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PubMed1996

Acculturative stress, depression, and suicidal ideation among immigrant and second-generation Latino adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: (1) To determine the relationship between acculturative stress, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation in a sample of immigrant and second-generation Latino-American adolescents, and (2) to determine the best predictors of acculturative stress and depressive symptoms. METHOD: Subjects were 40 female and 30 male students from a bilingual program in a southern California high school. Measures used were the Short Acculturation Scale for Hispanics, the SAFE acculturative stress measure, the Family Assessment Device, the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale, the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire-Junior, and an open-ended question measuring individual attitudes and expectations toward the future. A cross-sectional design was used. RESULTS: One fourth of the adolescents reported critical levels of depression and suicidal ideation, which were positively correlated with acculturative stress. Multiple regression analyses revealed that perceived family dysfunction and nonpositive "expectations for the future" were significant predictors of acculturative stress and depression. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that some acculturating Latino adolescents experience high levels of acculturative stress. These adolescents are also "at risk" for experiencing critical levels of depression and suicidal ideation. Findings highlight the importance of assessing the treating the depressed and potentially suicidal acculturating adolescent within a cultural context.

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PubMedDate not supplied

Acculturation level and postpartum depression in Hispanic mothers.

PURPOSE: Perinatal health outcomes for Hispanic women are associated with acculturation. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between acculturation levels and postpartum depressive symptomatology and diagnosed postpartum depression among Hispanic subgroups. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The Postpartum Depression Screening Scale and the Short Acculturation Scale were used in the two phases of data collection. Phase 1 and 2 samples consisted of 377 and 150 Hispanic mothers, respectively. Puerto Rican mothers showed higher levels of acculturation than Mexican and other Hispanic women. A DSM-IV diagnostic interview (SCID) was used to establish a diagnosis of depression. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to study the unique relationships between ethnicity, depressive symptomatology, diagnosed depression, and acculturation. RESULTS: There was no consistent relationship between acculturation and postpartum depression. Significant predictors of elevated postpartum depressive symptoms in Hispanic mothers were Puerto Rican ethnicity and cesarean delivery. Single marital status was a significant risk factor for postpartum depression. A limitation of the study was use of language as the sole criterion measure for acculturation. Acculturation is a complex construct with problematic measurement that needs greater refinement to facilitate research in which it is used as a variable. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Hispanic mothers are a heterogeneous group and should not be treated as a homogeneous group. Subgroups of Hispanic mothers may not have the same level of acculturation or the same level of postpartum depressive symptomatology.

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PubMed1997

The development and application of a scale of acculturation.

As Australia is one of the most multicultural societies in the world, acculturation of migrants and changes in migrants' health status should be an important focus of public health research. The absence of an accepted measure of acculturation is one barrier to exploring the relationship between acculturation and health. This paper presents data from a study of 851 Arabic-speaking adults attending 20 Arabic-speaking general practitioners in Canterbury, Sydney. An eight-item scale assessing acculturation was developed with a structural equation modelling program (LISREL). This acculturation scale was based on similar scales used with Hispanic populations, was theoretically grounded and had high internal consistency and criterion-related validity. To show the application of a scale of acculturation, patients' preferences for participation in medical decision making, according to level of acculturation, were examined. After adjustment for age, sex and highest level of formal education, significant inverse associations between acculturation and preferences for patient (versus family) involvement in medical decision making were found. Mechanisms for how acculturation affects health need to be explored.

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PubMed2006

Acculturation and breast density in foreign-born, U.S. Chinese women.

The role of acculturation in the breast cancer risk increase among U.S. Chinese women is unclear. We examined the association between acculturation and breast density in a sample of foreign-born, U.S. Chinese women and examined factors that may explain such an association. Between January 2002 and May 2003, 212 Chinese women were recruited from Philadelphia region screening programs. Cranial-caudal mammographic images were classified into one of four categories ranging from "entirely fatty" to "extremely dense." Questionnaires assessed information on sociodemographic, cultural, reproductive, and lifestyle factors. An index of acculturation was created based on self-reported English proficiency and within- and cross-ethnicity social interactions. To estimate odds ratios (OR) for falling into a higher versus lower category for breast density, we conducted logistic regression analysis using proportional odds models for polychotomous outcomes. We found that women in the highest acculturation category had denser breasts [age-adjusted OR, 3.1; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.6-6.0]. They also had fewer live births, higher age at first live birth, and higher dairy food intake, all factors associated with breast density. In 196 women with complete covariate data, only adjustment for number of live births and dairy food intake attenuated the estimate for acculturation by >10%. With adjustment for both simultaneously, the most acculturated women were still more likely to have denser breasts (age- and menopause-adjusted OR, 2.0; 95% CI, 1.0-4.2). These analyses are the first to show breast density differences by level of acculturation among foreign-born, U.S. Chinese women. Despite reproductive and lifestyle differences by level of acculturation, differences in these factors did not explain the acculturation-breast density association. Future longitudinal research will examine whether the association is due to early-life factors, postmigration lifestyle changes, or perimenopausal exposures.

