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Familial Cultural Values, Depressive Symptoms, School Belonging and Grades in Latino Adolescents: Does Gender Matter?
Abstract
Past studies document that Latino familial cultural values (i.e. familism, affiliative obedience and filial obligation) protect against depressive symptoms and promote academic resilience in adolescence. However, some studies suggest that familial cultural values differ across gender, with females reporting greater obligations and fewer freedoms compared to their male counterparts. We examined the relationship between familial cultural values, gender, depressive symptoms and school outcomes in a sample of 179 Latino adolescents (52.9 % female; mean age = 14). Females reported greater levels of familism and greater filial obligations. We also found greater familism to be associated with fewer depressive symptoms and greater sense of school belonging for both genders. Similarly, moderate levels of filial obligations were associated with better grades across genders. In contrast, filial obligation and affiliative obedience were associated with fewer depressive symptoms only for females. While these values serve an equally protective function in the academic adjustment of both females and males, familial cultural values may be uniquely protective for females against depressive symptoms. Effective interventions for Latino youth should capitalize on the protective and resilient effects of familial cultural values and be cognizant of the role gender plays in the relationship between these values and outcomes.
... Indeed, Latinx adolescents who received more cultural socialization from parents were more likely to engage in prosocial behaviors such as comforting those who experienced emotional distress and supporting those going through a crisis (Knight et al., 2016). These types of prosocial behaviors may be rooted in cultural values documented in Latinx families that promote a sense of obligation and responsibility to help and support one's family (Cupito, Stein, & Gonzalez, 2015). In their study of Mexican American adolescents, for example, Knight and colleagues (2016) found that Mexican American cultural values transmitted at home were associated with greater public prosocial tendencies among the youth, especially for those with a stronger sense of Latinx identity. ...
... During their ERI exploration process, Latinx youth may not only learn about cultural factors, but they may also learn about the marginalization, oppression, and inequities that Latinx groups face in the United States. As adolescents reach clarity about their ethnic-racial membership (i.e., resolution), they may also form a greater understanding about their responsibilities to their families and broader communities (Cupito et al., 2015). The awareness surrounding their social identity and broader group membership may serve as a motivating force for future civic action (Cross et al., in press;Ginwright & Cammarota, 2002). ...
... Accordingly, we expected that both exploration and resolution would mediate the associations between ERS and sociopolitical discussions and emergent civic engagement. Given that previous studies suggest possible gender and age differences in civic participation, we accounted for these characteristics in our analyses (Cupito et al., 2015;Diemer, 2012). ...
The current study expands on ethnic–racial socialization (ERS) among Latinx families to include sociopolitical discussions as a way to better understand how these practices relate to adolescents’ developmental outcomes, including their ethnic–racial identity (ERI) and their sociopolitical development. More specifically, we examined whether there were direct links between parental ERS practices and sociopolitical discussions at home and adolescents’ emergent participatory citizenship via their ERI processes (i.e., exploration and resolution). These questions were examined using path analyses with 267 self‐identified Latinx early adolescents (M age = 11.88, SD = 1.22; girls = 54.3%). Results revealed direct associations between sociopolitical discussions and cultural socialization at home with civic accountability. Thus, youth whose parents had engaged in more discussions with them about current political issues and who taught them about their ethnic heritage and history endorsed a greater sense of collective responsibility for helping community members in need. Additionally, preparation for bias and sociopolitical discussions at home were each uniquely associated with more ERI exploration, and each was also indirectly associated with expectations for future community involvement via youths’ ERI exploration. Our findings come at a critical juncture in time, providing insight into ways we can support the positive ERI development and build the civic capacity of Latinx adolescents.
... Although generally stable in primary school, students' SOSB can plummet during their transition to secondary school, due to greater bullying / aggression, weaker peer affiliations, or weaker perceived school support (Niehaus, Rudasill, & Rakes, 2012;Pellegrini & Long, 2002). Some empirical studies showed that students' SOSB start dropping at grade six (Furrer & Skinner, 2003;Tian et al., 2016) and keep dropping during secondary school (Cupito, Stein, & Gonzalez, 2014;Wilkinson-Lee, Zhang, Nuno, & Wilhelm, 2011). In contrast, another study found that students' SOSB remained stable during secondary school (Hughes, Im, & Allee, 2015). ...
... Compared to boys, girls often valued education more, showed superior academic performance, and engaged more in school activities, and, as a result, had higher SOSB according to some studies (e.g., Allen, Kern, Vella-Brodrick, Hattie, & Waters, 2016;Goodenow, 1993;Ma, 2003;Witherspoon & Ennett, 2011). However, other studies showed greater SOSB among boys than girls (Bonny, Britto, Klostermann, Hornung, & Slap, 2000;Galliher, Rostosky, & Hannah, 2004) and still others showed no significant gender differences in SOSB (Cupito et al., 2014;Sirin & Rogers-Sirin, 2005). Some studies suggested that gender gaps in SOSB narrowed among older lower secondary school students (Ma, 2003). ...
... This change might begin at the transition from primary school to secondary school because of greater bullying, greater aggression, fewer peer affiliations, or less perceived school support (Niehaus et al., 2012;Pellegrini & Long, 2002). Moreover, the fall in SOSB might continue during secondary school (Cupito et al., 2014;Wilkinson-Lee et al., 2011). Hence, researchers can test whether providing more support to secondary school students or more activities to engage them can improve their SOSB. ...
Free online version: https://rdcu.be/bpFzJ
As students’ sense of school belonging (SOSB) is essential for their psychosocial well‐being and academic success, developing precise measures of SOSB is critical for assessing it properly. After an unrelated item was deleted, the SOSB scale showed good psychometric properties, based on Rasch analysis of data from 36,963 students in Grade 4 or Grade 8 from four East Asian societies. While no items showed gender differential item functioning (DIF), two items showed substantial society DIF, and two items showed grade DIF in Japan and South Korea. Concurrent equating created a common measurement scale for the four societies for future comparisons. The multigroup random slope two‐level analysis of the concurrent SOSB measures showed that SOSB is higher among girls than boys. From Grade 4 to Grade 8, SOSBs dropped substantially, especially for South Korea, and gender gaps decreased in Hong Kong, Japan, and South Korea. Hence, studies of interventions to improve SOSB, especially for boys and students in later grades, are vital.
... Evidence further indicates that the associations of acculturation with symptoms of depression and smoking are stronger for Latina/o girls than boys (e.g., Blanco et al., 2011). Some scholars suggest that it is not U.S. or Latino/a culture acquisition/retention per se that leads to higher or lower depression and smoking risk but the experiences that can accompany acculturation (Schwartz et al., 2010) such as perceived discrimination (Lorenzo-Blanco et al., 2011), bullying victimization (Forster et al., 2013), social support (Rivera, 2007), and perceptions of a positive school climate (Cupito et al., 2015). Similarly, scholars propose that it is not gender per se that leads to higher or lower depression and smoking risk but the experiences that come with being female (e.g., more bullying victimization compared to boys) or male (e.g., more perceived discrimination compared to girls; Cole, 2009). ...
... Although conceptualizations of school climate range from more affective (e.g., sense of school belonging and school connectedness ) to more contextual (e.g., perceived safety and presence of gangs) to more interpersonal (e.g., teacher–student relationship and student–peer relationships; Prado et al., 2009), scholars agree that a positive school environment promotes healthy development. Studies have linked positive school climate with better academic outcomes (Cupito et al., 2015), lower symptoms of anxiety and depression (Maurizi et al., 2013), and lower substance use (Prado et al., 2009 ). Moreover, acculturation (i.e., Latino/a cultural values ) relate with higher school belonging (Cupito et al., 2015), indicating that students' school climate experiences vary by acculturation. ...
... Studies have linked positive school climate with better academic outcomes (Cupito et al., 2015), lower symptoms of anxiety and depression (Maurizi et al., 2013), and lower substance use (Prado et al., 2009 ). Moreover, acculturation (i.e., Latino/a cultural values ) relate with higher school belonging (Cupito et al., 2015), indicating that students' school climate experiences vary by acculturation. ...
