the first few, it's fun. After twenty though, it starts to drag. After fifty... it's just not that fun anymore, even with some amazing mods added in .

Contender: Assassin's Creed

"Dating throughout history, players take control of the lives of globe-trotting assassins on perilous journeys set against the backdrop of some iconic historical settings ." The basic premise of  Assassin's Creed is awesome. It speaks to the player and pulls them in with that promise and idea.

Once in, the players slowly see that the game is nothing more than a lot of copy and paste missions jumbled together against the backdrop of some mystical and end of the world scenario. It's almost ironic the one-game players adore is the one that doesn't follow this formula. Even the movie couldn't figure the game out.

NEXT:  10 Awesome Sci-Fi Movies To Check Out If You're A Fan Of Among Us

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Among Us fans are calling everything ‘pretty sus,’ and it keeps working

IDK, an egg hat? That’s super sus, dude

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In the game Among Us , on a long enough timeline, absolutely everything and everyone will be declared as “pretty sus” at some point. “Sus” is a convenient shorthand for suspicious; it’s easy to type, even on a mobile device, and it gets your point across quickly. You may not have seen a little bean kill someone in the reactor core, but you’re pretty sure they were up there at some point, or they ran at you in a funny way. That’s all pretty sus.

“Sus” is a gut feeling without evidence, and there’s a reason why Among Us fans have started using it in their everyday vocabularies — sometimes those gut feelings pay off. As a player, it feels amazing to pull some detective work based off in-game body language or someone idling in the wrong place.

someone's lookin pretty sus.... #AmongUs #amongusart #amongusfanart pic.twitter.com/rh1yxdWSH2 — V◉IDSP▲CER GEOMATRYX ✨ (@V0IDSPACER) September 19, 2020

But sometimes a player convincingly lays out a steel cage of logic that proves that someone else in the imposter. “I saw Red kill Green in the Reactor from the security cameras, then he hit a sabotage alert on the Oxygen so everyone would rush to fix it!” or “Blue set up a sabotage, vented to kill Pink, and then reported the body to hide her involvement!”

All of the cards are on the table, and it feels very much like you’ve identified that it was Professor Plum, in the library, with the candlestick, and you’re about to get the victory you rightfully deserve.

#AmongUs You’re pretty sus, kid pic.twitter.com/GRZw5PIvru — Abnormal Chaos (@AbnormalChaos) September 15, 2020

And then the imposter types in chat: “idk youre pretty sus.” Someone else then chimes in with “they’re sus?” and someone else is like “I was in reactor and I didn’t see anything who are we voting for.” It’s such a lazy, underhanded tactic, like if you witnessed a murderer take the stand for a crime you witnessed. The murderer just shrugs and goes “Nah, wasn’t me. Pretty sure it was the witness.”

The flurry of confusion and clarifications that come from an accusation of “sus” snowballs until everyone’s pointing the finger at you. Next thing you know, the judge and prosecutor are demanding to know why you were in the boiler room and not resetting the seismic systems.

Among Us proves how unreliable eye witness testimony really is. pretty sus — Joseph Anderson (@jph_anderson) September 20, 2020

“I finished my tasks super early one round, so I was checking every room, and I saw White kill Pink in storage,” Elise, an Among Us player, tells Polygon over Discord. “No ambiguity. I report them and I’m typing up a whole paragraph and they go ‘self-report is pretty sus’ and everyone votes for me?! He immediately controlled the narrative, which was impressive, but I was also so, so salty.”

idk blue seems pretty sus #AmongUs #amongusfanart pic.twitter.com/jaC2pt0vF7 — Aldous ☕ (@cyanimus) September 19, 2020

That’s the imposter’s dream: the ability to just throw an innocent crewmate right out into the void of space, based off nothing but a vague hunch and a gullible audience. That’s why “pretty sus” has become a sort of reflex among this game’s players: They’re ready for absolutely everything to come out of a vent or accuse them of a murder, even if it means pointing the finger at you as a result.

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Heroes Among Us: When Ordinary People Become Extraordinary

Laurel Dalrymple

Students and faculty pray together following a shooting on the campus of Seattle Pacific University on Thursday. Elaine Thompson/AP hide caption

Students and faculty pray together following a shooting on the campus of Seattle Pacific University on Thursday.

You can't identify a hero from the outside. You might not suspect that Jon Meis, the Seattle Pacific University student who has been described as private and gentle, would tackle and subdue a gunman Thursday, inspiring others to help hold down the attacker until police arrived. Would those other students have acted if Meis had not?

