Influences of Neighborhood and Parenting Processes on Mexican-Origin Adolescent’s Ethnic-Racial Identity

• In Event: Ethnic-Racial Identity in the 21st Century: Antecedents and Consequents among U.S. Mexican-Origin Adolescents

Abstract

Ethnic-racial identity (ERI) development is a normative developmental process related to beliefs and attitudes that individuals have towards their ethnic-racial background (Umaña-Taylor et al., 2014). There are two components of ERI: processes (e.g., exploration, resolution) and content (e.g., attitudes toward one’s group). Prior work situates ERI development in both familial (Knight et al., 1993) and neighborhood contexts (White et al., 2018), but scant attention has been given to their combined influence (Hughes et al., 2006).
Past research suggests adolescents whose parents engaged in more cultural socialization, an important aspect of racial socialization (Hughes et al., 2006), had higher levels of ERI exploration and more clarity toward their ethnic-racial background (Umaña-Taylor et al., 2009). Parenting, however, is situated within neighborhood contexts and can be influenced by resources available in neighborhoods (Yoshikawa, 2011). For example, having neighbors who share mutual values, trust one another (Sampson et al., 1997), and appreciate/celebrate one’s heritage culture (Nair et al., 2013) may be a resource that promotes parents’ efforts to engage in cultural socialization. In the current study, we examined a model in which the perceived social and cultural resources in U.S. Mexican families’ neighborhoods may support mothers to engage in higher levels of cultural socialization and, this, in turn, may promote adolescents’ ERI development.
METHOD: Data are from three waves of a study of U.S. Mexican-origin families (Roosa et al., 2008). The sample included 749 youths (48.7% female; 70.3% U.S.-born) followed from Mage = 10.9 to 15.8 years and their mothers (74.3% Mexico-born). Mothers responded to two subscales assessing social and cultural cohesion in their neighborhoods (5th grade; 6 items; Sampson et al., 1997; Nair et al., 2013). Mothers’ cultural socialization (5th & 7th grades) was assessed with the Ethnic Socialization Scale (10 items; Knight et al., 1993). Adolescents’ ethnic-racial exploration and resolution (7th & 10th grades) were assessed using subscales from the Ethnic Identity Scale (7 items for exploration, 4 items for resolution; Umaña-Taylor, 2004). Adolescents’ ethnic pride (7th & 10th grade) was assessed using the Mexican American Ethnic Pride scale that assessed adolescents’ sense of affirmation and positive attitudes toward their ethnic-racial group (4 items; Umaña-Taylor et al., 2012). See Table 1 for scale alphas and descriptives.
RESULTS: See Figure 1. Neighborhood social and cultural cohesion predicted greater maternal cultural socialization (B = .070 (.033), p < .05). Mothers’ cultural socialization predicted greater ERI exploration (B = .101 (.038), p < .01), resolution (B = .105 (.042), p < .01), and pride (B = .129 (.040), p < .001). Using the test of joint significance (MacKinnon et al., 2002) mediation was present through mothers’ cultural socialization for resolution and pride. There was evidence for partial mediation for exploration.
DISCUSSION: Living in neighborhoods that U.S. Mexican mothers describe as cohesive and valuing Mexican culture promotes later ERI development among adolescents by supporting maternal engagement in cultural socialization. Findings will be discussed in the context of the promoting nature of socially and culturally supportive neighborhood environments for U.S. Mexican families and adolescents.

Authors

• Michelle Christine Pasco, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
  Presenting Author

• Rebecca M. B. White, Arizona State University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Chang (Jenny) Zhao, Arizona State University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Claudia A. Vega, Arizona State University
  Non-Presenting Author