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PubMed2000

Acculturation of South Asian adolescents in Australia.

BACKGROUND: This investigation is part of a wider research project on the acculturation and identity-related issues of South Asian young people in Britain, Canada and the US. There has been no published research on the acculturation of this ethnic group in Australia. The project is embedded within Berry's (1994) theoretical framework of acculturation. AIMS: There are two major aims of the research. Firstly, to discover any pattern of acculturation of South Asian young people and to compare it with that of their counterparts in Britain and Canada. Secondly, to validate the existing Acculturation Scale (Ghuman, 1975, 1997, 1999a) with a group of South Asian young people living in a different socio-political context. SAMPLES: The sample was drawn from three high schools--two being in Newcastle City, and one in a rural setting of New South Wales, Australia. A representative sample of 75 boys and girls (aged 14 to 16) from two social class backgrounds took part in the research. METHODS: The young people were requested to fill in a background questionnaire on their religion, languages spoken at home, best friend, frequency of visit to a temple, etc. They also completed the Aberystwyth Likert-type Acculturation Scale. RESULTS: Summated scores on the scale of two social class groups confirmed the previous finding that a non-manual group shows a higher degree of acculturation compared with a manual group. But, contrary to expectations, girls show lower acculturation than boys. The Spearman-Brown coefficient of reliability is 0.82--which is in line with the findings in England and Canada. CONCLUSIONS: The whole sample shows a lower degree of acculturation compared with their counterparts in Canada and England. This is fully contextualised: viz, at the time of research (March 1998) the socio-political of Australia was anti-Asian, due mainly to the impending general election in which immigration from Asia was a significant issue. The mean score of the sample reflects their bilingualism and biculturalism.

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PubMed2006

Acculturation and the sexual and reproductive health of Latino youth in the United States: a literature review.

CONTEXT: The high birthrate among Latina teenagers in the United States has generated increased interest in the role of acculturation in their sexual and reproductive health. It is critical to identify gaps in the existing research and to ascertain the relationship between acculturation and Latino sexual behavior. METHODS: PUBMED, ERIC and POPLINE were searched for journal articles published between 1985 and 2006 that explicitly examined acculturation and sexual and reproductive health among Latino youth. All fertility-related outcomes (pregnancy, birth, abortion) and their proximate determinants (attitudes, knowledge, norms, sexual activity, contraceptive use) were considered sexual or reproductive health outcomes. Eligible studies used a cross-sectional or longitudinal design; had a sample of males, females or both aged 25 or younger; and included Latino-specific analyses. RESULTS: Seventeen studies met the screening criteria, and these studies used 23 distinct measures of acculturation that captured four primary dimensions: time (duration of exposure to U.S. culture), language, culture and residence. The measures' robustness varied, and none of the studies was widely generalizable. Ten studies investigated sexual initiation, and eight of these found a positive association between the likelihood of this outcome and acculturation. Acculturation also was associated with increased condom use and with beliefs and norms related to healthy outcomes, although the evidence was less conclusive. CONCLUSIONS: Ideal studies of acculturation would stratify analyses by gender and country of origin, and would include time measures related to acculturation. When feasible, studies should be population-based and longitudinal, and should build on existing theories of the relationship between acculturation and the sexual behavior, norms and beliefs that are unique to Latino culture.

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PubMed2006

Acculturation and driving under the influence: a study of repeat offenders.