Also yesterday, a man in Pennsylvania ran from his house in pajamas and flip-flops, and pulled an unconscious woman from a car in flames. Why did he do this? He could have called 911. He could have knocked on a neighbor's door and debated what to do. But he simply acted. Why?

And a man in Minnesota jumped 30 feet from a cliff into the St. Croix River to save a drowning 11-year-old boy.

All of these situations, which happened within days of each other, required immediate action. For a life to be saved, there was no time to wait for rescuers. So these people stepped up, at the risk of their own lives, for people they did not know.

When questioned, recurring themes run through the answers of heroes. "I didn't really think about it," "I don't think of myself as a hero," "I was just focused on what needed to be done."

Their remarks are usually humble, usually speak of automatic reaction. Many, such as Meis, don't even want to speak to the media.

Researchers Selwyn Becker and Alice Eagly said in the journal American Psychologist that heroism is not only noble risk-taking, but also something selfish, a way to ensure status.

They are the scientific researchers, but my gut tells me that most heroes are not out for selfish glory or status. They just seem somehow wired differently. Furthermore, I believe that many people have a little bit of hero inside them, and sometimes all it takes is one person to get the ball rolling, as was the case in Seattle, where a gunman had already killed one person, wounded two others and was in the process of reloading.

I don't think heroes have time to weigh the morality of their actions at the time. I suspect their values are already so deep-seated that they automatically act on them when faced with a morally challenging situation.

Psychiatrist Deane Aikins says heroes often cultivate social bonds before and after the crisis. While this is true in organizations like the military or police, and exemplified many times in feats on the job, what about those everyday heroes — the ones who act for the benefit of strangers?

I love all heroes, because any time a human being does something good, I rejoice. But to me, these humans are the ones who give me faith in humanity, the world, God, the universe and everything.

The other day, I witnessed a bad motorcycle accident. For a second, the world just froze. People sat in their cars, stunned. Nothing happened for about 30 seconds. Then, one man got out of his car and rushed over to the motorcycle rider. Soon, a woman rushed over with her cellphone. Then another person ... and another. The rider was soon surrounded: one person down on the ground with him, one directing traffic, one on the phone.

That first man was a true hero. And then the woman became a hero because of the first man. And then they were all heroes.

By the time I was able to make it to the scene of the accident, I drove up next to the first man and asked how I could help. "We got it," he said, clearly shaken. "You're a hero," I said. He looked at me, confused. "Why?" And then he walked off to the task at hand.

Today is D-Day, and while we remember the lives of many heroes on that day, and read plenty of stories that honor them, and while we continue arguing about whether Bowe Bergdahl is a hero or a villain, I want to take a moment.

I want to honor the heroes for whom there are no days of honor, no ceremonies, no medals, no recognition. These heroes are all around you, and they are complete strangers. They won't reveal themselves until something very bad is happening. And then you will see something amazing. You will see the very definition of humanity.

Laurel Dalrymple is an editor and writer for NPR.org. You can follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/laurelmdalrymple

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The Hardships and Dreams of Asian Americans Living in Poverty

Illustrations by Jing Li

Asian Americans are often portrayed as economically and educationally successful.

In reality, about one-in-ten Asian Americans live in poverty. Asian Americans also have the most income inequality of any major racial or ethnic group in the United States.

Without closely examining the diversity of Asian American experiences, it’s easy to miss the distinct stories of Asian Americans living with economic hardship.

To understand more about this population, Pew Research Center conducted 18 focus groups in 12 languages to explore the stories and experiences of Asian Americans living in poverty.

Table of Contents

Of the 24 million Asians living in the United States, about 2.3 million live in poverty . Many are working to overcome the economic hardships they encounter and achieve their American dream. But they face challenges along the way, from Asian immigrants grappling with language barriers to U.S.-born Asians navigating pathways to success.

In February 2023, Pew Research Center conducted 18 focus groups with adult participants from 11 Asian origin groups in different regions across the U.S. These are among the most likely Asian origin groups to experience economic hardship in the U.S. Focus groups included those whose approximate family income is at or below 140%-250% of the 2022 federal poverty line, depending on their location. Accompanying these focus group findings are results from a Pew Research Center survey about the hardships and dreams of Asians living in poverty, conducted from July 2022 to January 2023.

Some common themes that focus group participants shared include day-to-day financial difficulties, assumptions by others that they do not need help because they are Asian, and the importance of financial security in achieving the American dream.

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Focus groups also reveal that Asian Americans’ experiences with economic hardship differ by whether they were born in the U.S. or outside the country. Some immigrants not only experience difficulties making ends meet, but also face challenges that come with living in a new, unfamiliar country. These include learning English, navigating daily life in a new place and finding a stable job.

