Introduction:This study focused on Mexican mothers' socialization of their children on competition in three socio-ecological settings under social change. Starting with Lewis and Madsen since the 1950s, Mexican children have been characterized as the most cooperative and least competitive compared to hundreds of other societies. Even in a recent comparison of 30 countries worldwide, Van Doesum,… Garcia et al (2021) reported that Mexicans scored second to the top in social mindfulness. Most of those studies were experimental, limiting their focus to children, and attributed their low competition to mothers' socialization.
Method: Based on fieldwork in three socioecological settings (Rural, semi-urban, and urban) and using Fulop's (2024) semi-structured interview guideline, 61 mothers were interviewed (36, 10, and 15, respectively).
Results: The results showed that rural mothers continue to encourage wellbeing based on cooperation and social mindfulness as central moral concerns, while the semiurban promote concern for others and the needs of personal achievement. Different from them, the urban counterparts promoted maximization of their own and the need for self-development (schooling) to challenge any obstacles to accomplish material goods in the future. Rural mothers did not even have a clear concept what to understand by the concept of competition. In conclusion, despite the limitations, these findings show continuity and change of traditional values, depending on mothers' socioecological surroundings. These findings, in turn, are consistent with previous anthropological and psychological experimental studies.