Examining Differences in Substance Use Outcomes and Related Correlates among Transfeminine and Transmasculine Adults Using the 2017 New York State Patient Characteristics Survey.

Background: Transgender persons in the U.S. experience high levels of violence and discrimination which have been linked to adverse substance use outcomes. Despite transgender women's higher exposure to such deleterious events compared to transgender men, studies have often aggregated both transgender women and men, obfuscating potentially unique differences between these groups. The current study, guided by the Minority Stress Model, examines differences in substance use outcomes and related correlates among transfeminine and transmasculine adults. Methods: A secondary data analysis was conducted using the 2017 Patient Characteristics Survey of public mental health facilities in the state of New York (N = 1387). Controlling for theoretically relevant factors, logistic regression models were estimated to examine differences between transfeminine and transmasculine adults in alcohol-related disorder (ARD) and drug use-related disorder (DURD) diagnoses, and tobacco use. Correlates of substance use disparities were also examined within gender identity groups. Results: Overall, 35% of participants were documented as using tobacco products whereas 14 and 19% were diagnosed with ARDs and DURDs, respectively. Transfeminine participants were 1.44-times more likely to be diagnosed with ARDs relative to transmasculine adults. Compared to transmasculine and White participants, transfeminine and Black participants were 1.64- and 1.59-times more likely to be diagnosed with DURDs. Conclusions: Recognizing the observed higher hazardous substance use risk among transfeminine and Black participants, findings indicate the potential role of minority stress in health outcomes of stigmatized communities. Our findings emphasize the need for identifying prevention and treatment strategies aimed at mitigating the implications of minority stress.

Polyvictimization and Psychological Outcomes Among North Korean Refugee Women.

Korean refugee women are at risk of multiple violent victimizations throughout the migration phases. However, migration's association with mental health outcomes has received little scholarly attention. This study examined North Korean refugee women's exposure to polyvictimization-exposure to both gender-based violence (GBV) and intimate partner violence (IPV)-and explored whether polyvictimization is associated with an increased risk of psychological symptoms. Data from a snowball sample of 212 North Korean refugee women were analyzed. Polyvictimization was operationalized as No victimization (0), Only GBV (1), Only IPV (2), and Both GBV and IPV (3). The associations between polyvictimization and depression, suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, and alcohol use disorder were analyzed with multivariate analyses. Results demonstrated that 46.2% experienced GBV in either North Korea or intermediary countries, and 30.9% were victims of IPV from their current intimate partner in South Korea. Approximately 25% were victims of both GBV and IPV. Multivariate analyses revealed that GBV was the most critical factor for mental health outcomes. North Korean refugee women with only GBV or GBV and IPV had significantly higher depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation severity than those without violence victimization. Risk of suicide attempt was also significantly higher among those with only GBV (OR = 16.52, p = .015) or both GBV and IPV (OR = 9.96, p = .048) than those without any violence victimization. Implications for future research and interventions among North Korean refugee women are also discussed.

Social service providers navigating the rapid transition to telehealth with Latinx immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic radically altered social service provision with significant public health implications as social services often target society's most vulnerable with preventative health services addressing social determinants of health. Social service providers serve as crucial linkages to services for low-income Latinx immigrants who face substantial barriers to health and social care. However, little is known regarding how social service providers working with Latinx immigrants navigated service delivery and the rapid transition to telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. This mixed-methods (QUAL-quant; capitalization denotes primacy) study used survey data collected from April 2020 to October 2020 with Latinx immigrant serving as social service providers in the Maryland-Washington, DC, region. Social ecological theory guided the analysis of narrative data and the integration of quantitative data with qualitative themes. Participants (N = 41) were majority women (85.4%), identified as Latinx (48.6%) and elucidated themes related to their transition to telehealth, including adjusting from in-person to telehealth, barriers to telehealth implementation, impact on quality of services, working to prevent clients' disconnection to social services, and work-related stress and satisfaction. Through the firsthand experiences of frontline social service providers, results reveal conditions of scarcity endemic in social services for Latinx immigrants that preexisted the pandemic and became further constrained during a time of heightened health and social need. Further, critical insights regarding the use of remote modalities with vulnerable populations (language minorities and immigrants) can be instructive in the development of improved and accessible telehealth and remote programming and services for Latinx immigrants. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

"The solitude absorbs and it oppresses": 'Illegality' and its implications on Latino immigrant day laborers' social isolation, loneliness and health.