Even though U.S.-born Asians grew up in this country and speak English, they talk about the challenges of understanding what it takes to succeed in America. This includes getting the “right” education, getting access to the “right” knowledge and knowing the “right” people to succeed.

The findings in this data essay reveal what participants shared about their experiences with economic hardship, overcoming challenges, and their views of the American dream and social mobility in America.

The terms Asians and Asian Americans are used interchangeably throughout this data essay to refer to those who self-identify as Asian, either alone or in combination with other races or Hispanic identity.

The terms living in poverty, living near or below the federal poverty line and living with economic hardship are used interchangeably throughout this essay to refer to adults whose family income is close to or below the 2022 federal poverty line.

• For results on Asian adults from the focus groups, this refers to adults whose approximate family income is at or below 140%-250% of the federal poverty line. Thresholds varied by focus group recruitment locations to account for differences in the cost of living.
• For results on Asian adults from the survey , this refers to adults whose approximate family income falls at or below 100% of the federal poverty line.
• For data on the total U.S. Asian population from the U.S. Census Bureau , this refers to all Asian Americans whose family income is at or below 100% of the federal poverty line.

The terms federal poverty line and poverty line are used interchangeably to refer to the federal poverty guidelines published yearly by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The term U.S. born refers to people born in 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico or other U.S. territories.

The term immigrant refers to people who were born outside the 50 U.S. states or the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico or other U.S. territories.

Asian Americans and financial struggles

Financial difficulties are part of many Asian Americans’ day-to-day lives, according to the 2022-23 survey. Asian adults were asked if they had experienced any of the following financial challenges in the past 12 months: gotten food from a food bank or a charitable organization, lost their health insurance, had problems paying for their rent or mortgage, had trouble paying for medical care for themselves or their family, had trouble paying their bills, or been unable to save money for emergencies.

“It got really bad to the point where a simple bowl of rice, we weren’t even able to afford that. So there were times where a bowl of rice would be a meal for all three meals, or we just simply did not eat.” NOLAN , FILM PARTICIPANT

The most common financial difficulty experienced is being unable to save for emergencies. More than half of Asian adults living in poverty (57%) said this had happened to them. By comparison, fewer Asian adults living above the poverty line (40%) said this.

Note: “Asian adults living in poverty” refers to survey respondents whose approximate family income is at or below 100% of the federal poverty line. Share of respondents who didn’t offer an answer or answered “no” not shown.

Source: Survey of Asian American adults conducted July 5, 2022-Jan. 27, 2023. “The Hardships and Dreams of Asian Americans Living in Poverty”

Some focus group participants shared how challenging it was for them to save because of their earnings and their family needs. Participants also talked about the urgency they feel to save for their children and retirement:

“I feel a bit helpless [about my financial situation]. … I don’t want to be in debt. I have to save money to raise my kids, but I don’t have money to save.”

–Immigrant man of Korean origin in early 30s (translated from Korean)

“[I save money] to go to Pakistan. Because I have four children … I needed five or six tickets, in case my husband traveled with us, and it required a lot of money. We used to save for one whole year, and when we were back from Pakistan, we were usually empty-handed. Then the cycle started again.”

–Immigrant woman of Pakistani origin in late 40s (translated from Urdu)

“You’re not going to work forever. No one is going to work forever. You want to have savings … for your rent [or] in case of medical bills [if] something happens. [You] might as well [save for] some trips down the while when you [can] travel still. But you’re not going to be working at 80 years old, are you?”

–U.S.-born man of Chinese origin in early 40s

“We were all four of us in one apartment, four siblings, plus the parents, so that’s six people in a house, which was very, very cramped.” SABA , FILM PARTICIPANT

Other common difficulties for Asian Americans living near or below the poverty line include having trouble paying their bills (42%), needing to get food from a food bank or a charitable organization (38%) and having problems paying their rent or mortgage (33%), the survey found. Smaller shares of Asian adults living above the poverty line say they experienced difficulties paying their bills (17%), got food from a food bank or a charity (6%) or had trouble paying their rent or mortgage (11%).

These findings were echoed in our focus groups, where participants recalled the stress and tension their families felt when things like this happened to them:

“My dad lost his car a couple of times. There was this one time where I remember it was nighttime. All of a sudden, a cop comes over to our home [with another person]. … And my dad was forced to give up his car to this stranger … because, I don’t know, he wasn’t paying off the car or something. And it was very humiliating, and my brothers wanted to get physical with that person because he was acting very arrogantly. My dad was able to eventually pay back the car and somehow get it back. But there were many times when we might not have had a roof over our heads.”

