Ethnic identity as a protective factor for Latino youth
- UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Nadia Huq (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
- Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
- Advisor
- Gabriela Stein
Abstract: Previous studies indicate that acculturative stress is associated with greater depressive symptoms in Latino adolescents. Ethnic identity is an important cultural variable that has been linked with positive mental health outcomes. The current study examined whether different aspects of ethnic identity moderated the relation between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms among 7th - 10th graders in an emerging Latino community in North Carolina. First, the study examined the main effects of acculturative stress and ethnic identity on depressive symptoms. As hypothesized, greater acculturative stress predicted greater depressive symptoms. Similarly, as hypothesized, lower public regard predicted greater depressive symptoms. In contrast, private regard/centrality did not significantly predict depressive symptoms. It was also hypothesized that ethnic private regard, public regard, and centrality would moderate the relationship between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms such that youth with high levels of ethnic identity would report lower depressive symptoms when confronting acculturative stress. The results of this current study did not support this moderation hypothesis. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that there would be a three-way interaction in which private regard would moderate the relationship between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms only when youth endorsed high levels of ethnic centrality. Due to the strong correlation between private regard and centrality, a three-way interaction analyses could not be performed. Acculturative stress and public regard were the only factors in the current study that were associated with depressive symptoms.
Ethnic identity as a protective factor for Latino youth
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Created on 12/1/2012
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Thesis
- Language: English
- Date: 2012
- Keywords
- Latino adolescents, Ethnic identity, Middle school,
- Subjects
- Hispanic American teenagers $x Cultural assimilation $z North Carolina
- Hispanic American teenagers $z North Carolina $x Ethnic identity
- Depression in adolescence