Brandy Piña-Watson

Mexican Americans in Higher Education Cultural Adaptation and Marginalization as Predictors of College Persistence Intentions and Life Satisfaction

This study examined how college persistence intentions and life satisfaction influenced by acculturation, enculturation, White marginalization, and Mexican American marginalization among 515 Mexican American college students. The utility of a path analysis model was supported. Enculturation positively predicted persistence and life satisfaction. Acculturation and White marginalization positively predicted persistence. Mexican American marginalization negatively predicted persistence and life satisfaction. The model explained 4% and 10% of the variance in college persistence intentions and life satisfaction, respectively.

Acculturation, Enculturation, Ethnic Identity, and Conscientiousness as Predictors of Latino Boys’ and Girls’ Career Decision Self-Efficacy

This study examined the role of culture and personality on the career decision self-efficacy of 338 Latino seventh-grade public middle school students. Specifically, we examined the role of acculturation, enculturation, ethnic identity, and conscientiousness on career decision self-efficacy. Findings indicated Latina girls were more acculturated and enculturated than Latino boys. For Latino boys and Latina girls, respectively, 34% and 25% of the variance in career decision self-efficacy was accounted for by the predictors. Acculturation, ethnic identity, and conscientiousness significantly predicted career decision self-efficacy for girls. For boys, however, only ethnic identity and conscientiousness were unique significant predictors. As expected, enculturation did not significantly predict career decision self-efficacy for either boys or girls. An interaction effect between acculturation and enculturation did not significantly predict career decision self-efficacy for boys or girls. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Alcohol use severity and depressive symptoms among late adolescent Hispanics: testing associations of acculturation and enculturation in a bicultural transaction model

Research has indicated that Hispanics have high rates of heavy drinking and depressive symptoms during late adolescence. The purpose of this study was to test a bicultural transaction model composed of two enthnocultural orientations (acculturation and enculturation); and stressful cultural transactions with both the U.S. culture (perceived ethnic discrimination) and Hispanic culture (perceived intragroup marginalization) to predict alcohol use severity and depressive symptoms among a sample of 129 (men=39, women=90) late adolescent Hispanics (ages 18-21) enrolled in college. Results from a path analysis indicated that the model accounted for 18.2% of the variance in alcohol use severity and 24.3% of the variance in depressive symptoms. None of the acculturation or enculturation domains had statistically significant direct effects with alcohol use severity or depressive symptoms. However, higher reports of ethnic discrimination were associated with higher reports of alcohol use severity and depressive symptoms. Similarly, higher reports of intragroup marginalization were associated with higher depressive symptoms. Further, both ethnic discrimination and intragroup marginalization functioned as mediators of multiple domains of acculturation and enculturation. These findings highlight the need to consider the indirect effects of enthnocultural orientations in relation to health-related outcomes.

Personal Identity Development in Hispanic Immigrant Adolescents: Links with Positive Psychosocial Functioning, Depressive Symptoms, and Externalizing Problems.

The present study was designed to examine trajectories of personal identity coherence and confusion among Hispanic recent-immigrant adolescents, as well as the effects of these trajectories on psychosocial and risk-taking outcomes. Personal identity is extremely important in anchoring young immigrants during a time of acute cultural change. A sample of 302 recently immigrated (5 years or less in the United States at baseline) Hispanic adolescents (Mage = 14.51 years at baseline; SD = 0.88 years, range 14–17) from Miami and Los Angeles (47 % girls) completed measures of personal identity coherence and confusion at the first five waves of a six-wave longitudinal study; and reported on positive psychosocial functioning, depressive symptoms, and externalizing problems at baseline and at Time 6. Results indicated that identity coherence increased linearly across time, but that there were no significant changes in confusion over time and no individual differences in confusion trajectories. Higher baseline levels of, and improvements in, coherence predicted higher levels of self-esteem, optimism, and prosocial behavior at the final study timepoint. Higher baseline levels of confusion predicted lower self-esteem, greater depressive symptoms, more aggressive behavior, and more rule breaking at the final study timepoint. These results are discussed in terms of the importance of personal identity for Hispanic immigrant adolescents, and in terms of implications for intervention.

Parent Conflict as a Mediator Between Marianismo Beliefs and Depressive Symptoms for Mexican American College Women

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine how marianismo is related to the depressive symptoms of Mexican American women with family conflict as a mediator. Participants: During January of 2010, 170 Mexican American women college students in a southern, Hispanic-serving institution were sampled. Methods: A mediation analysis was conducted to determine if parent conflict mediates the relationship between marianismo values and depressive symptoms. Results: Results from Barron and Kennys1 mediation analysis method, in conjunction with a Sobel2 test indicated that parent conflict significantly mediated the relation between marianismo and depressive symptoms. Conclusion: Findings and implications of the mediation will be discussed for the mental health and treatment of Mexican American women college students.