–U.S.-born man of Pakistani origin in late 20s

Asian immigrants face challenges navigating life and employment in the U.S.

Immigrant and U.S.-born Asians experience economic hardship in different ways. Asian immigrants in the focus groups discussed how a lack of English proficiency, navigating transportation and getting a good job all shape their experiences with economic hardship.

“I felt sad about life, didn’t know the language, didn’t know the roads. I had no friends, so I felt very sad.” PHONG , FILM PARTICIPANT (TRANSLATED FROM VIETNAMESE)

For example, not knowing English when they first arrived in the country created extra challenges when using local transportation systems and meeting basic daily life needs such as shopping for groceries:

“When we were very young, the most difficult thing we faced [after coming to the U.S.] was not being able to speak the language. Unless you lived in those times, you wouldn’t know. We didn’t know how to buy food. … We didn’t know the language and there was no interpreter available. … I didn’t know how to take the bus, I didn’t know where to go, or to which place they were taking me to school. When we were asked to go to the classroom, we didn’t know where to go. … There was no other way, because there was no communication.”

–Immigrant woman of Hmong origin in late 50s (translated from Hmong)

Language barriers also brought extra hurdles for Asian immigrants in the job market. Some focus group participants said it was hard to explain their skills to potential employers in English effectively, even if they had the relevant education or skills for the job and had learned English before they immigrated:

“After coming [to the U.S.], there were many problems to face, first … the language problem. We have read English … but we are not used to speaking. … We also had education … but since we can’t explain ourselves in English – what we can do, what we know … we are getting rejected [from jobs] as we cannot speak. … Another problem was that I had a child. My child was small. I could not go to work leaving him. At that time, my husband was working. He also had the same thing – he had education, but he could not get a good job because of the language. [As another participant] said, we had to work below the minimum wage.”

–Immigrant woman of Bangladeshi origin in late 30s (translated from Bengali)

Not wanting to be a burden influenced life choices of many U.S.-born participants

For many U.S.-born focus group participants, concerns about being a burden to their families shaped their childhoods and many of their life decisions:

“It’s difficult to talk to [my parents] because you grew up here and it’s just totally different from them growing up in Vietnam. … It’s the same like what [another participant] was saying, when you take off the burden to your parents, right? So I dropped out of college, just because I didn’t want them paying anymore. I just didn’t think that I was going to do or be anything in college, right? So I would rather work. So I started taking responsibility of my own and you start working really hard and you getting out of the house and helping them pay for bills.”

–U.S.-born man of Vietnamese origin in mid-40s

“My family’s struggling. Is education more important, [or] is working more important? I really felt that growing up because a lot of my friends, education – going to college and going to a techno school – wasn’t really on their radar, it wasn’t really something on their plan. I think talking to a lot of the folks and a lot of my friends during their time, they felt like they had to grow up to provide for their family or for you to find some type of income to kind of help their family. And so that really drove the direction of at least one of my friends, or a lot of my friends.”

–U.S.-born man of Hmong origin in mid-30s

Some U.S.-born focus group participants said that when reflecting on their childhoods, they could see the financial burden they had on their families in a way they did not realize as a child:

“At a certain point you become very aware of how much of a financial burden you are. You don’t ask for anything you want. Like, you don’t ask for prom. You don’t ask to join clubs. You don’t ask to go on field trips, things like that. You just know that it’s going to cause so much drain on your parents.”

–U.S.-born woman of Vietnamese origin in mid-20s

“[My parents] had like a lot of responsibilities, like … giving money back to their father, and then their sisters and brothers, helping them out back [in Pakistan]. … [My father] had to support us and then send money back constantly there. I didn’t know that until now, basically. … We would hardly see him. Maybe like on Sunday, we would see him a couple of hours. But it was on the weekdays, we would hardly see our father. He was always working.”

–U.S.-born woman of Pakistani origin in early 30s

Overcoming economic challenges

The survey found that when Asian adults living in poverty have needed help with bills, housing, food or seeking a job, about six-in-ten (61%) say they’ve turned to family or friends.

Some focus group participants mentioned that families and friends in their ethnic community were a great source of financial help. For others, the limited size of their ethnic community in the U.S. posed obstacles in obtaining assistance.

“My dad arrived in the U.S. when he was 26 years old, and I’m now 29 years old. … I have seven siblings and my parents who support me. And my parents didn’t have that, they didn’t have their parents to support them.” TANG , FILM PARTICIPANT

“It was very difficult during [my] study [at university]. … I had a scholarship, most of the part was scholarship; however, I had to pay something between $10,000 and $15,000 per semester. And I had to eat, I had to pay rent, I had to do everything. At the same time, there are many other things too, aren’t there? And there was always a stress about money. This semester is over now, how do I pay for the next? I had no clarity about what to do and not to do. In that situation, I approached those friends studying there or who came there a little earlier and were working to borrow money. … I [was] offered help by some friends and in finding a job and being helped for my needs.”