Latino/a youth are at risk for symptoms of depression and cigarette smoking but this risk varies by acculturation and gender. To understand why some youth are at greater risk than others, we identified profiles of diverse community experiences (perceived discrimination, bullying victimization, social support, perceived school safety) and examined associations between profiles of community experience and depressive symptoms, cigarette smoking, acculturation, and gender. Data came from Project Red (Reteniendo y Entendiendo Diversidad para Salud), a school-based longitudinal study of acculturation among 1,919 Latino/a adolescents (52% female; 84% 14 years old; 87% U.S. born). Latent profile analysis (LPA) revealed 4 distinct profiles of community experience that varied by gender and acculturation. Boys were overrepresented in profile groups with high perceived discrimination, some bullying, and lack of positive experiences, while girls were overrepresented in groups with high bullying victimization in the absence and presence of other community experiences. Youth low on both U.S. and Latino/a cultural orientation described high perceived discrimination and lacked positive experiences, and were predominantly male. Profiles characterized by high perceived discrimination and /or high bullying victimization in the absence of positive experiences had higher levels of depressive symptoms and higher risk of smoking, relative to the other groups. Findings suggest that acculturation comes with diverse community experiences that vary by gender and relate to smoking and depression risk. Results from this research can inform the development of tailored intervention and prevention strategies to reduce depression and/or smoking for Latino/a youth. (PsycINFO Database Record
... is associated with fewer depressive symptoms [15,16], while family conflict is associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms [17]. ...
... p < 0.001) decrease in the probability of high depressive symptoms among participants who reported such symptoms in at least one wave. This is consistent with studies showing that familism is associated with decreased depressive symptoms [15,16]. For LSMM facing mental health challenges, family support makes a difference. ...
Family rejection has negative health consequences for Latinx sexual minority men (LSMM). However, LSMM often reconcile with their families, a phenomenon cross-sectional studies miss. We analyzed longitudinal data from the Healthy Young Men’s Study in Los Angeles. We used individual fixed-effects Poisson regression to model changes over time in the associations among family support, drug use, and depressive symptoms. We found that (1) the initiation of drug use was associated with a 7.2% (Ratio=1.072, 95% CI 1.006 - 1.142, p = 0.03) increase in family support among LSMM who reported high depressive symptoms (depression subscale T-score ≥ 63) in at least one data wave; (2) a 1-unit increase in family support was associated with a 4.7% (RR = ;0.953, 95% CI 0.931 - 0.976, p < 0.001) decrease in the probability of high depressive symptoms; and (3) no significant association between a change in drug use and a change in high depressive symptoms. Over time, LSMM appear to benefit from the health effects of family support associated with Latinx family structures.
... The slightly higher mean levels of resilience among males relative to female participants in study findings align with prior research demonstrating the linkages between resilience and Latinx cultural values, including gender roles (Bermudez and Mancini 2013). Latina females have been shown to be more likely to not only endorse familial cultural values, but to also feel greater pressure to embody those roles (Cupito et al. 2015). Hence, females who fail to fulfil particular roles may experience greater depressive symptoms and exhibit less resilience due to heightened pressure and levels of expectations (Cupito et al. 2015;Lorenzo-Blanco et al. 2012). ...
... Latina females have been shown to be more likely to not only endorse familial cultural values, but to also feel greater pressure to embody those roles (Cupito et al. 2015). Hence, females who fail to fulfil particular roles may experience greater depressive symptoms and exhibit less resilience due to heightened pressure and levels of expectations (Cupito et al. 2015;Lorenzo-Blanco et al. 2012). The finding that country of origin was also associated with resilience may be due to the different contexts and experiences in those countries that shaped participants' levels of adversity, resources, and challenges when migrating to the U.S. (Suárez-Orozco et al. 2018). ...
Globally, international migrants are at elevated risk for experiencing loneliness due to separation from social networks in their countries of origin. In the United States, the political rhetoric has been particularly exclusionary against Latinx immigrants, exposing them to discrimination and fear of deportation. Such environments may result in heightened levels of social isolation, which may contribute to greater risk of poor mental and physical health outcomes. Latinx immigrants, however, may access social support in their destination communities that buffers against these negative outcomes. This study sought to examine how social support and loneliness shape Latinx immigrants’ abilities to address the challenges related to migration. Multivariate linear regression analyses were conducted with survey data collected from Latinx immigrants in New York City (n = 306). Results revealed that Latinx immigrants with greater social support and less feelings of loneliness were more resilient. Specifically, findings suggest that social support may partially protect against the negative impact of isolation on Latinx immigrants’ capacity to thrive. Clinical social workers who work with immigrant groups may consider how migration during the life course affects immigrants’ social supports and experiences of loneliness. Social work interventions that integrate strategies to increase social support may provide opportunities to address social isolation and other obstacles associated with migration. Such approaches acknowledge loneliness not only as a psychological symptom, but also as a consequence of unfavorable social environments towards immigrant populations. Future research may develop and assess culturally relevant strategies to promote social support and reduce loneliness among marginalized immigrants.
... For instance, in a longitudinal study, Wheeler and colleagues (2017) found among Hispanic adolescents that while substance use outcomes increased as youth aged, familial cultural values buffered youth from participating in risk behaviors. In other investigations, familismo has been linked with increasing school belongingness (Calzada et al., 2012;Cupito et al., 2015), with one explanation for this being that youth want to do better in school to make their families proud (Esparza & S anchez, 2008). In addition, familismo has been shown to increase perceptions of support and cultural group connectedness, limit feelings of isolation (Corona, Campos, & Chen, 2017), and enhance youth's perceived sense of selfefficacy (Stein, Gonzalez, Cupito, Kiang, & Supple, 2015). ...
... Our results also indicate that family cohesion (familismo) had a negative direct effect on 30-day substance use for females only. This result supports previous investigations (e.g., Cupito et al., 2015;S anchez et al., 2005) that have shown family cohesion (familismo) to have the greatest impact on decreasing negative behaviors for females, due to a greater value for interpersonal relationships. But again, this conclusion may be more robust due to the perpetuation of gender roles that are valued and maintained within and among traditional Hispanic families (e.g., machismo and marianismo), and may unintentionally protect one gender group over another. ...
Hispanic urban youth experience high levels of violence, access to drugs and alcohol, and limited access to quality educational institutions, as well as a disproportionate use of substances. However, youth exposed to multiple sources of support, such as values related to family centrality (e.g., family cohesion or familismo) and positive social networks, are less likely to use substances, and more likely to value school and participate in community activities. The present study examines substance use and empowering-protective resources among a cohort of Hispanic students (N = 538) from a northeastern United States urban community. We also assessed the moderating influence of gender using structural equation modeling (SEM) multigroup path analysis techniques. Results indicate that access to more sociocultural resources, such as cohesive families (familismo) and social supports, increases Hispanic adolescents’ community participation and school importance. Outcomes also demonstrate the positive, yet diverging, effects of gender. Implications for community prevention and policy are discussed.
... Familismo plays a central role in Latina/o adolescents' and young adults' career decisions and their everyday behavior (Fuligni et al. 2005). Prior work has demonstrated that a higher level of familismo is associated with better mental health among Latina/o adolescents and young adults (Cupito et al. 2015; Germ?n et al. 2009; Gonzales et al. 2006; Strunin et al. 2015). Relatedly, studies have found that parental support buffers the effect of cultural stressors on Latina/o college students' mental health (Castillo et al. 2004; Crockett et al. 2007). ...
... The study's findings demonstrate that familism support was the cultural value most strongly related to students' anxiety, depressive, and psychological stress symptoms in our sample. This finding is consistent with other studies that have found that promoting Latina/o students maintain a supportive connection to their family can help them cope with cultural stressors (Cupito et al. 2015; Germ?n et al. 2009; Gonzales et al. 2006; Strunin et al. 2015). Our moderation models also demonstrated the importance of other cultural values that have not received as much empirical attention. ...
Latina/o college students experience cultural stressors that negatively impact their mental health, which places them at risk for academic problems. We explored whether cultural values buffer the negative effect of cultural stressors on mental health symptoms in a sample of 198 Latina/o college students (70 % female; 43 % first generation college students). Bivariate results revealed significant positive associations between cultural stressors (i.e., acculturative stress, discrimination) and mental health symptoms(i.e., anxiety, depressive, psychological stress), and negative associations between cultural values of familismo, respeto, and religiosity and mental health symptoms. Several cultural values moderated the influence of cultural stressors on mental health symptoms. The findings highlight the importance of helping Latina/o college students remain connected to their families and cultural values as a way of promoting their mental health. http://rdcu.be/moya
... The importance of family is instilled in both males and females of Mexican ancestry, but females are expected to assume more caretaking duties; therefore, they often hold stronger familism values and feel more connected to the family than males (Campos et al., 2014;. This espousal of familism values may be especially protective against developing depressive symptoms for females ( Cupito et al., 2015) in the face of minority stress. As such, gender may further interact with familism to moderate the relationship between minority stress variables and depressive symptoms (i.e., a three-way interaction), although research has yet to examine such potential interaction effects. ...
... No prior studies have investigated the moderator role of familism on acculturative stress as a function of participants' gender. One study examined the two-way interaction between gender and familism in explaining depression symptoms in adolescents but did not find significant results ( Cupito et al., 2015). Future research should address the paucity of empirical knowledge in this area. ...