OBJECTIVE: In California, driving under the influence (DUI) arrest and conviction rates are disproportionately higher among the Hispanic population. Acculturation and other factors associated with drinking and driving may help explain this disparity. METHOD: Interviews with Hispanic repeat DUI offenders were conducted immediately prior to sentencing and 2 years later. Arrest records from these offenders were also examined. Analyses were performed to examine the association between acculturation and other sociodemographic characteristics at baseline with DUI arrests and convictions at a 2-year follow-up. RESULTS: Logistic regression modeling showed that acculturation was significantly related to self-reported DUI recidivism even after controlling for other factors associated with DUI convictions during a 2-year follow-up. Acculturation was not found to have a statistically significant relation to DUI arrest rates during that same period. CONCLUSIONS: Among a Hispanic sample of repeat DUI offenders, the less-acculturated members were more likely to report a repeat DUI conviction at 2-year follow-up than the more-acculturated ones, even after controlling for other characteristics associated with DUI behaviors, such as drinking severity and marital status. The same pattern was not found between acculturation and arrest rates. Acculturation may serve as a risk factor for repeat convictions. Efforts to reduce multiple DUI convictions may need to consist of ways to target persons who are less acculturated.

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PubMed2006

Fruit and vegetable consumption of older Mexican-American women is associated with their acculturation level.

Little is known about the association between acculturation and fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption among older Mexican-American (MA) women. Environmental and lifestyles changes experienced by immigrants to the United States may markedly affect their diet and health and increase their risk for chronic diseases. Our objectives were to: 1) describe FV consumption by ethnicity, acculturation, and sociodemographic characteristics, and 2) compare effects of acculturation and sociodemographic variables on FV intake in a population of older MA and non-Hispanic White (NHW) women from the Well-Integrat-ed Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) Study. This report examines baseline FV intake of 346 underinsured women aged 50-76 years, assessed through 24-hour dietary recalls. Acculturation was measured with a five-item Likert-type scale. Twenty percent of more acculturated MA women, 24% of less acculturated MA women, and 36% of White women consumed > or = 5 servings of FV servings per day. Fruit and vegetable (FV) intake was associated with acculturation, education, and smoking status. Being more acculturated was associated with lower consumption of FVs among MAs, while having a higher education and no smoking was associated with higher intakes of FV servings among NHWs. Public health efforts to improve the intake of FVs among MA women should be sensitive to their acculturation status.

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PubMed1998

Alcohol and AIDS-related sexual behavior among Hispanics: acculturation and gender differences.

We examined the relationship of acculturation to alcohol use and risky sexual behavior among Hispanic men (N = 269) and women (N = 294). Data were obtained from a 1991/1992 general population survey on alcohol that included questions on sexual behavior. Guided by a conceptual/theoretical framework, we focused on gender and acculturation differences as we examined the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics, perception of AIDS-related risk, drinking and AIDS-related sexual behavior. Logistic regression analyses were performed separately for men and women to evaluate the predictive strength of acculturation, demographic factors, and alcohol consumption on risky sexual behavior. Results indicated that less acculturated Hispanic men drank more heavily and were more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior than those who were more acculturated. Although acculturated Hispanic women drank more than those who were less acculturated, less acculturated Hispanic women engaged in more risky sexual behavior. The data indicate the need for culturally sensitive AIDS-prevention programs that are linked with alcohol treatment services for men and that are targeted to different acculturation levels for men and women.

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PubMed2007

Facets of acculturation and their diverse relations to body shape concern in Fiji.

OBJECTIVE: The present study examines the relation between acculturation and body shape concern in Fiji--a society undergoing rapid social change. METHOD: Data were from two cohorts of ethnic Fijian girls and women collected in 1998 (n = 115). A factor analysis was performed to identify dimensions of acculturation. The association of these with body shape concern was examined with linear regression. RESULTS: Three dimensions of acculturation were identified. Multiple linear regression models demonstrated that each of these dimensions of acculturation had a unique relation to body shape concern. The adjusted R(2) for the fully adjusted model relating acculturation to body concern was 0.63, indicating a substantial degree of shared variation between measures of body shape concern and measures of acculturation. CONCLUSION: Acculturation may have a strong impact on body shape concern in Fiji. However, acculturation is a multidimensional construct and does not likely have a monolithic relation to body shape concern.

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PubMedDate not supplied

Linguistic acculturation and gender effects on smoking among Hispanic youth.