–Immigrant man of Nepalese origin in early 40s (translated from Nepali)

“We didn’t have a large Burmese community to ask for such help. It was not yet present. As we had no such community, when we had just arrived, we told close friends, got directions and went to ask for help.”

–Immigrant woman of Burmese origin in late 40s (translated from Burmese)

However, not all Asians living with economic hardship have asked for or received help. In the focus groups, participants shared why they or their families sometimes did not do so or felt hesitant. Fear of gossip and shame were mentioned multiple times:

“[I experienced financial difficulties after I first arrived in the U.S.] because I came here as a student. … It’s because I had to pay monthly rent and I paid for living expenses. I felt a little pressured when the monthly payment date approached. I had no choice but to ask my parents in Korea for money even as an adult, so I felt a sense of shame.”

–Immigrant woman of Korean origin in early 40s (translated from Korean)

“My cousin will [help me financially] without judgment. But, like, my aunt and elders – if it gets back to them [that I asked for help], it’s going to for sure come with judgment. And if I could figure it out myself, I will take the way without judgment.”

“To add on to what [another participant] said, if you go to the community [for help] or whatever, you know, by tomorrow everybody’s going to know it’s your problem.”

–U.S.-born woman of Pakistani origin in early 40s

Immigrants who came to the U.S. because of conflict are more familiar with government aid programs

Asian immigrants come to this country for a variety of reasons. In the focus groups, immigrant participants who came to the U.S. due to conflict or war in their origin countries referenced government assistance programs more often than those who came for other reasons.

This reflects a broader pattern among Asian immigrants overall: Those who came because of conflict or persecution have turned to federal, state or local governments for help with living expenses or employment more often than immigrants who came for economic or educational opportunities, according to the survey.

Focus group participants reflected on differences in the amount of government help available. Sometimes, they expressed a sense of unequal treatment:

“Vietnamese have this program where people got sponsored because of the war. So for other Asians, they feel that we are more privileged. Because from what I know, the Koreans and the Japanese, they must have money in order to come to America. As for us, we can come here through the refugee program, we can come here through the political program. They feel that we got more preferential treatment than other Asians in that regard.”

–Immigrant man of Vietnamese origin in early 40s (translated from Vietnamese)

“During the pandemic, I had to go through housing assistance and everything [to pay my rent]. Something like that with EBT [Electronic Benefits Transfer], how they send you stimulus checks. Korea doesn’t have any of that stuff.”

–U.S.-born woman of Korean origin in late 40s

“I think my community is relatively traditional. Because 20 years ago, we went straight to Chinatown fresh off the plane [after immigrating]. I still remember being in [the local] hospital, lots of social workers were there to help out, including with a medical insurance card, and applying for service, most importantly medical insurance. We all went to [the same] street. We relied on other Chinese people.”

–Immigrant man of Chinese origin in late 30s (translated from Mandarin)

Family ties contribute to increased awareness of government programs. For example, when asked how they learned about using government programs for help, some U.S.-born participants said:

“[I learned about the government programs from] my parents. I had to translate for them.”

–U.S.-born woman of Cambodian origin in mid-30s

“I was working at [a smoothie shop], and I was 17 and a half. … My college loan was like $50,000 [and I was] making $12.50 [an hour], how the hell am I supposed to be paying that month to month? Because my month-to-month was damn near $300, $500. My $12.50 an hour does not even cover for it, any of it, whatsoever. And, you know, me [having] been kicked out of home … I was living with my aunt. … I don’t want to burden her. So I had to go and ask her. She told me, ‘Hey, you should go and apply for food stamps.’”

–U.S.-born woman of Laotian origin in mid-30s

U.S.-born and immigrant focus group participants hold different views on education’s role in achieving a better future

“My friend, he started out at internship … I was too naive. I was laughing at the time, like, ‘Man you spend your time? You took buses there every day? No pay?’ … I just didn’t know the big picture behind [it]. I wish I could plan for [it] just like how they did.” PHUOC , FILM PARTICIPANT

Reflecting on what could lead to success and achieving the American dream, focus group participants who were born in or grew up in the U.S. emphasized the value of getting connected to the “right” opportunities:

“[You don’t have] to go to school to be successful. I mean, they say there are people who are book smart and just people who are street smart, you know. [As long as you] grow up and you know the right people … networking on the right people to get into things. Or, you know, the right people to do the right things to get to where you want to be in life.”