This study examined familism, ethnic identity (search and commitment), and gender as moderators in the associations between two minority stressors (i.e., perceived discrimination, acculturative stress) and depressive symptoms in Mexican American college students (N = 207) in a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were employed to examine main effects and interactions of minority stress variables with hypothesized moderators. Results indicated that familism buffered the positive association between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms. Ethnic identity search and commitment showed gender-specific moderation effects in that a strong ethnic identity search or commitment was only protective for women, but not men, when considerable amounts of acculturative stress were experienced. Ethnic identity search also showed gender-specific moderation effects on the association between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. The findings highlight the importance of examining cultural variables and gender to understand what may be helpful to Mexican American students as they manage minority stressors.
... Second, given that the study used cross-sectional data, we could not investigate or make causal claims regarding the association between preparation for bias and identity development. Third, because the sample identified mostly as cisgender men, and acknowledging that ethnic identity may unfold dissimilarly by gender due to differing internalized expectations from their ethnic community (Cupito et al., 2015), there may be limitations in interpreting and generalizing the results to Latinx SMY who identify as cisgender women or as transgender or nonbinary. ...
Objective
This study examined how preparation for ethnic and sexual orientation bias uniquely and collectively contributes to ethnic identity and sexual orientation identity development among Latinx sexual minority youth (SMY).
Background
Theories indicate that parental socialization strategies are associated with youth's development, yet no studies have examined how multiple forms of socialization are uniquely and collectively associated with youth's identity development.
Method
Hypotheses were tested using self‐reported data from 385 Latinx SMY ( M = 20.26, SD = 2.6).
Results
Preparation for ethnic bias was negatively associated with ethnic identity affirmation but positively associated with ethnic identity exploration and resolution. Preparation for sexual orientation bias was negatively associated with ethnic identity exploration, resolution, and affirmation, as well as sexual orientation identity resolution and affirmation, but not exploration. Several interactions emerged between preparation for ethnic bias and sexual orientation bias predicting ethnic and sexual orientation identity.
Conclusion
Findings suggest that preparation for bias related to ethnicity and sexual orientation are interconnected, rather than independently shaping ethnic and sexual orientation identities development among SMY.
Implications
Additional studies are needed to understand the impacts of family socialization related to ethnicity and sexuality to optimize identity development among Latinx SMY.
... Notably, researchers posit that BIPOC students (including English-language learners) can have inequitable experiences in the U.S. school system and face discrimination in larger society (Frankenberg & Siegel-Hawley, 2008;Nieto, 2009). Strong relational support can scaffold strengths development by buffering against negative effects of peer discrimination, economic, and acculturative stress on positive adjustment and psychosocial health (Chen et al., 2020: unspecified Latinx in the southern U.S.; Cupito et al., 2015: primarily Mexican and Latinx multiracial (86%)). Thus, the current study aimed to test the relative influence of each support as resilience factors toward strengths development despite systemic challenges. ...
A cultural-ecological approach posits that multiple sources of relational support can contribute to youths’ strengths development. Some such strengths are positive future expectations (PFE) and hope, both of which represent beneficial, future-oriented cognitive-motivational constructs; however, they have not been fully explored among Latinx youth. Furthermore, it is unknown how different socializing agents (i.e., family, teachers, friends) influence youths’ PFE, hope, and academic achievement, and if relations differ by gender and special education (SPED) designation. The present study (5 th –12 th grade Latinx students living in the Southwest U.S.; n = 748; 49% male; 15% SPED) investigated whether students’ relational supports longitudinally related to their PFE (for education/work, self-satisfaction, community involvement), hope, and academic achievement 1 year later. In the non-SPED designated sample, family support related to PFE for work/education and self-satisfaction for boys. Conversely, teacher support related to PFE for work/education and self-satisfaction for girls. PFE for community involvement was low across the sample. The same pattern emerged for hope, with family support significant for boys and teacher support for girls. For achievement, teacher support related positively across gender. Friend support had few significant associations overall, although a significant negative relation emerged between friend support and achievement for SPED students. SPED students had a positive path between family support and PFE for work/education. Findings support a multidimensional approach to increasing strengths and resilience through increased attention to family, teacher, and friend support across unique groups of Latinx youth.
... Considerando que la investigación empírica acerca del SC aún es limitada, especialmente en el plano escolar (Cupito et al., 2015), además del bajo número de estudios sobre las experiencias adolescentes en comunidades donde transcurre la cotidianidad (Pretty, 2002) y la importancia de identificar experiencias que potencien el desarrollo adolescente desde y en sus entornos sociales inmediatos como la escuela (Aisenberg & Herrenkohl, 2008), el propósito de investigación está focalizado en establecer en las comunidades educativas el SC percibido y su relación con el BN y la SM adolescente; conjuntamente con indagar en la contribución del género. ...
This research aimed to inquire about the level of Sense of Community perceived in school contexts and its relationship with the well-being and mental health of adolescents, also considering gender as a relevant category. 2839 students from 11 municipal educational establishments in the commune of Calama (Chile) participated, between 6th grade and 12th grade, and aged between 11 and 18 years old. Sense of community, well-being and mental health difficulties were assessed through the SCI-2, Kidscreen-27 and PSC-17 scales, respectively. For the analysis, Student's t-tests, one way ANOVA and multiple linear regressions were performed. The results show that sense of community, well-being and mental health are better in elementary school students and male students. It was also found that sense of community predicts well-being and mental health in adolescents. It is concluded with the relevance of the sense of community in adolescents' well-being and mental health in school contexts.
... It may be that sleep in both boys and girls suffers from lack of parental support for sleep hygiene, but girls also worry about the quality of relationships with family members. In other work, the cultural values of familism were associated with fewer depressive symptoms in Hispanic/Latinx adolescents, particularly for girls (Cupito et al., 2015). ...
Objective:
Although the first year of high school may represent a particularly stressful time for adolescents, no research addresses how stressors are related to insomnia symptoms during this time. Thus, we examined how stress relates to concurrent and prospective insomnia symptoms in adolescents beginning high school (Aim 1). Additionally, we assessed repetitive negative thinking (RNT) as a mediator (Aim 2). We also evaluated whether the pattern of associations differed for boys and girls (Aim 3).
Methods:
Adolescents (N = 502; M age = 14.22 years; 58.2% girls; 91.2% Hispanic/Latinx) completed questionnaires about stressors related to beginning high school (e.g., school performance, peer pressure), family support, RNT, and insomnia symptoms at the beginning and end of their first year of high school. Multiple group structural equation models assessed relationships between these variables and evaluated differences between boys and girls.
Results:
School/leisure conflict and low family support were directly associated with insomnia symptoms at both times, and RNT mediated these relationships in both boys and girls. In girls, peer pressure and low family support were indirectly associated with Time 1 and Time 2 insomnia symptoms via RNT. In boys, school performance was indirectly associated with Time 1 and Time 2 insomnia symptoms via RNT.
Conclusions:
Stressful experiences at the beginning of high school negatively affect sleep in adolescents both in the short and long term. Pediatric psychologists should educate adolescents and their parents about the risk of sleep problems during this time period and provide strategies for stress management and for proper sleep hygiene.
... Internal consistency for the present sample is good (α = .87) and similar to previous samples (e.g., Cupito et al. 2015). ...
Latinx youth living in the United States reside in a myriad of cultural and neighborhood contexts, yet little is known regarding how cultural values influence behavior problems across neighborhood contexts. Using a person–environment fit framework, the present study explored the degree to which youth cultural values were associated with their externalizing problems, and the degree to which this association was shaped by their neighborhood’s socioeconomic status (SES), and Latinx and immigrant concentration. The sample comprised of 998 Latinx youth (Female = 54.2%), ages 10 to 14 years old (Mage = 11.8), from three large United States metropolitan areas. Multilevel modeling methods indicated that increased fit between youth cultural values and neighborhood Latinx and immigrant concentration was associated with fewer externalizing problems, but only in higher SES neighborhoods. The results support the importance of studying social determinants of Latinx youth behavioral health, and provide implications for both neighborhood-level and individual-level prevention and intervention programming.
... Prior studies have demonstrated the invaluable contribution of social support networks in the lives of Hispanic teens (Garcia- Reid, Reid, & Peterson, 2005;Guilamo-Ramos et al., 2009). Perceived social and emotional support provided by parents (Christenson & Thurlow, 2004), and family cohesion (Annunziata, Hogue, Faw, & Liddle, 2006;Cupito, Stein, & Gonzalez, 2015) have been related positively to feelings of competence, a sense of relatedness to peers, academic effort, school engagement, higher grades, fewer absences, and improved graduation rates. Family involvement in their children's education has also been shown to be a better predictor of educational success than family income or parent's education level (Carolan & Lardier, in press;Carolan & Wasserman, 2015). ...