BACKGROUND: Hispanic populations have been shown to be at high risk for smoking. The complex psychological process of adaptation to a different culture (acculturation) has been linked to smoking among Hispanic adults and adolescents. Although a positive association between acculturation and smoking appears to depend on gender among adults, research with Hispanic adolescents has ignored the moderating effect of gender. METHODS: Students in 22 New York City schools completed self-report questionnaires and provided carbon monoxide breath samples at two annual assessments. Sixth and seventh graders who identified themselves as Hispanics participated in the study (N = 1,295 at baseline; N = 1,034 at 1-year follow-up). The questionnaire included items related to smoking, acculturation, and demographic characteristics. RESULTS: Analyses were conducted to determine the effects of linguistic acculturation and gender on smoking. Girls smoked more frequently than boys at both time points. Being more acculturated was also associated with more smoking at the two survey assessments. As predicted, adolescent smoking depended on both gender and linguistic acculturation. For girls, but not boys, the highly acculturated adolescents smoked more frequently than either the bilingual or the less acculturated. CONCLUSIONS: Based on these findings, smoking prevention programs designed for Hispanic youth may benefit from an emphasis on Hispanic culture.

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PubMed2005

Acculturation and its relationship to smoking and breast self-examination frequency in African American women.

The concept of acculturation has been used to understand differences in health behaviors between and within a variety of racial and ethnic immigrant groups. Few studies, however, have examined the potential impact of acculturation on health behaviors among African Americans. The present study has two goals: 1) to reconfirm relations between acculturation and cigarette smoking; 2) to investigate the impact of acculturation on another type of health behavior, cancer screening and specifically breast self-examination (BSE). African American women (N = 66) attending an inner-city cancer-screening clinic completed study questionnaires. Results reconfirmed psychometric properties of the African American Acculturation Scale (AAAS); replicated the negative association between acculturation and lifetime smoking status; and found relations between acculturation and women's adherence to BSE frequency guidelines. Findings from this study raise the possibility that specific aspects of acculturation may better explain specific health behaviors.

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PubMed2004

Acculturation, physical activity, and fast-food consumption among Asian-American and Hispanic adolescents.

Previous studies have implicated acculturation to the US as a risk factor for unhealthy behaviors among Hispanic and Asian-American adolescents, including substance use, violence, and unsafe sex. This study examined the association between acculturation and obesity-related behaviors-physical activity and fast-food consumption-among 619 Asian-American and 1385 Hispanic adolescents in Southern California. Respondents completed surveys in 6th and 7th grade. The 6th grade survey assessed acculturation with the AHIMSA acculturation scale and a measure of English language usage. The 7th grade survey assessed frequency of moderate-to-intense physical activity and frequency of eating fast-food. Multiple regression analyses included acculturation and demographic covariates as predictors of physical activity and fast-food consumption. Acculturation to the US, assessed in 6th grade, was significantly associated with a lower frequency of physical activity participation and a higher frequency of fast-food consumption in 7th grade. The significant associations persisted after controlling for covariates and were consistent across gender and ethnic groups. Results suggest that acculturation to the US is a risk factor for obesity-related behaviors among Asian-American and Hispanic adolescents. Health promotion programs are needed to encourage physical activity and healthy diets among adolescents in acculturating families.

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PubMed1987

The process of acculturation: theoretical perspectives and an empirical investigation in Peru.

World-wide migratory patterns have led to an increasing interest in acculturation processes and their psychosocial and psychiatric sequelae. This paper reviews alternative theoretical approaches to the study of acculturation and identifies gaps in the current knowledge base. We then present empirical research on acculturation processes experienced by both Indian rural to urban migrants and White-Mestizo non-migrants in Lima, Peru. The study examined overall acculturation and five sub-dimensions: language use, customs, sociability, perceived discrimination and ethnic identity. The data show that second generation migrants are more highly acculturated across sub-areas and perceive less ethnic discrimination than first generation migrants. The first generation varied in acculturative level across sub-dimensions as a function of their age at the time of migration. Contrasts between the migrant and dominant group depicted a two-way process of culture change, but a process characterized by an inequality in the content exchanged in each direction. Socio-demographic correlates of acculturation were also found. These results are discussed in terms of the potential psychological consequences of alternative acculturative adaptations within the Peruvian social-structural context.

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PubMed2005

Acculturation and smoking patterns among Hispanics: a review.

