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Illuminating Ethnic-Racial Socialization among Undocumented Latinx Parents: Implications for Adolescent Psychosocial Functioning

Thu, March 21, 4:00 to 5:30pm, Baltimore Convention Center, Floor: Level 3, Room 324

Integrative Statement

Background: Latinx families with undocumented family members face social isolation, ethnic-racial profiling, over-criminalization, and the constant fear of family dissolution through deportation (Ayon & Becerra, 2013; Yoshikawa et al., 2017). Some undocumented parents, wishing to protect their children, may strongly encourage them to be hypervigilant and wary of both law enforcement and individuals of other ethnic-racial groups (Rubio-Hernandez & Ayón, 2016). García Coll et al.’s (1996) integrative model for ethnic minority development and prior research suggest that parents’ ethnic-racial socialization (ERS) is an important cultural asset in rearing youth of color, with implications for both psychosocial functioning and identity development (Hughes et al., 2006; Priest et al., 2014). To our knowledge, no studies have explored the ERS processes of undocumented Latinx parents and their youth’s outcomes. The current mixed-method study examined how parental documentation status informs parental ERS practices, and the subsequent implications for youths' psychological adjustment.

Methods: One hundred nineteen Latinx parents and their adolescents (Mage = 15.72, SD = 0.63, 55.5% girls) participated in the study. Parents completed ERS subscales for Promotion of Mistrust (POM), Cultural Socialization (CS), and Preparation for Bias (PFB; Hughes, 2004). Parents also reported whether they or anyone in their household were undocumented. Adolescents reported on their self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1989) and depression (Eaton et al., 2004). Interviews were conducted with a subsample of 39 parents (22 undocumented, 17 documented) regarding their experiences as immigrants raising children in the US. A complex mixed-method design combining convergent and exploratory sequential designs (Creswell & Clark, 2017) was employed as the analytic framework (Fig. 1).

Results: The qualitative analysis unearthed parents' concerns with obeying the law and avoiding interaction with others, and their children’s ever-present fear and stress. As one undocumented mother explained, “He cries for me…what they hear…what they see, it all damages them.” Guided by these findings and theory, we hypothesized that ERS practices could explain the link between documentation status and youths' psychological adjustment. Path analysis revealed that undocumented families endorsed more CS (β = .18, p <.05) and POM (β = .27, p <.01) than documented families. More POM, in turn, was associated with higher adolescent depression (β = .21, p <.05). The indirect association of documentation status with adolescent depression through POM was significant, β = .06 [95% CI .01, .14] (see Fig. 2). No direct effects were found between documentation status and adolescent self-esteem or depression, and no indirect effect was found between documentation status and self-esteem.

Discussion/Implications: The present study provides information on the socialization practices of mixed-status families and their implications for Latinx children’s mental health. Although promoting mistrust may serve as a coping mechanism for the ever-present fear of deportation, such messages can have a detrimental effect on adolescents’ mental health outcomes. Given the country’ current sociopolitical climate and ethnic-racial tensions, it is imperative to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the nuanced ERS practices undocumented Latinx families employ to both cope with and respond to such stigmatization.

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