Despite the broader academic gains experienced by Hispanic students, who represent the largest minority group in the United States, they remain the least educated of all major ethnic groups, and our understanding of their academic needs and strengths remains woefully inadequate. Therefore, this study examined the risk (e.g., sexual risk taking) and protective factors (e.g., family support, supportive peer networks, and ethnic identity) associated with school importance among Hispanic teens (N = 587) residing in a high-risk, resource poor urban community and the ways in which these relationships vary between adolescent males (46.5%) and adolescent females (53.5%). Schools that are able to harness the numerous assets embedded within the Hispanic community are well positioned to create learning environments that are encouraging, are culturally responsive, and can potentially reduce risk involvement that may interfere with valuing the role of school importance. Implications for school-based personnel are discussed.
... Boys in both types of neighborhoods benefited from parental involvement. Parental monitoring in Latino families has also been associated with lower rates of substance use (Griffin, Botvin, Scheier, Diaz, & Miller, 2000;Ramirez et al., 2004), and girls seem to experience more parental monitoring, communication, and familism than boys (Cupito, Stein, & Gonzalez, 2015;Lac et al., 2011). ...
Latinos are one of the fastest growing sectors in the American population, and Latinos figure prominently in many political, economic, and educational social systems. Unfortunately, the juvenile justice system is no exception. At least 18,000 Latino youth are incarcerated annually, and they are 2 to 3 times more likely to be incarcerated than White youth. This article discusses three broad topics that relate specifically to Latino youth and their families who are served by juvenile justice facilities: language development and communication between Latino families and professionals in the educational and justice systems, sociocultural variables specific to Latino families, and ethical considerations for professionals who interact with Latino youth. Specific strategies for both the educational and juvenile justice systems are suggested that might enable these groups to better serve Latino youth and their families. Both research and case studies of Latino youth served in the court diversion program, Reading for Life, are considered.
... Low affiliative obedience (respect for parental authority) was associated with greater levels of depressive symptoms in Mexican-American youth (Stein & Polo, 2014). Higher levels of familism and filial obligation values were associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms among Latino youth (Cupito, Stein, & Gonzalez, 2015). Endorsing spirituality was positively associated with hope (Ai, Park, Huang, Rodgers, & Tice, 2007). ...
This study aimed to examine which values predicted depressive symptoms and hopelessness in Turkey. While it was hypothesized that values emphasizing universalism, benevolence, conformity, security, tradition, spirituality, self-direction, and achievement would predict lower levels of depressive symptoms and hopelessness, those values emphasizing power, stimulation, and hedonism would predict higher levels of depressive symptoms and hopelessness. Participants were 712 university students in Turkey. The Schwartz Values Survey Revised Turkish Version, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Beck Hopelessness Scale were administered. Spirituality was observed as a distinct value category in Turkish culture. Higher levels of universalism predicted lower levels of depressive symptoms. While higher levels of self-direction and benevolence predicted lower levels of hopelessness, higher levels of achievement predicted higher levels of hopelessness. The findings partially fit Sagiv and Schwartz's value theory regarding the relationship between mental health and the growth and deficiency aspects of values. The findings suggested having congruent values with the environment (i.e. achievement) were not uniformly associated with positive affective states.
The main goal of this social policy report is to propose a holistic approach for promoting developmental success among Latinx children and youth. This report highlights the need to 1) redefine success and 2) account for intersectional inequalities. First, the current demographic landscape of Latinx students is presented to showcase the variability in experiences among Latinx children and youth. We review past policies (across the last two and current U.S. Administrations and within the state of California), educational programs (e.g., McNair scholars' program, AVID), and theoretical frameworks (within developmental and sociocultural disciplines). Next, we introduce a nuanced holistic approach for promoting Latinx children and youth's developmental success, underscoring the integration of factors within the sociocultural, family, and individual domains. Finally, this report provides accessible recommendations for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to effectively promote equity and developmental success among diverse groups of Latinx children and youth.
Los profesionales de la atención odontológica se encuentran de manera constante con problemáticas de orden sociomoral, donde se ve involucrada una decisión que puede
afectar el bienestar del paciente. Es así que en ello se percibe la elección moral como acto que emana de una reflexión del individuo, que conlleva una conducta moral. Estas conductas morales ostentan buenas o malas consecuencias, que posteriormente son calificadas socialmente como correctas o incorrectas; además representa la dinámica del comportamiento que ostenta el profesional de la salud. Vélez Domínguez, M. & Cantu-Martínez, P.C. (2020). Permisividad moral y relación con el familismo en odontólogos en formación. En: P.C. Cantú-Martínez (Ed.) Visión Social de la Estomatología. (pp. 89-97). México. Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. ISBN: 978-607-27-1329-1
El libro está constituido por nueve capítulos con temas que abordan situaciones específicas que atañen al impacto social de la estomatología, a los escenarios en los que la salud bucal puede perturbarse por aspectos relativos a la condición etaria y condiciones socioeconómicas, a los estilos de vida, a las prácticas de higiene bucal que las personas suelen llevar a cabo. Asimismo, se abordan orientaciones relativas a la formación del profesional en rubros como los conocimientos bioéticos, la permisividad moral, el familismo y el surgimiento de los conflictos entre el estomatólogo y el paciente, donde se resalta la utilización de métodos alternativos para resolver estas eventualidades.
Cantú-Martínez, P.C. (Ed.) (2020). Visión social de la estomatología. México. Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. ISBN: 978-607-27-1329-1
Doubled-up Latinx youth experience many daily challenges associated with ethnic minority status and residential instability. Doubled-up youth share housing with non-custodial caregivers such as friends and/or extended family members primarily because of economic hardship and a breakdown in available parental support. Using data from baseline and 10 days of twice-a-day surveys, this study examined how in-school positive experiences, familism (i.e., a perspective that gives precedence to the family), and ethnic identity (i.e. affirmation, exploration, and resolution) influence after school positive (e.g. feeling joyful/happy) and negative (e.g., feeling stressed/anxious) affect among doubled up Latinx youth (70% female; M
age
= 16.5). Results indicate that in-school positive experiences were associated with more after school positive affect and less after school negative affect. Additionally, youth with higher levels of familism reported experiencing less after school negative affect. However, gender moderated the relation of ethnic identity exploration and experiences of after school positive affect. Specifically, females with higher levels of ethnic identity exploration reported relatively lower levels of after school positive affect compared to males. Overall, study findings highlight the importance of both person-level and varying contextual influences on the affective lives of doubled-up Latinx youth.
Background: Familismo or familism is a cultural value frequently seen in Hispanic cultures, in which a higher emphasis is placed on the family unit in terms of respect, support, obligation, and reference. Familism has been implicated as a protective factor against mental health problems and may foster the growth and development of children. This study aims at measuring the size of the relationship between familism and mental health outcomes of depression, suicide, substance abuse, internalizing, and externalizing behaviors.
Methods: Thirty-nine studies were systematically reviewed to assess the relationship between familism and mental health outcomes. Data from the studies were comprised and organized into five categories: depression, suicide, internalizing symptoms, externalizing symptoms, and substance use. The Cohen's d of each value (dependent variable in comparison to familism) was calculated. Results were weighted based on sample sizes (n) and total effect sizes were then calculated. It was hypothesized that there would be a large effect size in the relationship between familism and depression, suicide, internalizing, and externalizing symptoms and substance use in Hispanics.
Results: The meta-analysis showed small effect sizes in the relationship between familism and depression, suicide and internalizing behaviors. And no significant effects for substance abuse and externalizing behaviors.
Discussion: The small effects found in this study may be explained by the presence of moderator variables between familism and mental health outcomes (e.g., communication within the family). In addition, variability in the Latino samples and in the measurements used might explain the small and non-significant effects found.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that predict academic achievement and school attachment among Hispanic
seventh- and eighth-grade adolescents and to determine whether the associations between these factors are similar for Hispanic
and white adolescents. The sample consisted of 170 adolescents. Results for Hispanic adolescents indicate that association
with pro-academic peers and more supportive parent relationships are associated with higher grade point average (GPA) and
greater attachment to school. Attachment to school also predicts adolescent GPA, with greater attachment associated with higher
GPA. Analyses of ethnic differences reveal that similar associations are found for Hispanic and white adolescents. Furthermore,
ethnicity does not moderate the associations that family background, linguistic acculturation, school factors, and peer characteristics
have with adolescent achievement and attachment to school. Results from this study add to the increasing body of research
that suggests that predictors of positive adjustment in adolescence may be similar for all adolescents, regardless of ethnicity.