–U.S.-born man of Hmong origin in late 20s

Other participants said it would have helped if their families had a deeper understanding of how the education system prepares them for good careers:

“I feel if my parents were educated and they could have guided me in the right direction [for college] – although, they tried their best. I’m not blaming them. But, you know, if I had someone of a more academic background who knew the system … I will try my best to help my daughter out in college or help her choose what her major is going to be. [My parents couldn’t provide] that kind of help that really helped me in choosing my major. … And so I think just the background that we come from was not the best – or not having the full grasp of this system. … Versus someone who’s had parents here for multiple years, and their parents are now telling them, like, ‘Hey, this is not the right decision for you. Try doing this. This will be better in the long run.’”

–U.S.-born man of Pakistani origin in early 30s

Some also said firsthand knowledge of how to invest and how the U.S. financial system works would have helped:

“[In] the newer generation, we have access to learn all the things we need to, right? [I watch videos] that talk about, like, ‘These are the things you need to do in order to be financially successful. You need to invest your money, get into stocks,’ and stuff like that. And I know that not even 1% of my Hmong community knows anything about that stuff. … So I think we can be more financially successful, including myself, if we were to look more deeply into those things.”

–U.S.-born woman of Hmong origin in late 20s

“If you’re educated and know how, like, let’s say investments work, if you know how that’s done and then you apply it actually going through [someone] like investors or even stockbrokers, then you’ll see the fruits of your labor, or at least experience that, as opposed to not even having the knowledge or even the experience to begin with.”

–U.S.-born man of Cambodian origin in mid-30s

Some participants shared that even when they have some knowledge of financial institutions, they feel the system is working against them:

“I think systematic racism [is a barrier to achieving the American dream]. … I mean, if you own a car, you got to get the bank to approve you. … And they charge people with, like, no credit the highest fee, the most percentage, which are a lot of the folks [like] us trying to achieve the American dream. And then we go to neighborhoods that have the highest crime rate, we also have the most premiums. … And so I think that, one, we’re paying a lot more with much less … the system [was] set up well before minorities, and I think we’re pretty much going to fall behind.”

Many focus group participants also see the value of education, especially a college one, in leading toward a better future and achieving the American dream:

“[When I think of the American dream, it means] if you work hard enough, you can succeed. … You can get an education or a higher education. Then you have so many choices here and exposure to so many ideas and concepts that you wouldn’t otherwise.”

“The bachelor’s degree was important to me in the sense that I needed it so that I could apply for the jobs I wanted. … I guess it made things a bit easier.” THET , FILM PARTICIPANT (TRANSLATED FROM BURMESE)

But this sentiment resonated more with immigrant participants than those born in the U.S.:

“It is the education and the relevant knowledge I think that our Hmong people must have. We’ve been living in this country for the last 45 years. I think that to live in this country, it is very important for some people. I do not think everyone has a ‘lawyer’ or a ‘doctor’ in their house. If it happens, maybe we will reach our goal and the poverty will gradually disappear from our lives.”

–Immigrant woman of Hmong origin in mid-30s (translated from Hmong)

“I think if I obtain any degree, I would perhaps be able to do something.”

Assumptions about Asians hurt their chances of overcoming challenges

Participants shared that other people’s assumptions about Asians complicate their experience of living with economic hardship. Asians are often characterized as a “model minority” and portrayed as educationally and financially successful when compared with other groups.

Some participants shared how the assumption that all Asians are doing well hurt their ability to seek help:

“I have a daughter … she’s the only Asian in class. … Everybody tends to think, ‘She’s Asian; she’s so smart; her mommy has money. So you got to invite her to your birthday party because her mom is rich. [Her] mom will buy you a present.’ … I’m not rich, but because we’re Asian … she’s invited to all these parties.”

–U.S.-born woman of Hmong origin in early 30s

“What I can assume is that outside of our community, especially at the government level, [including] state level and central federal level here, we are missing out or not eligible for benefits. In their opinion, we are rich, no matter if we are working or not. [They may think] our stories may not be genuine. They may think we are making up a story [if we apply for benefits].”

Striving for the American dream

Freedom was a recurring theme in how focus group participants define their American dream. Two aspects were mentioned. The first was freedom from debt and stress over making ends meet, such as paying for everyday basic needs including rent and food. The second was the ability to make life choices freely without financial constraints, enabling them to live the life they aspire to.

Reaching the American dream

Half of Asians living near or below the federal poverty line say they believe they have achieved the American dream or are on their way to achieving it, the survey found. This includes 15% who say they have achieved it and 36% who say they are on their way. By comparison, among those living above the poverty line, 27% say they’ve achieved the American dream, and another 46% say they are on their way.