Despite a well-documented relationship between social isolation and health among men, this link has been understudied among marginalized populations such as undocumented immigrant men whose structural social exclusion may impede the cultivation and maintenance of social connections in the United States. This may be particularly so in new immigrant settlement cities that may lack an established Latina/o community or the social infrastructure often needed to ease the process of social integration. Studies that have examined social disconnectedness, social isolation, and/or loneliness have largely focused on individual level factors (i.e., older age) that may precipitate or contextualize experiences of social isolation, social support and social networks. Missing from such conceptualizations is a consideration of the role of structural factors, such as "illegality" among undocumented immigrant men, on experiences of social disconnection, social exclusion, social isolation and loneliness and resultant adverse health behaviors. This study, through in-depth qualitative participant narratives, explores the social condition of one group of "illegal" immigrant men, Latino immigrant day laborers (LIDL), and their experiences of social exclusion, social isolation, loneliness and health in the new immigrant settlement city of Baltimore. Using an ethnographic methodological approach, eight focus groups (N = 37) were conducted with participants recruited from two day labor sites from 2016 to 2019. Thematic analysis revealed a structural process of social exclusion and disconnection that exposed LIDLs to experiences of racism, structural vulnerability, and dehumanization which in turn may have heightened social isolation and loneliness and patterned substance use and sexual risk taking. Findings further emphasize the potential conceptual significance of structurally induced social disconnection, as distinct from lack of social support, in the study of LIDLs' social isolation, loneliness and health.

Working under conditions of social vulnerability: Depression among Latina/o immigrant horse workers.

OBJECTIVES: The American agricultural industry is heavily reliant on Latina/o workers, yet there is scant understanding regarding the mental health of this population. This gap in the literature is glaring as Latina/o farmworkers are a highly vulnerable group who experience high rates of occupational risks and health hazards. This study is the first, to our knowledge, to examine individual, social and work-related correlates of depression among Latina/o horse workers. METHOD: A community survey (N = 225) administered by lay health workers was implemented with Latina/o horse workers who were employed in thoroughbred horse farms in Kentucky. Study participants were on average 35 years old (9.6), largely male (85.8%), married (67.6%), dominant Spanish speakers (95.1%), born in Mexico (84.4%), made a modal average hourly wage of $10.24, and had spent an average of 14.5 years in the United States. Hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to examine the association between (a) individual and social factors and (b) work factors with depression. RESULTS: Women (ß = .13, p < .04), and those who reported higher job insecurity (ß = .23, p < .001) and number of days missed due to injury (ß = .20, p < .05) were more likely to report higher depressive symptoms. Work discrimination due to race/ethnicity (ß = .26, p < .001) was distinctly associated to depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Work-related discrimination was uniquely associated with depressive symptoms independent of the effects of occupational risks and stressors. This may be particularly salient in a rising anti-immigrant national context. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

"They Dumped Me Like Trash": The Social and Psychological Toll of Victimization on Latino Day Laborers' Lives.

Although recent rhetoric links undocumented immigrants to criminality, reports indicate undocumented immigrants commit less crime than their native-born counterparts and that this vulnerable group may be at increased risk for criminal victimization. Immigrants living in new immigrant settlement cities may be particularly at risk for exposure to criminal victimization due to the vulnerabilities associated with a lack of an established Latino community and limited availability of culturally appropriate social services to provide support. This ethnographic study examines the experiences of victimization and its social and psychological toll of a street-recruited sample of Latino day laborers (LDLs) (N = 25) living and working in Baltimore, a new immigrant settlement city. Findings elucidate and describe the specific types of victimization experienced by LDLs, including workplace victimization (wage theft, abandonment at the jobsite, poor working conditions, verbal abuse) and street-level victimization (assault and robbery), as well as reveal the social and psychological toll of victimization (sociocultural alienation, despair or desesperación, and problem drinking) on their lives. Findings have implications for community psychology, through research and practice, as they provide insights for prevention and intervention within the intersection of structural vulnerability (i.e., undocumented immigration status), violence, and mental health.

We are at Full Capacity": Social care workers persisting through work-related stress in a new immigrant settlement context in the United States.