This article reviews an emerging literature examining the effects of familism across childhood and adolescence. Familism has been described as a Latino cultural value that emphasizes obligation, filial piety, family support and obedience, and its effects have been documented as primarily protective across childhood and adolescence. This review seeks to organize and critique existing research using a developmental science framework. Key tenets of this perspective that are highlighted in the review are close consideration of how familism develops within an individual across time, manifests itself at different points in development, and impacts child, adolescent, and family functioning. Forty-four articles were examined and categorized with results showing that the protective influence of familism is most evident during the period of adolescence. Consideration of expressions of familism and the impact of familism on outcomes during earlier and later periods of development is offered as a recommendation for deriving a more complete understanding of the function of familism in Latino families.
Students' subjective sense of school belonging recently has been identified as a potentially important influence on academic motivation, engagement, and participation, especially among students from groups at risk of school dropout. Students' friends also influence their academic motivation, sometimes negatively. In this study, the relationship among early adolescent students' sense of school belonging, perceptions of their friends' academic values, and academic motivation was investigated among 301 African-American, White/Anglo, and Hispanic students in two urban junior high schools. School belonging was significantly associated with several motivation-related measures—expectancy of success, valuing schoolwork, general school motivation, and self-reported effort. Students' beliefs about their friends' academic values were more weakly related to these outcomes. The correlations between school belonging and the motivation-related measures remained positive and statistically significant even after the effects of friends' academic values were partialled out. School belonging was more highly associated with expectancy for success among Hispanic students than among African-American students, and among girls than among boys.
Cultural value gaps between Mexican American parents and their children are hypothesized to place youth at risk for poor mental health outcomes. While most studies examine these gaps on broad measures of acculturation, the present study examined value gaps in affiliative obedience, a cultural value that has at its core the belief that respect and deference must be shown to parents and adults. The present study hypothesized that adolescents would exhibit greater depressive symptoms when youth demonstrated lower levels of affiliative obedience than their mothers. Moreover, we examined whether gender, nativity status, and age predicted cultural value gaps and moderated the relationship between gaps and depressive symptoms. These questions were evaluated in a school-based sample of 159 Mexican American families whose children were either US born (n = 82) or foreign-born (n = 77). Twenty-five percent of the sample demonstrated a cultural value gap where youth endorsed lower levels of affiliative obedience than their parents, and this group reported the greatest depressive symptoms. Age moderated this relationship, and the greatest association between cultural value gaps and depression was found among the older group of early adolescents.
Self-reported grades are heavily used in research and applied settings because of the importance of grades and the convenience of obtaining self-reports. This study reviews and meta-analytically summarizes the literature on the accuracy of self-reported grades, class ranks, and test scores. Results based on a pairwise sample of 60,926 subjects indicate that self-reported grades are less construct valid than many scholars believe. Furthermore, self-reported grade validity was strongly moderated by actual levels of school performance and cognitive ability. These findings suggest that self-reported grades should be used with caution. Situations in which self-reported grades can be employed more safely are identified, and suggestions for their use in research are discussed.
The purpose of the present study was to describe the development and assess the psychometric properties of the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ). The SMFQ is a brief, easy-to-administer, self-report measure of childhood and adolescent depression, designed for the rapid evaluation of core depressive symptomatology or for use in epidemiological studies. The SMFQ's content and criterion-related validity were examined in a sample of 173 8-16 year-olds, comprised of both psychiatric and unselected pediatric controls. Results revealed substantial correlations between the SMFQ, the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (DISC) depression scale. The SMFQ successfully discriminated the clinically-referred psychiatric subjects from the pediatric controls. Within the pediatric (general population) sample, the SMFQ discriminated DISC-diagnosed children with depressive disorder from non-depressed subjects. Exploratory factor analyses, along with a high internal consistency, suggested that the SMFQ was a unifactorial scale. In sum, the SMFQ appears to be a promising tool for both the swift assessment of core depressive symptomatology and as a screening measure for depression in child psychiatric epidemiological studies.
We present results of a longitudinal study of 1,046 adolescents in 23 middle schools that examined relations between adolescents' perceptions of their middle school learning environment during 8th grade (school goal structures, autonomy provisions, positive teacher regard) and changes in their academic motivation, achievement, and psychological adjustment from 7th to 8th grade. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that adolescents' school perceptions were significant predictors of their academic and psychological adjustment at the end of 8th grade after accounting for their demographic characteristics, prior academic ability, and prior adjustment assessed at the beginning of 7th grade. Perceptions of positive teacher regard and an emphasis on individual effort and improvement in school (school task goal structure) were associated with increases in academic values, feelings of academic competence, and academic achievement; and decreases in depressive symptoms from 7th to 8th grade. Perceived teacher regard also predicted diminished anger and school truancy and increases in self-esteem over time. Perceptions of an emphasis on competition and differential treatment by ability in middle school (school ability goal structure) were related to diminished academic values, feelings of self-esteem, and academic achievement; and increases in school truancy, anger, and depressive symptoms over time. The developmental significance of adolescents' perceptions of middle school for multiple aspects of their adjustment is discussed.
This prospective study examined the differential effects of parent, teacher, and peer social support on depression and self-esteem
of 217 adolescents, ages 15 to 18. Results indicate that female adolescents perceived significantly more support from friends
than male adolescents did, whereas male adolescents perceived significantly more support from fathers than female adolescents
did. No gender differences were found in perceptions of support from mothers or teachers. Boys and girls perceived the least
amount of support from fathers compared with other providers. Multisample structural equation models were invariant across
female and male groups for the effects of support providers on each outcome. The joint effects of the support providers explained
a significant amount of variance in time 2 depression and self-esteem, after controlling for both at time 1, suggesting that
social support has important effects on symptoms. The separate effects of mothers, teachers, and friends had similarly sized,
significant negative effects on time 2 depression. Self-esteem was significantly, positively affected by friend and teacher
support.
In a sample of 296 8th-grade middle school students, the authors examined the role of personal achievement goals and feelings of school belonging in mediating the relation between perceptions of the school psychological environment and school-related beliefs, affect, and achievement. Sequential regression analyses indicated that perceiving a task goal structure in middle school was positively related to academic self-efficacy and that this relation was mediated through personal task goals. Perceiving an ability goal structure was related to academic self-consciousness and this relation was mediated through personal relative ability goals. Perceiving positive teacher-student relationships predicted positive school-related affect and this relation was mediated through feelings of school belonging. Feelings of academic efficacy and school belonging in turn were positively related to final-semester academic grades. Results are discussed in relation to current middle school reform efforts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The measurement of students' social support has become a popular topic in education and psychology, yet measurement tools in this area are limited. In this study, we use a large, representative sample to conduct confirmatory factor, reliability, and correlational analyses of scores on the Child and Adolescent Social Support Scale (CASSS; Malecki, Demaray, Elliott, & Nolten, 1999). These analyses revealed evidence of reliability, a four-factor structure (Parent, Teacher, Classmate, and Close Friend subscales), and construct validity. The results of this study indicate that the CASSS covaries as predicted with the clinically important constructs of self-concept, social skills, and behavioral indicators. There is evidence that the CASSS can be used to understand children and adolescents' perceived social support. © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Conceptions of the transition to adulthood were examined among adolescents (age 13–19, N = 171), emerging adults (age 20–29, N = 179), and young-to-midlife adults (age 30–55, N = 165). The focus was on whether conceptions of the transition to adulthood would be different among young-to-midlife adults compared to the younger age groups. In all age groups, individualistic criteria were the most likely to be considered important markers of the transition to adulthood, specifically accepting responsibility for one's actions, deciding on one's beliefs and values, establishing an equal relationship with parents, and becoming financially independent. However, young-to-midlife adults were less likely than adolescents to consider biological transitions to be important, and more likely than adolescents or emerging adults to view norm compliance (such as avoiding drunk driving) as a necessary part of the transition to adulthood. In all three groups, role transitions (e.g., marriage) ranked lowest in importance.
We investigated associations between familism, parent-adolescent relationships, and developmental outcomes for a sample of
97 Armenian adolescents in immigrant families. Our results suggested that adolescents emphasizing family needs over their
own were more likely to report conformity to parents’ wishes, respect for parental authority, and disclosure to parents about
activities. Familism was also related to self-esteem in a positive manner, and a negative association was found between familism
and self-derogation. Additionally, our results suggested that familism may have indirect associations with self-derogation
via more collectivistic parent–adolescent relations. An unexpected finding emerged as conformity to parental expectations
was positively associated with self-derogation. This finding undermines the argument that familism benefits adolescents and
may point to potential feelings of ambivalence for adolescents from immigrant families trying to balance cultural values of
parents with those of mainstream American society.