Associations of ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression among Hispanic emerging adults: a moderated mediation model

ABSTRACT Background and Objectives: Emerging adulthood is often marked with elevated symptoms of anxiety and depression. Hispanic emerging adults may face cultural stressors such as ethnic discrimination that further increase levels of anxiety and depression symptoms. The study aims were to examine if (a) self-esteem mediated effects of ethnic discrimination on symptoms of anxiety and depression, and (b) if gender moderated the indirect effects of discrimination. Design: The study design was cross-sectional self-report. Method: Two moderated mediation models were tested, with 1084 Hispanic emerging adults (ages 18–25) enrolled in institutions of post-secondary in the United States. Results: Results indicated that (a) higher ethnic discrimination was associated with higher anxiety symptoms (β = .05, p = .04), higher depression symptoms (β = .06, p = .02), and lower self-esteem (β = −.30, p < .001); (b) self-esteem mediated the associations of ethnic discrimination with anxiety and depression symptoms; and (c) gender moderated the indirect effects of discrimination, whereby self-esteem was a stronger mediator among men than women. Each moderated mediation model explained 26% of variability in symptoms of anxiety and depression, respectively. Conclusions: Findings suggest that the mediating effects of self-esteem linking ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression vary between genders.

The Role of Behavioral and Cognitive Cultural Orientation on Mexican American College Students' Life Satisfaction.

We examined the role of behavioral (acculturation and enculturation) and cognitive cultural orientation (independent and interdependent self-construal) on Mexican American college students’ life satisfaction. Analyses explained 28% of the variance in life satisfaction, with social class, grade point average, and independent self-construal being unique predictors. Furthermore, enculturation was associated with increasing life satisfaction among those low in interdependent self-construal, whereas acculturation was associated with decreasing life satisfaction among those high in independent self-construal. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

The Impact of Bicultural Stress on Mexican American Adolescents’ Depressive Symptoms and Suicidal Ideation Gender Matters

Research has found that Mexican American adolescents report higher levels of depressive symptoms than Whites and African Americans. For these youth, bicultural stress from navigating between their culture of origin and the mainstream U.S. culture can have negative mental health effects including higher levels of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. This study looks at the effects of bicultural stress and gender on depression and suicidal ideation of 516 Mexican American adolescents. Hierarchical linear and logistic regressions were performed to determine the affect of gender, bicultural stressors, and their interaction on depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Results indicate gender moderates the effect of several bicultural stressors on mental health outcomes, with boys being more affected by high levels of stress in areas when interaction effects were present. Discussion of results is framed within the intersection of ethnicity and gender role socialization.

Familial Factors Related to Suicidal Ideation of Latina Adolescents in the United States

The purpose of this study was to examine whether a Latina adolescents perception of mother connectedness, father connectedness, parental caring, autonomy granting from parents, and parental interest in their childs school life predicts suicidal ideation above and beyond known risk factors of adolescent depression and acculturation. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) Wave 1, 2 secondary logistic regression data analyses were conducted on a sample of 345 Latina adolescents. Results of correlational analyses indicated that perceived mother connectedness, father connectedness, parental caring, and academic interest were positively related; depression and nativity were negatively related to reports of suicidal ideation. Additionally, in a model with adolescents who reported having both a mother and father figure present in their life, depression and academic interest were significant predictors of suicidal ideation. In a second model, which included all Latinas regardless of the presence of both parents, depression, nativity, perceived academic interest, and caring were significant predictors. Implications are discussed for suicide prevention and intervention with Latina adolescents.

Attempting to successfully straddle the cultural divide: Hopelessness model of bicultural stress, mental health, and caregiver connection for Mexican descent adolescents.

The present study extends the Hopelessness Model of Depression through: (a) investigating the applicability of bicultural stress as precipitant in this model, (b) expanding mental health outcomes in addition to depression (i.e., life satisfaction), and (c) examining the protective role that male and female caregiver connection may play in disrupting this model for Mexican descent adolescents. With a sample of 524 Mexican descent adolescents (46.9% male; 53.1% female; age range: 14-20; M = 16.23 years; SD = 1.10 years), 2 structural equation models were tested, The first model (Theoretical Model) sought to determine the relationship between bicultural stress, life satisfaction, and depressive symptoms with hopelessness as a mediator. The second model (Protective Factor Model) investigated both male and female caregiver connectedness as potential protective factors in the bicultural stress-mental health relationships. Both models were supported. In the Theoretical Model, hopelessness mediated the relationship between bicultural stress and the mental health variables (i.e., depression and life satisfaction). Additionally, in the Protective Factor Model, female caregiver connection moderated the relationships between bicultural stress and life satisfaction, highlighting that female caregiver connection is a protective factor in the bicultural stress-life satisfaction relationship. Findings will be discussed from a resilience perspective with recommendations of how practitioners can use these findings for mental health prevention and intervention purposes.