Linguistic Factors, Acculturative Stress, and Depressive Disorder among Asian Immigrants

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Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate the predictive strength of linguistic factors, immigration-related factors, and acculturative stress on depressive disorders among Asian Americans.
Method: This study uses a sample of 1,633 Asian immigrants (including zero generation immigrants and first generation immigrants) from the first national study of Asian Americans: The National Latino and Asian American Study (NLAAS) from 2001 to 2003. Information concerning linguistic factors, acculturation factors, acculturation stress, and depressive status was collected in face-to-face interviews. Hierarchical models and binary logistic regression were used to examine potential predictors of DSM-IV 12-month Depressive Disorder among Asian immigrants.
Results: Compared with language proficiency, acculturative stress is a more proximal risk factor for depressive disorder. Among language factors, 1) English proficiency is negatively associated with depressive disorder risks in bivariate analysis, and it is mediated by socioeconomic status characteristics; 2) Native Asian language proficiency did not evidence a significant relationship with the depressive disorder; and 3) Bilingual language use is negatively associated with depressive disorder across all three multivariate models, and it might be independent of acculturative stress.
Conclusions: High acculturative stress, limited English proficiency, and poor bilingual language use are significantly associated with higher risk of developing depressive disorder. For individuals who do not speak English quite well, the process of acculturation is accompanied by increasing risk of depression.

Authors

• Lin Zhu, Temple University

• Wenyue Lu, Temple University

• Bohui Wang, Temple University

• Grace X Ma, Center for Asian Health, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University

• Minsun Lee, Center for Asian Health, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University