The risk for depression increases as Hispanic youth acculturate to U.S. society. This association is stronger for Hispanic girls than boys. To better understand the influence of culture and family on depressive symptoms, we tested a process-oriented model of acculturation, cultural values, and family functioning. The data came from Project RED, which included 1,922 Hispanic students (53 % girls; 86 % were 14 years old; and 84 % were U.S. born) from Southern California. We used data from 9th to 11th grade to test the influence of acculturation-related experiences on depressive symptoms over time. Multi-group structural equation analysis suggested that both family conflict and cohesion were linked with depressive symptoms. Hispanic cultural values were associated with family cohesion and conflict but the strength and direction of these relationships varied across cultural values and gender. For girls and boys, familismo and respeto were associated with higher family cohesion and lower family conflict. Moreover, gender roles were linked with higher family cohesion in girls but not in boys. These results indicate that improving family functioning will be beneficial for boys' and girls' psychological well-being. This may be achieved by promoting familismo and respeto for boys and girls and by promoting traditional gender roles for girls.
The current study tested a developmental-contextual model of depressive symptomatology among Mexican-origin, female early and middle adolescents and their mothers. The final sample comprised 271 dyads. We examined the interrelations among cultural (i.e., acculturation dissonance), developmental (i.e., pubertal development and autonomy expectation discrepancies), and interpersonal (i.e., mother-daughter conflict and maternal supportive parenting) factors in predicting adolescents' depressive symptoms. For both early and middle adolescents, maternal support was negatively associated with mother-daughter conflict and depressive symptoms. Mother-daughter autonomy expectation discrepancies were positively associated with mother-daughter conflict, but this association was found only among early adolescents. Further, mother-daughter acculturation dissonance was positively associated with mother-daughter conflict but only among middle adolescents. Findings call for concurrently examining the interface of developmental, relational, and cultural factors in predicting female adolescents' depressive symptomatology and the potential differences by developmental stage (e.g., early vs. middle adolescence).
In this study we examined patterns of mothers' and fathers' differential affection and discipline toward 2 adolescent offspring in 243 Mexican-origin families. Grounding our work in a family systems perspective, we used interparental patterns of differential treatment as an index of the coparental alliance and tested their associations with parents' reports of familism values, traditional gender role attitudes, and cultural orientations. We also sought to replicate prior research on European American samples linking interparental patterns of differential treatment to marital qualities (coparenting satisfaction, love, and conflict) and adolescent depressive symptoms and risky behaviors. Three interparental patterns emerged: families in which both mothers and fathers treated their 2 offspring equally, incongruent families in which 1 parent treated both offspring equally while the other parent favored 1 offspring, and congruent families in which both parents favored the same offspring. Most parents reported equal treatment, but others fell into the incongruent affection (30%), incongruent discipline (45%), and congruent discipline (16%) groups. Mixed model analyses of variances revealed that in families in which mothers and fathers both treated their offspring equally, parents reported higher familism values, more traditional gender role attitudes, and relatively stronger orientations to Mexican than Anglo culture. Consistent with previous research, interparental incongruence was associated with less positive marital qualities and more adolescent adjustment problems. Discussion focuses on the role of culture in shaping coparenting and the processes through which these coparenting dynamics are linked to marital and youth adjustment.
I: Background.- 1. An Introduction.- 2. Conceptualizations of Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination.- II: Self-Determination Theory.- 3. Cognitive Evaluation Theory: Perceived Causality and Perceived Competence.- 4. Cognitive Evaluation Theory: Interpersonal Communication and Intrapersonal Regulation.- 5. Toward an Organismic Integration Theory: Motivation and Development.- 6. Causality Orientations Theory: Personality Influences on Motivation.- III: Alternative Approaches.- 7. Operant and Attributional Theories.- 8. Information-Processing Theories.- IV: Applications and Implications.- 9. Education.- 10. Psychotherapy.- 11. Work.- 12. Sports.- References.- Author Index.
Cross-cultural psychology has demonstrated important links between cultural context and individual behavioural development. Given this relationship, cross-cultural research has increasingly investigated what happens to individuals who have developed in one cultural context when they attempt to re-establish their lives in another one. The long-term psychological consequences of this process of acculturation are highly variable, depending on social and personal variables that reside in the society of origin, the society of settlement, and phenomena that both exist prior to, and arise during, the course of acculturation. This article outlines a conceptual framework within which acculturation and adaptation can be investigated, and then presents some general findings and conclusions based on a sample of empirical studies.
It has been argued that there is an acceleration of gender-differential socialization during adolescence, perhaps at the onset of puberty or shortly after, and perhaps especially for girls. New domains may become the object of gender-differential socialization pressure and demands for conformity may increase in domains previously subject to such pressure. We shall refer to this argument as the Gender-Intensification Hypothesis. The hypothesis frequently is invoked to explain observed behavioral differences between adolescent boys and girls. Here we shall review information bearing upon the hypothesis and suggest some new points of departure for research related to it and to the study of gender-differential socialization during adolescence in general. We begin by considering some forms in which the hypothesis appears and then turn to our review and to its implications.
In this investigation, we tested a theory that suggests that the level of parent-adolescent conflict is, in large part, determined by family context. According to this theory, a family atmosphere of warmth and supportiveness promotes successful negotiation of disagreements between parents and adolescent children and thereby helps to keep conflict at low to moderate levels. Under hostile, coercive conditions, however, parents and adolescents will be unlikely to resolve disagreements and conflict will escalate to dysfunctional levels. We tested this theory using structural equation modeling of data collected from 335 families over a 4-year period of time, from the target children's early adolescence into their middle adolescence. The results support the theory. Furthermore, the findings demonstrate the progressive nature of the proposed family process. Difficulties in hostile and coercive families appeared to worsen throughout early to middle adolescence, while parent-adolescent relationships in warm, supportive families tended to improve.
The integration of the U.S. and Mexican culture is an important process associated with Mexican-origin youths' adjustment and family dynamics. The current study examined the reciprocal associations in parents' and two offspring's cultural values (i.e., familism and respect) in 246 Mexican-origin families. Overall, mothers' values were associated with increases in youths' values 5 years later. In contrast, youths' familism values were associated with increases in fathers' familism values 5 years later. In addition, developmental differences emerged where parent-to-offspring effects were more consistent for youth transitioning from early to late adolescence than for youth transitioning from middle adolescence to emerging adulthood. Finally, moderation by immigrant status revealed a youth-to-parent effect for mother-youth immigrant dyads, but not for dyads where youth were U.S.-raised. Our findings highlight the reciprocal nature of parent-youth value socialization and provide a nuanced understanding of these processes through the consideration of familism and respect values. As Mexican-origin youth represent a large and rapidly growing segment of the U.S. population, research that advances our understanding of how these youth develop values that foster family cohesion and support is crucial.
© 2014 Family Process Institute.
Establishing life purpose is a key developmental task; however, how it is linked to adolescents’ everyday family, school, extracurricular, and leisure experiences remains unclear. Using daily diary data from 180 Asian American ninth and tenth graders (50% ninth; 58% female; 25% first generation), daily purpose was positively related to daily family assistance. Leisure time was negatively associated with purpose, especially for first‐generation adolescents. Social role fulfillment (e.g., feeling like a good son or daughter) also contributed to daily purpose. Implications extended into daily affect, with positive associations with happiness, and negative associations with distress and anxiety. Results suggest that promoting social connectedness and activities that allow adolescents to feel like a valued family member may best foster youth purpose development.
A portion of social-cognitive career theory (R. W. Lent, S. D. Brown, & G. Hackett, 1994) was tested by examining contextual factors related to the educational aspirations of 186 Mexican American high school students. A 3-step hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to determine the influence of gender, generation level, parents' education level, and perceived educational barriers on educational aspirations. Results indicated that perceived educational barriers significantly predicted students' educational aspirations above and beyond the influence of gender, generation level, and parents' education level. Implications for Mexican American students' educational goals are provided.
The authors examined perceived internal and external barriers to postsecondary educational plans among 140 Mexican American and 296 White high school students, attending to sex, socioeconomic, ethnic differences. Parent education was associated with educational plans. Girls anticipated encountering more barriers associated with financing postsecondary education than their male counterparts. Mexican American students anticipated encountering more postsecondary education barriers associated with ability, preparation, motivation, support, and separation, and expected those barriers to be more difficult to overcome, than their White counterparts. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
The goal of this study was to develop an attitudinal familism scale that can be used with relatively less acculturated Latinos and that assesses all relevant aspects of the construct. An 18-item scale composed of original items and adapted items from previous scales was tested on a sample of 124 Latino adults. An exploratory factor analysis revealed the following four factors, accounting for 51.23% of the total variance: Familial Support, Familial Interconnectedness, Familial Honor, and Subjugation of Self for Family. Cronbach’s alpha for the scale was found to be .83. Validity analyses revealed significant negative correlations between some aspects of familism and acculturation scores and indicators of exposure to the U.S. culture, confirming previous findings on the subject.