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a systematic review of published studies investigating the association of acculturation and smoking patterns among Hispanic men and women in the United States. METHODS: Online bibliographic databases were searched from 1985 to 2003 using three key search terms. The methodology and findings of all retrieved articles were critically evaluated. Data were extracted from each article regarding study population, study methods, exposure assessment, outcomes measured, acculturation measures used, and results. RESULTS: The literature search identified 78 articles from MEDLINE, PubMed, and PsychINFO databases; of these, 11 studies met the inclusion criteria. Seven regional studies based in the western United States and four nationwide studies were included in the review. Seven studies used formal acculturation scales, three used language spoken, and one used language spoken and country of birth to indicate acculturation status. Nine studies showed a positive association between acculturation and smoking among women, and one study involving men showed a negative association. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that the association of acculturation and smoking is gender-specific. In this instance, increased smoking prevalence with increased acculturation is consistently observed among Hispanic women but not among men. As Hispanic women acculturate, their cigarette smoking may increase because their behavior becomes more strongly influenced by the norms and practices of the dominant group than among men. Immigrant- and gender-specific public health interventions need to be designed to combat the increase in smoking rates among Hispanics in the United States.

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PubMedDate not supplied

Mothers' acculturation and eating behaviors of Korean American families in California.

OBJECTIVE: To compare eating behaviors of Korean American (KA) families with mothers of different acculturation stages with those of families in Korea. DESIGN: Survey research using a self-report questionnaire. SETTINGS: Field survey on convenience sample in California and in Seoul, Korea. PARTICIPANTS: 225 KA and 216 Korean mothers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Frequency of eating at home, preparation of Korean foods, favorite dishes of families, and for special occasions. ANALYSIS: Chi-square, t test, and analysis of variance. RESULTS: Families of the more acculturated mothers dined out more frequently and had lower preferences for Korean foods than did the families with less acculturated mothers. The more acculturated mothers prepared Korean foods, including kimchi, less at home. Fewer Korean dishes were included among the 5 favored dishes, both for family and for special occasions, in KA families than in Korean families. The acculturation stage of the mothers affected preference for Korean dishes of the families but not for special occasions. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Mothers' acculturation stage influenced the family's eating habits. Changes of preference of typical Korean dishes varied by acculturation stage. Nutrition educators should be aware that dietary behaviors of KA families may differ by acculturation stage and tailor interventions appropriately.

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PubMed2005

The acculturation gap-distress hypothesis among high-risk Mexican American families.

The authors tested the acculturation gap-distress hypothesis by examining whether parent-adolescent acculturation gaps were associated with greater conflict and youth conduct problems among 260 high-risk Mexican American families. The authors operationalized acculturation gaps in 2 ways: parent-youth mismatches in acculturation style, and parent-youth discrepancies in acculturation toward both mainstream and heritage cultures. Acculturation gaps were common, but results of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that parent-youth discrepancies in acculturation toward mainstream and heritage cultures were not related to increased conflict or youth conduct problems. Conduct problems were no higher in families in which the adolescent was more aligned with mainstream culture than the parent. Unexpectedly, the authors found more youth conduct problems in families in which the youth was more aligned with traditional culture than the parent. The results call into question the assumption that the more rapid acculturation of adolescents to American culture inevitably leads to distress in minority families.

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PubMed2005

Ethnic group, acculturation, and psychiatric problems in young immigrants.

BACKGROUND: The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of ethnic origin and acculturation factors on psychiatric problems among immigrant adolescents. One aim was to examine variations in psychiatric problems according to gender and immigrant generation level. Another aim was to explore ethnic group differences in psychiatric problems and acculturation risk and protective factors. Finally, we examined the potential mediating effect of acculturation in the relationship between ethnic origin and psychiatric symptoms. METHOD: Questionnaire data were collected from 1275 immigrant 10th graders with 11 different ethnic origins. Psychiatric problems were measured by the Strength and Difficulty Questionnaire. Acculturation risk factors involved perceived discrimination and ethnic identity crisis. Protective factors were family values, host and ethnic culture competence. RESULTS: First-generation girls and second-generation boys were identified as particularly vulnerable to psychiatric problems. There was significant variation in psychiatric problems and acculturation between ethnic groups. There was substantial ethnic group-level correlation between emotional and conduct problems, and between discrimination and peer problems. Otherwise, a differentiated pattern of high-scoring ethnic groups emerged across the various symptom and acculturation indices. ANOVAs yielded unique effects on each symptom category of both ethnic group and the acculturation risk and protective factors, undermining the notion of a mediating effect of acculturation. CONCLUSIONS: There is a complex pattern of adaptation in cultural context and idiosyncratic relationships between distinct psychiatric symptom groups and socio-cultural factors. Information about the differentiated vulnerability of gender, generation, and ethnic groups to psychiatric morbidity is important to identify groups at special risk, and to produce interventions that are tailored to their needs. Future studies should examine how cultural factors contribute both to resilience and to an increased vulnerability to psychiatric problems.

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