Cities without a prior established history of Latina/o migration are experiencing the fastest rate of growth in new immigrants in the United States (Wainer, A tale of two cities (and a town): Immigrants in the Rust Belt, 2013; Lichter & Johnson, Immigrant gateways and Hispanic migration to new destinations. International Migration Review, 43, 496, 2009). These new immigrant settlement cities experience the challenge of adapting their social care context to become more responsive to the needs of immigrants. Yet as cities and social care organisations struggle to keep up with the "lag" time in the availability of culturally and linguistically responsive resources and services, social care providers often work in conditions of scarcity in a social care context that is often lacking in its ability to fully respond to the needs of immigrants. Literature indicates that such conditions of scarcity can lead to work related stress, burn-out, and can have a negative impact on the quality of services delivered by social care workers. Yet little is known regarding social care providers' motivations and responses to work stress; and how providers may positively respond and persist in their jobs despite such stressors. This study conducted in the new immigrant settlement city of Baltimore from 2014 to 2016, utilises semi-structured interviews to qualitatively explore the personal motivational beliefs, workplace and demographic factors associated with buffering stress and frustration among social care workers in a new immigrant settlement city (N = 29). Findings highlight important motivational and work-related factors that appear to minimise the impact of stress and frustration for social care providers and can be used in the development of burn-out interventions as well as improving quality of services for vulnerable populations such as, immigrants, especially in low-resource new immigrant settlement contexts.

Return-Migration to Mexico and the Gendered Transnational Migration Process.

The Mexico-USA border is one of the most active borders in the world with many migrant men traveling to the United States to serve as "breadwinners" for their families. Yet knowledge within psychology is limited regarding how Latino migrants' masculine identities may be shaped within the migration context as a vast majority of studies are set within the United States. This gap in the literature continues to exist despite many Latino migrant men's engagement in transnational lifestyles involving multiple migrations between their country of origin and the United States. A more complete investigation of all phases of the migration journey, including return-migration, is then vital in the understanding of migrant men's experiences. Guided by gender strain theory and transnational conceptual frameworks, we used case study methodology to examine masculinity among return-migrants in Petlalcingo, Mexico to understand how migration-related life events relate to masculinity by identifying key moments and turning points within their migration process, such as: the decision to migrate, the migration journey, adjustment and acculturation in a new country and return-migration. Findings elucidate a gendered migration process as well as key variables that can be utilized in the development of larger binational studies examining masculinity and migration.

Providing social services in a new immigrant settlement city: A qualitative inquiry.

Nationally, a new trend in migration has included the settlement of Latina/o immigrants in cities without an established community of Latinas/os. Social services become even more salient in this context in the absence of informal social networks of support. This study, guided by social ecological theory, advances our limited understanding of social services in new immigrant settlement destinations by elucidating contextual and structural factors endemic to the social service delivery process in these new immigrant destinations. Twenty-nine social service providers who work with Latina/o immigrants in Baltimore were interviewed and Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR; Hill, Thompson, & Nutt Williams, 1997) methods were used to analyze data through consensus and the use of multiple data "auditors." Findings extend our understanding of the context of social services in a new immigrant settlement city by identifying qualitative factors related to the new immigrant settlement, organization and work, community, and client level that impact access and quality of services. A theoretically driven conceptual framework adapted from the Structural Environmental conceptual framework (Organista, 2007) is also proposed to explain the transactional interconnectedness among structural-, environmental-, and client-level factors in the social service delivery process. (PsycINFO Database Record

Developing scientists in Hispanic substance use and health disparities research through the creation of a national mentoring network.

Hispanics are disproportionately affected by substance use and related health harms yet remain underrepresented across scientific disciplines focused on researching and addressing these issues. An interdisciplinary network of scientists committed to fostering the development of social and biomedical researchers focused on Hispanic substance use and health disparities developed innovative mentoring and career development activities. We conducted a formative evaluation study using anonymous membership and conference feedback data to describe specific mentoring and career development activities developed within the national network. Successful mentoring initiatives and career development activities were infused with cultural and community values supportive of professional integration and persistence. Mentoring initially occurred within an annual national conference and was then sustained throughout the year through formal training programs and informal mentoring networks. Although rigorous evaluation is needed to determine the success of these strategies in fostering long-term career development among scientists conducting Hispanic health and substance use research, this innovative model may hold promise for other groups committed to promoting career development and professional integration and persistence for minority (and non-minority) scientists committed to addressing health disparities.