Abstract We review research on the family's role in gender development during childhood and adolescence. Our discussion highlights children's dyadic family relationship experiences with their parents and siblings; additionally, we describe ways in which the larger system of family relationships, including gendered dynamics in the marriage and the differential family experiences of sisters versus brothers may have implications for gender development. We also emphasize the significance of contextual factors—ranging from situational demands and affordances to forces emanating from the larger social ecology—in family gender socialization. We conclude that family experiences may have a more important impact on gender development than has previously been believed, and we highlight directions for future study. These include: (1) applying more complex models of parent socialization and family dynamics to the study of the family's role in gender development; (2) expanding on research directed at the socialization of sex differences to study how family dynamics are linked to individual differences in girls’ and boys’ gendered qualities and behaviors; and (3) further exploring how contextual factors exert an impact on gender socialization in the family.
Two binational, cross-sectional studies investigated how immigration influences parental behaviors, adolescent distress, and the relationship between these two variables. Chinese adolescents from first- and second-generation immigrant families in the U.S., together with non-immigrant peers from the host culture (Euro-American) and the culture of origin (Hong Kong) rated parental warmth, control, and involvement, as well as their own emotional distress and psychosomatic symptoms. A second study compared first- and second-generation Chinese Australians, Anglo-Australians, and the same group of Hong Kong Chinese. Results indicated that the experience of immigration influenced perceptions of parental control and involvement but not warmth. Moreover, non-immigrant youth reported at least as many emotional and physical symptoms as immigrant youth. There were no differences between immigrant and non-immigrant groups in the relationships between parental behaviors and adolescent distress. These findings are inter...
Simple slopes, regions of significance, and confidence bands are commonly used to evaluate interactions in multiple linear regression (MLR) models, and the use of these techniques has recently been extended to multilevel or hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) and latent curve analysis (LCA). However, conducting these tests and plotting the conditional relations is often a tedious and error-prone task. This article provides an overview of methods used to probe interaction effects and describes a unified collection of freely available online resources that researchers can use to obtain significance tests for simple slopes, compute regions of significance, and obtain confidence bands for simple slopes across the range of the moderator in the MLR, HLM, and LCA contexts. Plotting capabilities are also provided.
A common concern when faced with multivariate data with missing values is whether the missing data are missing completely at random (MCAR); that is, whether missingness depends on the variables in the data set. One way of assessing this is to compare the means of recorded values of each variable between groups defined by whether other variables in the data set are missing or not. Although informative, this procedure yields potentially many correlated statistics for testing MCAR, resulting in multiple-comparison problems. This article proposes a single global test statistic for MCAR that uses all of the available data. The asymptotic null distribution is given, and the small-sample null distribution is derived for multivariate normal data with a monotone pattern of missing data. The test reduces to a standard t test when the data are bivariate with missing data confined to a single variable. A limited simulation study of empirical sizes for the test applied to normal and nonnormal data suggests that the test is conservative for small samples.
The relationships among adolescent depressive symptoms and self-reported family cohesion, adaptability, satisfaction with family functioning, family structure, and social support received from family and friends were investigated in a sample of 93 families attending family therapy at an outpatient clinic. Results were in keeping with previous studies of nonclinical samples, in that family cohesion and family social support were inversely related to depression. In contrast to nonclinical samples, family characteristics were more strongly associated with depression among boys than among girls, and social support from friends did not act as a buffer against depression. The strongest predictor of depressive symptoms was adolescents' levels of satisfaction with the cohesiveness and adaptability in their families, suggesting the importance of subjective cognitive appraisal in the link between family functioning and depression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
"The primary themes selected for study included family values associated with affectional patterns, authority patterns, and the differential evaluation of the status of males and females." A questionnaire was filled out by 494 Puerto Rican teenage high school graduates. "Higher affection for mothers than for fathers, and the concept of male superiority and male dominance in the family" were among the results found. 29 refs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The significance of having close, cross-sex friendships in adolescence was examined with 223 10th through 12th graders (aged 15–18 yrs). Adolescents with only same-sex friends were compared to adolescents with both same- and cross-sex friends in terms of their social and emotional functioning. In addition, the friendship qualities (companionship, intimacy, prosocial support, esteem support) of adolescents with same- and cross-sex friendships were compared. Results reveal that having a close, cross-sex friend is a common experience in adolescence, and increases with adolescent age. Furthermore, findings reveal that adolescents reported more companionship in their same-sex versus cross-sex friendships, younger adolescent girls reported more prosocial support in their same- versus cross-sex friendships, and adolescent boys reported receiving more esteem support from their cross-sex friends. Unlike during middle childhood, having close, cross-sex friends in adolescence does not appear to be associated with problems in social or behavioral adjustment, but is associated with lower perceived social acceptance. The implications of these and other findings for understanding adolescents' close friendships and issues for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This study examined the role of family cultural values as moderators of the association between family relations and the adjustment of young children. Fifty-five families of Mexican descent with young children enrolled in Head Start programs in the Southwest participated. Mothers provided information about closeness of the mother–child relationship, warmth in the sibling relationship, child behavior problems, and familism and simpatía, or two cultural values associated with families of Mexican origin. The children's preschool teachers provided information about child emotional adjustment and social functioning with peers six months later. Familism was found to act as a moderator, whereby warmth and closeness in family relationships coupled with the endorsement of a family cultural value that complements these relationship characteristics was associated with more optimal functioning in preschool classrooms. Results demonstrate the need to evaluate family cultural values or beliefs systems in conjunction with qualities of family relationships as determinants of children's developmental outcomes. Specifically, familism emerged as a family characteristic capable of promoting young children's adjustment within and beyond the family context.
This article discusses the development and validation of a measure of adolescent students' perceived belonging or psychological membership in the school environment. An initial set of items was administered to early adolescent students in one suburban middle school (N = 454) and two multi-ethnic urban junior high schools (N = 301). Items with low variability and items detracting from scale reliability were dropped, resulting in a final 18-item Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) scale, which had good internal consistency reliability with both urban and suburban students and in both English and Spanish versions. Significant findings of several hypothesized subgroup differences in psychological school membership supported scale construct validity. The quality of psychological membership in school was found to be substantially correlated with self-reported school motivation, and to a lesser degree with grades and with teacher-rated effort in the cross-sectional scale development studies and in a subsequent longitudinal project. Implications for research and for educational practice, especially with at-risk students, are discussed.
This article discusses the use of feminist therapy with mainland Puerto Rican women. Sociocultural factors such as the experience of cross-cultural translocation, the process of transculturation, and the colonial background of Puerto Rico with its deleterious effects are examined. Special emphasis is given to Puerto Rican sex roles, the paradoxical condition of power and powerlessness, and Puertorriqueñas' complex sense of identity. These issues are illustrated with a clinical population, and as such, may represent an extreme position within the range of reactions to these sociocultural variables. Clinical vignettes present the use of feminist therapy with this client population. Feminism—with its emphasis on empowerment, adaptation and flexibility in role relationships, promotion of competence, and commitment to social change—is particularly relevant for Puerto Rican women. However, in order for feminist therapy to be effective with this population, it must be embedded in a sociocultural context.
The specific aim of this study was to examine pathways leading to internalizing symptoms and self-esteem in Latino adolescents. Adolescent feelings of interpersonal humiliation, family conflict and commitment, and friendships with peers were investigated as potential mediators linking acculturation stress to subsequent adolescent self-esteem and internalizing symptoms. Path analyses on data from a sample of 288 Latino adolescents (average age 15 years; 66% foreign-born) showed that acculturation conflicts and perceived discrimination were risk factors for both internalizing problems at baseline and parent–adolescent conflict 6 months later. Baseline internalizing problems, and Time 2 variables (humiliation, parent–adolescent conflict, negative peer relationships, and changes in familism) mediated the effects of acculturation stress on Time 3 (T3) internalizing symptoms and self-esteem. Latino cultural involvement was a key cultural asset, impacting T3 internalizing symptoms and self-esteem by decreasing feelings of humiliation and by promoting familism. Familism was also a critical cultural asset associated with lower parent–adolescent conflict and higher self-esteem. Study limitations and implications for practice with Latino families were discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Background: Depression is prevalent among children and adolescents and often goes untreated with adverse effects on academic success and healthy development. Depression screening can facilitate early identification and timely referral to prevention and treatment programs. Conducting school-based emotional health screening, however, raises the controversial issue of how to obtain informed parental permission.
Methods: During implementation of a depression screening program in an urban school district in the Pacific Northwest, the district’s parental permission protocol changed from passive (information provided to parents via a school mailer with parents having the option to actively decline their child’s participation) to active (information provided to parents via a school mailer requiring the written permission of the parents for their child’s participation). This change provided an opportunity to examine differences in participation under these 2 conditions.
