The Affective Lives of Doubled-Up Latinx Youth: Influences of School Experiences, Familism, and Ethnic Identity Exploration.

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.

Cumulative Lifetime Adversity and Depression among a National Sample of U.S. Latinx Immigrants: Within-group Differences in Risk and Protective Factors Using Data from the HCHS/SOL Sociocultural Ancillary Study.

BACKGROUND: Latinx immigrants are exposed to multiple stressors before, during, and after migration. However, most past research has assumed the effects of these stressors are uniform across Latinx groups despite considerable within-group variation. The purpose of this study was to (a) assess the moderating effects of several risk and protective factors on the association between cumulative lifetime adversity and depression among U.S. Latinx immigrants and (b) examine the extent to which risk and protective processes differed between Latinx subgroups. METHOD: Data came from a cross-sectional secondary dataset, called the HCHS/SOL Sociocultural Ancillary Study. The sample (N = 2893) was identified using stratified random probability sampling in four of the largest Latinx metropolitan areas: the Bronx, NY, San Diego, CA, Chicago, IL, and Miami, FL. We included four Latinx subgroups in our study: Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Mexicans, and Dominicans. RESULTS: Results from multi-group regression analyses suggested that social support moderated the association between cumulative lifetime adversity and depression. However, further subgroup analyses showed the moderation effect was only present for Cuban and Dominican immigrants. We also found that perceived discrimination moderated the association between lifetime adversity and depression for Cuban immigrants and ethnic identity moderated the relationship between lifetime adversity and depression for Dominican immigrants. CONCLUSIONS: Our results provide preliminary evidence for the presence of within-group differences in responses to adverse events among Latinx immigrant groups. Results can be used to inform the development of mental health interventions tailored to the specific needs of various Latinx immigrant populations.

CONTEXTO: Los inmigrantes Latinx están expuestos a varios factores que les causan estrés antes, durante, y después de migrar. Sin embargo, casi todas las investigaciones previas han asumido que los efectos de estos factores que causan estrés son uniformes entre todos los grupos inmigrantes Latinx, a pesar de variación considerable dentro del grupo. El propósito de esta investigación fue (a) evaluar los efectos moderativos de los varios factores riesgosos y protectores en la relación entre la adversidad acumulativa de la vida y la depresión entre los inmigrantes Latinx en los estados unidos y (b) examinar hasta qué punto los procesos riesgosos y protectores se distinguían entre los subgrupos Latinx. MÉTODO: Los datos vinieron de un conjunto de datos secundarios transversales llamados el HCHS/SOL Estudio Sociocultural Ancilar. La muestra de personas (N = 2893) fue identificada usando un muestreo aleatorio proporcionalmente estratificado en cuatro de las áreas metropolitanas más grandes de gente Latinx: El Bronx en New York, San Diego, California, Chicago, Illinois, y Miami, Florida. Hemos incluyendo cuatro subgrupos Latinx en nuestra investigación: puertorriqueños, cubanos, mexicanos, y dominicanos. RESULTADOS: Resultados del análisis de regresión multi-grupo sugirieron que el apoyo social moderó la relación entre la adversidad acumulativa de la vida y la depresión. Sin embargo, análisis más a fondo de subgrupos demostraron que el efecto de moderación solo estaba presente para los inmigrantes cubanos y dominicanos. También descubrimos que la discriminación moderó la relación entre la adversidad acumulativa de la vida y la depresión para los inmigrantes cubanos y que la identidad étnica moderó la relación entre la adversidad acumulativa de la vida y la depresión para los inmigrantes dominicanos. CONCLUSIONES: Nuestros resultados proveen evidencia preliminar de la presencia de diferencias dentro del grupo en las repuestas a los eventos adversos entre los subgrupos de inmigrantes Latinx. Los resultados pueden informar el desarrollo de intervenciones de salud mental personalizadas para las necesidades específicas de varias poblaciones de inmigrantes Latinx.

Longitudinal Linkages among Parents' Educational Expectations, Youth's Educational Expectations, and Competence in Mexican-origin Families.

The contribution that parental educational expectations for youth and youth's perceptions of academic competence can have on youth's own educational expectations across early to late adolescence is not well-understood. In a sample of Mexican-origin families, the current study examined longitudinal (from early to late adolescence) associations among mothers, fathers, and youth's educational expectations, how youth's educational expectations were associated with perceived academic competence, and the potential mediating role of youth's perceived academic competence. Data from two-parent families which included one focal child (7th grade: N= 469; youth: Mage = 12.31, 50% female) at three waves (7th, 9th, and 11th grade) were utilized. Structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis were implemented to assess the study's goals. Results revealed significant associations among parents' 7th grade educational expectations and youth's 9th and 11th grade educational expectations. The findings also revealed three significant associations among youth's perceived academic competence and educational expectations between 7th and 11th grade. Specifically, youth's 7th grade perceived academic competence predicted youth's 9th grade educational expectations, youth's 7th grade educational expectations predicted youth's 9th grade perceived academic competence, and youth's 9th grade perceived academic competence predicted youth's 11th grade educational expectations. Multigroup analysis did not reveal gender differences for the associations tested. The findings highlight the long-term significance of parents' educational expectations on youth's educational expectations and underscore youth's academic competence, an individual level factor, as critical to consider for understanding educational expectations across adolescence for Mexican-origin youth.