Factors Associated to Health Care Service Use among Latino Day Laborers.

Latino day laborers (LDLs) are at elevated risks for disease and injury because of the environments in which they work. Despite this recognition, a comprehensive examination of factors related to LDLs' health service use remains unexamined. Using the Andersen model, the current exploratory study examined predisposing (age, education level, location of educational training, legal status, and marital status), enabling (income, trust in medical personnel, whether the respondent has someone they consider their personal doctor, and whether their doctor speaks the same language, perceived barriers to care), and need (self-rated health, number of chronic conditions) variables to predict use of health services among a purposive sample of LDLs ( N = 150). Cross-sectional data were collected in 2012 from 4 day laborer sites in Dallas and Arlington, Texas. Regression results suggest that the strongest predictor of health care use was trust in medical providers (ß = .41). LDLs who were U.S legal residents (ß = .21), reported multiple chronic conditions (ß = .16), and had a doctor who spoke their language (ß = .15) reported significantly higher levels of health care usage. In terms of barriers, not being able to pay for services (ß = -.23), lacking health care insurance coverage (ß = -.22), and being embarrassed or having a family member not approve of utilizing services (ß = -.18) were significantly associated with lower health care usage among LDLs. These findings suggest that LDLs are faced with a number of predisposing, enabling, and need factors that comprise health care use.

Risk Environments and Substance Use Among Mexican Female Sex Work on the U.S.-Mexico Border.

We use a risk environment framework to qualitatively examine pathways into substance use and abuse among Mexican female sex workers on the U.S.-Mexico border. Life history interviews and ethnographic observations were conducted with female sex workers to uncover how the border context shapes patterns of substance use. The findings illustrate that, for many women, initiation into sex work is contextualized within immigration, the global economy, and demands and desire for financial autonomy. Paradoxically, many find autonomy within sex work as they increase their ability to support their families and themselves. As women become more entrenched in sex work, however, they are put on a path toward substance abuse beginning with alcohol then cocaine and heroin. This identification of specific substance use pathways and trajectories has important implications for the development of prevention and intervention programs that can help curtail problematic drug use that can lead to negative health consequences.

Un Jalón, Un Volteón, y Otra Vez: High-Risk Crack Smoking Paraphernalia in México City.

During the past decade, crack smoking has increased in Mexico among poor urban populations. Despite this increasing prevalence, little is known about the types of paraphernalia used and related sharing practices and physical harms. Data come from in-depth semi-structured interviews and observations with 156 current crack smokers in Mexico City. Findings reveal a complex, crack-smoking process in Mexico City that represents an interconnected structure of paraphernalia items and pipes that could contribute to detrimental health consequences. Specifically, we identify essential paraphernalia items that make the smoking of crack possible; describe the homemade construction of two categories of pipes; and detail the sharing practices and physical harms associated with these paraphernalia. Results point towards a smoking process that is embedded in impoverished urban neighborhoods sustained by an accessible street-level crack market. Discussed are the policy and intervention implications associated with reducing crack-related health consequences in Mexico and other Latin American countries.

Immigration and psychotic experiences in the United States: Another example of the epidemiological paradox?

In Europe, it is widely established that immigration increases risk for psychotic disorder. However, research has yet to confirm this association in the United States, where immigrants paradoxically report better health status than their native-born counterparts. Further, few studies have examined this topic with respect to sub-threshold psychotic experiences, which are more common than psychotic disorders in the general population. This study analyzes the (1) National Comorbidity Survey-Replication, (2) the National Latino and Asian American Survey, and (3) the National Survey of American Life, in order to determine whether generation status had any impact on risk for lifetime and 12-month PE, and whether these associations vary across racial/ethnic groups, adjusting for demographic variables and socioeconomic status. We found an absence of an immigration effect on PE across various ethnic groups and across various geographic areas, and found that immigration is actually protective among Latinos, supporting the idea that the epidemiological paradox extends to the psychosis phenotype.

Vida PURA: A Cultural Adaptation of Screening and Brief Intervention to Reduce Unhealthy Drinking Among Latino Day Laborers.