Results: A total of 1533 students were enrolled in this program across both years. Compared to conditions of passive permission, participation was dramatically reduced when children were required to have written parental permission, dropping from 85% to 66% of eligible children. Furthermore, under conditions of active parental permission, participation decreased differentially among student subgroups with increased risk for depression.
Conclusions: Successful implementation of school-based emotional health screening programs requires careful consideration of how to inform and obtain permission from parents.
This study was designed to examine the attitudes toward family obligations among over 800 American tenth (M age = 15.7 years) and twelfth (M age = 17.7 years) grade students from Filipino, Chinese, Mexican, Central and South American, and European backgrounds. Asian and Latin American adolescents possessed stronger values and greater expectations regarding their duty to assist, respect, and support their families than their peers with European backgrounds. These differences tended to be large and were consistent across the youths' generation, gender, family composition, and socioeconomic background. Whereas an emphasis on family obligations tended to be associated with more positive family and peer relationships and academic motivation, adolescents who indicated the strongest endorsement of their obligations tended to receive school grades just as low as or even lower than those with the weakest endorsement. There was no evidence, however, that the ethnic variations in attitudes produced meaningful group differences in the adolescents' development. These findings suggest that even within a society that emphasizes adolescent autonomy and independence, youths from families with collectivistic traditions retain their parents' familistic values and that these values do not have a negative impact upon their development.
The relations between family support, family conflict, and adolescent depressive symptomatology were examined longitudinally in a sample of 231 female and 189 male adolescents and their mothers. Structural equation models revealed that less supportive and more con-flictual family environments were associated with greater depressive symptomatology both concurrently and prospectively over a 1-year period. Conversely, adolescent depressive symptomatology did not predict deterioration in family relationships. Depressive symptomatology and, to a greater extent, family characteristics showed high levels of stability over the 1-year period. Counter to our expectations, the relations between family variables and depressive symptomatology were similar for boys and girls. The results suggest that the quality of family interactions is relevant for understanding the development of depressive symptoms in adolescents.
In this article, we present findings from 2 studies designed to explore gender-related socialization in Latino/a families. In Study 1, 22 adult Latinas (ages 20–45) completed in-depth interviews. In Study 2, 166 Latino/a college students (58% women; M age 21.4 years) completed self-report surveys. Study 1 findings suggest that many Latino/a parents socialize their daughters in ways that are marked by traditional gender-related expectations and messages. Results of Study 2, which included descriptive analyses and the creation of scales to explore family correlates of gender-related socialization, support and expand these findings. Male and female respondents described different experiences of household activities, socialization of gender-typed behavior, and freedom to pursue social activities or gain access to privileges. Parental characteristics, particularly gender role attitudes, were linked to gender-related socialization. Findings are discussed in light of the developmental and cultural literature on gender-related socialization.
This research assessed whether there is an impact of race-ethnicity on depressed mood among adolescents, independent of socioeconomic status, whether gender differences in depressed mood are apparent within all race-ethnicity subgroups, and whether pubertal development influences depressed mood in a similar manner within gender and race-ethnicity subgroups. A three-stage, area probability sampling frame was utilized to select adolescents, ages 12–17 years, for an in-person interview. Depressed mood was assessed by the Children's Depression Inventory. Compared to Whites, African Americans, or Asian Americans, Latinos reported more symptoms of depressed mood, a finding that was independent of socioeconomic status. Advancing puberty was associated with depressed mood only among females, but the timing of pubertal changes, relative to ones peers, was related to depressed mood among both males and females, and among Latinos.
This study applies latent growth curve analysis to data from three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent
Health (n=10,828) and finds that symptoms of depression and social support interact with one another in a dynamic fashion across
the transition from adolescence (mean age at Wave 1=15.28years) to young adulthood (mean age at Wave 3=21.65years).
Parental support during adolescence is inversely associated with initial symptoms of depression for girls and boys, although
adolescent girls with low levels of parental support begin the study period with significantly higher levels of depressive
symptomatology than their male counterparts. In addition, adolescents who begin the study period with higher levels of depressive
symptomatology report less parental support during young adulthood. Finally, regardless of their initial level of depressive
symptoms, girls and boys who experience increased symptoms of depression over time also report lower levels of parental support
at the end of the study period.
this issue] introduce the concept of navigating across worlds, and this construct appears to represent a rough approximation of biculturalism. They also discuss conditions that may facilitate biculturalism and under which it might be more versus less adaptive. The most integral aspects of Mistry and Wu's argument, then, center around biculturalism, what it is, how it comes into being, and when it is most adaptive. The present commentary focuses on these three issues. Biculturalism has been defined in a number of ways [e.g., Benet-Martínez & Haritatos, 2005; Berry, 1997; Schwartz & Zamboanga, 2008]. Most generally, bicul-turalism represents comfort and proficiency with both one's heritage culture and the culture of the country or region in which one has settled. It is applicable not only to immigrants who have come from other countries, but also to children of immigrants who – although they are born and raised in the receiving society – are likely deeply embedded in the heritage culture at home with their families [Portes & Rumbaut, 2001, 2006]. It may also apply to individuals living in ethnic enclaves, where the heritage culture is likely to be maintained across generations, as well as to individu-als from visible minority groups, who may be identified as different from the major-ity ethnic group even if their families have been in the receiving society for multiple generations [Huynh, Nguyen, & Benet-Martínez, in press; Umaña-Taylor, in press]. The ethnic component of biculturalism is not only a reactive response to discrimina-tion, as Mistry and Wu appear to suggest. It also represents a sense of pride in one's heritage, and a desire to hold on to that heritage [Umaña-Taylor, Yazedjian, & Bá-maca-Gómez, 2004]. But what exactly does biculturalism look like? How would we know it if we saw it? What are its functions? And when is it adaptive – and when is it not?
This study examines whether perceived parent support, peer support, and the interaction between them predict depression symptoms and depression diagnosis 2 years later in a community sample of 389 adolescents. Controlling for Time 1 depression, parent support and anticipated peer support were not independently related to Time 2 depression in either linear or logistic regression analyses. However, there was a significant interaction between the two support variables, suggesting that parent support moderates the relationship between anticipated peer support and depression symptoms and diagnosis. Anticipated peer support is protective among adolescents with high parental support, but may act as a risk factor for adolescents with low parental support. Regarding developmental differences, low anticipated peer support at Time 1 was a stronger predictor of Time 2 depression symptoms among older, compared with younger, adolescents. These findings highlight the importance of parent and peer support in predicting future depression among community adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)
Family interaction and interpersonal functioning were examined with respect to their contribution to child and adolescent mood disorders. The review focused on the relationship between parent and child depression, particularly impaired parent/child interactive patterns and the effects of this negative reciprocal process on the development, maintenance, and recurrence of depression. Additionally, we addressed the implications of these findings for the effective treatment and prevention of child and adolescent depressive disorders and examined current treatment and intervention strategies.
Research has documented a relation between parents' ethnic socialization and youth's ethnic identity, yet there has been little research examining the transmission of cultural values from parents to their children through ethnic socialization and ethnic identity. This study examines a prospective model in which mothers' and fathers' Mexican American values and ethnic socialization efforts are linked to their children's ethnic identity and Mexican American values, in a sample of 750 families (including 467 two-parent families) from an ongoing longitudinal study of Mexican American families (Roosa, Liu, Torres, Gonzales, Knight, & Saenz, 2008). Findings indicated that the socialization of Mexican American values was primarily a function of mothers' Mexican American values and ethnic socialization, and that mothers' Mexican American values were longitudinally related to children's Mexican American values. Finally, these associations were consistent across gender and nativity groups.
This study examined interactive relations between adolescent, maternal and paternal familism values and deviant peer affiliations in predicting adolescent externalizing problems within low-income, Mexican-origin families (N = 598). Adolescent, maternal and paternal familism values interacted protectively with deviant peer affiliations to predict lower levels of externalizing problems according to two independent teacher reports. These relations were not found with parent reports of adolescent externalizing problems although these models showed a direct, protective effect of maternal familism values. Consistent with the view that traditional cultural values are protective for Latino adolescents, these results suggest that supporting familism values among Mexican-origin groups is a useful avenue for improving adolescent conduct problems, particularly in a school context.
Research on the academic adjustment of immigrant adolescents has been predominately conducted in large cities among established migration areas. To broaden the field's restricted focus, data from 172 (58% female) Asian American adolescents who reside within a non-traditional or emerging immigrant community in the Southeastern US were used to examine gender differences in academic adjustment as well as school, family, and cultural variables as potential mediators of gender differences found. Results suggest that girls report significantly higher educational goals, intrinsic academic motivation, and utility value of school compared to boys. These gender differences are statistically mediated by ethnic exploration and family processes, most prominently, family respect. School connectedness and perceived discrimination are also associated with academic adjustment at the bivariate level, suggesting that academic success may be best promoted if multiple domains of influence can be targeted.