“Before I came to America, I had never heard of the American dream. … But because I was able to at least bring my son along, not only my life but also his education has improved significantly.” THEIN , FILM PARTICIPANT (TRANSLATED FROM BURMESE)

Among focus group participants, many were optimistic about reaching the American dream for themselves:

“[To me, the American dream is] the opportunity to come to America. I’ve learned a lot after reaching here. And I’ve been able to help my parents and relatives. Despite facing some troubles here, I’ve [provided them a] little financial assistance. I would’ve been unable to help them if I had been in Bhutan.”

–Immigrant woman of Bhutanese origin in late 40s (translated from Dzongkha)

Some participants were also hopeful that the next generation can achieve their American dream, even when they themselves are not there yet:

“When I think about the American dream, I look back at myself, because I belong to the first generation that came to this country. We all started very late. I know that this country will help you, but really it will not be easy for us. … What I think will help me to be happy is to ‘reach the American dream.’ If I can’t achieve it, then I will support my children so that they can reach the dream and I will be happy with them. I will give my children money to help them study.”

“If I can’t get [the American dream] for myself, it is okay. No matter how I am, I’ve already reached half of my life. But I’ve done as much as I can do for [my children], so my responsibility is done. If it’s their turn, I believe they will be able to do all that I couldn’t. I believe it.”

“I would like to own a home one day. And at this rate, and like many of my peers, that’s not a reachable goal right now. I don’t see it being a reachable goal for me for a very, very, very long time.” TANG , FILM PARTICIPANT

Still, the survey found that 47% of Asian adults living in poverty say the American dream is out of reach for them, higher than the share among those living above the poverty line (26%). Not all Asians living in poverty feel the same way about achieving the American dream, with U.S.-born Asians in the focus groups being less optimistic about reaching the American dream than immigrant Asians.

“In a certain era with the U.S. and the immigrants coming, the American dream [was] you come, you study, you do this, you can climb up the ladder, etc., etc. That was the big American dream. And I think there was a period where that was possible. Not any longer.”

Others also shared worries about their prospects of reaching the American dream because of different immigration histories and economic concerns such as inflation:

“I think I was conditioned to think too small to have the American dream. … Vietnamese Americans came over here at a very specific time. … There were Chinese Americans that came here like centuries ago, and they had the time to build generational wealth. We know that Vietnamese people came here in the ’70s. That’s not enough time to grow generational wealth.”

–U.S.-born woman of Vietnamese origin in late 20s

“I have kids. … They’re spoiled. … Now with inflation, houses are more expensive now [than 10, 20 years ago], right? Let’s say 20 years from now, when they buy a house, [the American dream] is going to be unachievable, you know what I mean? Like, unless they are a TikTok star or an entertainer or some kind. … [It’s] going to be tough.”

–U.S.-born man of Chinese origin in late 30s

Freedom from debt

For many participants, being debt-free is important to their vision of the American dream and promotes a life with more financial stability and independence:

“[If I could choose one dream in America, it would be to have] no debt. … When buying something, they always say, ‘Be careful, or you’ll be in debt.’ … And that is what got stuck in my throat.”

–Immigrant woman of Laotian origin in mid-30s (translated from Lao)

“[I haven’t achieved the American dream because I’m not] debt-free, you know, just trying to have extra money, instead of living paycheck to paycheck.”

“[My dream in America is] to be independent, for example, we always lived with the money of mom and dad. One is to be independent when you come here. Let me earn so much money that if I go to the store and buy something, I don’t even have to look at the price tag. That [is] my dream.”

–Immigrant woman of Nepalese origin in early 40s (translated from Nepali)

Participants shared that being debt-free also means having less stress and worry about making ends meet so that they can have extra resources and bandwidth to help their families:

“[The most important thing to achieving the American dream is] being debt-free and having real estate and income steadiness. … If you have rent income, you’re not trading in your time for money, so you have real estate. … You’re not stressing, you have time for your kids more, and your family. You’re probably a little bit happier.”

–Immigrant man of Cambodian origin in mid-20s

“The main thing is that I want to fully support my father and mother, and that I don’t have to worry about [how] I will support myself, or how I will pay my house rent. This is my number one.”

–Immigrant woman of Bangladeshi origin in late 20s (translated from Bengali)

For others, having a stable job is an important step to reaching the American dream:

“I want to have a job, and if I have a job, I’ll have money. I’m only working three and a half days a week right now, and I want to work more. I want more jobs the most, right now. I don’t need anything in America. Just a job.”