BACKGROUND: Brief intervention is known to reduce drinking in primary care; however, because health care access is limited for Latino immigrants, traditional brief interventions are unlikely to reach this population. METHODS: Using Barrera and Castro's framework, our study aims to culturally adapt a screening and brief intervention program to reduce unhealthy alcohol use among Latino day laborers, a particularly vulnerable group of Latino immigrant men. We conducted 18 interviews with Latino day laborers and 13 interviews with mental health and substance use providers that serve Latino immigrant men. Interviews were conducted until saturation of themes was reached. Themes from interviews were used to identify sources of mismatch between traditional screening and brief intervention in our target population. RESULTS: Unhealthy alcohol use was common, culturally accepted, and helped relieve immigration-related stressors. Men had limited knowledge about how to change their behavior. Men preferred to receive information from trusted providers in Spanish. Men faced significant barriers to accessing health and social services but were open to receiving brief interventions in community settings. Findings were used to design Vida PURA, a preliminary adaptation design of brief intervention for Latino day laborers. Key adaptations include brief intervention at a day labor worker center provided by promotores trained to incorporate the social and cultural context of drinking for Latino immigrant men. CONCLUSIONS: Culturally adapted brief intervention may help reduce unhealthy drinking in this underserved population.

Validation of the Revised BSI-18 With Latino Migrant Day Laborers.

Objective: This study examines the factor structure of the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18; Derogatis, 2001) in a hard-to-reach population of mainly undocumented migrant Latino day laborers. While, the BSI-18 has been found to be a valid and reliable measure of psychological distress, cross-cultural assessments in sub-groups of Latinos are scarce withthis being the first study to examine the factor structure of the Spanish version of the BSI-18 with this population. Methods: A series of principal axis exploratory factor analytic procedures examining one to three-factor models were performed with a street recruited sample of 150 Latino migrant day laborers. Results: A one-factor model emerged and four items were dropped due to low factor loadings. The internal consistency coefficients for the 14-item BSI was α = .87. Conclusions: Findings suggest that the revised BSI-18 appears to measure a single dimension of general somatic-psychological distress in this sample of Latinos.

Battling discrimination and social isolation: psychological distress among Latino day laborers.

Day labor is comprised of predominately male and recent Latino immigrants, mainly from Mexico and Central America who work in an unregulated and informal market. Three-quarters of the day labor force is undocumented and live under the federal poverty threshold as work is seasonal and highly contingent on the weather and the local economy. However, in spite of their exposure to significant health risks, little is known about the impact of Latino day laborers' (LDLs) work and life conditions on their mental health. This mixed methods study extends the literature by using the minority stress theoretical model to examine the relationship between discrimination and social isolation as well as participant identified protective factors such as religiosity and sending remittances with psychological distress. A quantitative survey with 150 LDLs was conducted and was followed by a qualitative member checking focus group to extend upon the quantitative results as well as the minority stress model with the lived experiences of these immigrant workers. Results reveal implications for prevention efforts with this hard-to-reach and marginalized population.

The Racial and Ethnic Identity Formation Process of Second-Generation Asian Indian Americans: A Phenomenological Study.

This phenomenological study elucidates the identity development processes of 12 second-generation adult Asian Indian Americans. The results identify salient sociocultural factors and multidimensional processes of racial and ethnic identity development. Discrimination, parental, and community factors seemed to play a salient role in influencing participants' racial and ethnic identity development. The emergent Asian Indian American racial and ethnic identity model provides a contextualized overview of key developmental periods and turning points within the process of identity development.

Culturally competent social work research: methodological considerations for research with language minorities.

Despite the growing number of language minorities, foreign-born individuals with limited English proficiency, this population has been largely left out of social work research, often due to methodological challenges involved in conducting research with this population. Whereas the professional standard calls for cultural competence, a discussion of how to implement strategies for culturally competent research with language minorities is regrettably limited in the social work literature. This article is, to the authors' knowledge, one of the first within the field of social work to tie together unique methodological issues that may arise throughout the research conceptualization, development, and implementation process with this population. Strategies for how to overcome such issues are provided by adapting and expanding on a conceptual framework by Meleis. The incorporation of such research practices with language minorities has the potential to enhance trust and, thus, improve the recruitment and retention of this hard-to-reach population. More important, studies that aim to include such culturally responsive criteria may produce results that have improved validity and, thus, contribute to the advancement of knowledge regarding this population.