Freedom to dream

Focus group participants mentioned having the financial ability to not only meet their basic needs, but also pursue their dreams. Asians born in the U.S. mentioned the freedom to chase one’s aspirations without financial constraints more often than immigrants. Regardless of nativity, the ability to live the life they want is fundamental to many focus group participants’ definitions of the American dream:

“[When] everyone around you is immigrants and you’re all just trying to survive, the only thing you’re trained to think about is survival. But you’re not thinking about investment. Like, when you grow older and you start thinking, ‘Okay, I need to spend money to make money,’ that’s when you start thinking bigger. Yeah, I’m not just thinking about like having one home, I want 10 homes.”

“[Financial] stability is you have nothing but you could survive. [Financial] freedom is you have enough that you can do anything you want. That’s my financial freedom.”

“As it was so hard at that time … what motivated you to keep going and work so hard?” “My strength, my mindset was I wanted to earn money so that my children could have a bright future.” PHUOC AND PHONG , FILM PARTICIPANTS (TRANSLATED FROM VIETNAMESE)

The American dream, to some focus group participants, is about more than financial achievements. Finding happiness and helping others, ultimately leading them to live the life they desire, are key parts of their American dream.

“I want to thank [another participant] for saying ‘self-actualization,’ because personally I think it’s really powerful to be able to know what you want. Because then you’ll know what kind of job you want, what kind of house you want, whether you want to be in politics or not. Like, loving yourself and understanding yourself to your core, then that will be the [deciding factor].”

–Immigrant man of Cambodian origin in early 40s

“I think for me [the American dream] is that there is a house for me, with no interest, I do not owe any loan, my parents could live there comfortably, their struggle is over, and also I have enough … to be able to do something for Pakistan later [in life], God willing.”

–Immigrant woman of Pakistani origin in mid-20s (translated from Urdu)

“[Some people define success as having] lots of money, kids, cars, right? But that’s not really … what I would consider success. Success is something that – does it make you happy? … Are you happy every day going to work? Does it make you happy? When you come home, are you happy?”

About this project

Pew Research Center designed these focus groups and survey questions to better understand the experiences of Asian Americans living with economic hardship. By including participants who are among the Asian origin groups most likely to experience poverty, the focus groups aimed to capture, in their own words, their experiences and challenges in America today. The discussions in these groups may or may not resonate with all Asians living in poverty in the United States.

The project is part of a broader research portfolio studying the diverse experiences of Asians living in the U.S.

Survey and demographic analysis of Asians living in poverty

For a comprehensive examination of Asian adults’ experiences with economic hardship from Pew Research Center’s 2022-23 survey of Asian Americans, as well as a demographic analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, read “Key facts about Asian Americans living in poverty.”

Videos throughout this data essay illustrate what focus group participants discussed. Individuals recorded in these video clips did not participate in the focus groups but were selected based on similar demographic characteristics and thematically relevant stories.

Watch the short film related to the themes in the data essay.

Methodological note

This multi-method research project examines the many facets of living with economic hardship among Asian Americans today.

The qualitative analysis is based on 18 focus groups conducted in February 2023 in 12 languages with 144 participants across four locations. Recruited participants had an approximate family income that is at or below 140%-250% of the federal poverty line, depending on the location. More information about the focus group methodology and analysis can be found in the focus group methodology .

The survey analysis included in this data essay is based on 561 Asian adults living near or below the poverty line from Pew Research Center’s 2022-23 survey of Asian Americans, the largest nationally representative survey of Asian American adults of its kind to date, conducted in six languages. For more details, refer to the survey methodology . For questions used in this analysis, refer to the topline questionnaire .

Acknowledgments

Pew Research Center is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts, its primary funder. The Center’s Asian American portfolio was funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, with generous support from The Asian American Foundation; Chan Zuckerberg Initiative DAF, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation; the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; the Henry Luce Foundation; the Doris Duke Foundation; The Wallace H. Coulter Foundation; The Dirk and Charlene Kabcenell Foundation; The Long Family Foundation; Lu-Hebert Fund; Gee Family Foundation; Joseph Cotchett; the Julian Abdey and Sabrina Moyle Charitable Fund; and Nanci Nishimura.

We would also like to thank the Leaders Forum for its thought leadership and valuable assistance in helping make this survey possible.

The strategic communications campaign used to promote the research was made possible with generous support from the Doris Duke Foundation.

This is a collaborative effort based on the input and analysis of a number of individuals and experts at Pew Research Center and outside experts.

• In this data essay, definitions of “living near or below the poverty line” and related terms differ between survey respondents and focus group participants. Refer to the terminology box for details. ↩

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About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts .