A Longitudinal Analysis of Hispanic Youth Acculturation and Cigarette Smoking: The Roles of Gender, Culture, Family, and Discrimination

Preventive Medicine, 1998

American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2005

Journal of Latina/o Psychology, 2015

Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), 2015

Journal of ethnicity in substance abuse, 2015

The present study was a random-effects model meta-analysis of 26 studies published between 1990 and 2010 (k = 32; n = 39,777) that (a) examined the association between acculturation and cigarette smoking in Hispanic women and (b) evaluated age, national origin, and measure and dimensionality (unidimensional vs. bidimensional) of acculturation as moderating variables. Results indicate a strong positive relationship and suggest larger effects of acculturation on cigarette smoking in women of Mexican descent as compared with women originating from other Latin American countries for current and lifetime smoking, as well as smoking overall. The effect of acculturation on cigarette smoking was larger in adults as compared with adolescents for current smoking and smoking overall. Few differences in effect size by measure or dimensionality of acculturation emerged. Results are discussed with regard to implications for future research and the measurement of acculturation.

Journal of immigrant and minority health / Center for Minority Public Health, 2013

The aim of the present study was to identify risk factors for smoking among Hispanic adolescents and determine whether these factors continued to influence smoking into emerging adulthood. Data were drawn from 932 Hispanics in the greater Los Angeles area who were surveyed in high school in 2007 and then again in emerging adulthood from 2010 to 2012. Logistic regression assessed the associations between predictors in adolescence and smoking in adolescence while an order one transition logistic model assessed predictors in adolescence and smoking in emerging adulthood. Adult and sibling smoking status, perceptions of smoking, perceived discrimination, and fatalism all influenced smoking in adolescence but not in emerging adulthood. Once Hispanics reach emerging adulthood different tactics to reduce smoking will be needed and are where future research should be directed.

Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2018

Many adolescents in majority world countries emulate U.S. American culture, which can influence their development. Globalization allows adolescents from majority world countries to learn about U.S. American culture through mass media and the exchange of information via the Internet and other forms of communication. As such, youth in Mexico may experience remote acculturation, which can influence their smoking behaviors. We developed and tested a measure of remote acculturation (i.e., orientation to U.S. American and Mexican culture) among adolescents in Mexico and examined the association of remote acculturation with adolescents’ smoking-related cognitions. Data came from a school-based survey of 5,492 never-smoker, urban adolescents (51% female, M age = 14.07 years). Confirmatory factor analyses supported two latent factors—one for U.S. American and another for Mexican cultural orientation. Structural equation models revealed that stronger Mexican cultural orientation was associate...

Family & Community Health, 2017

Addictive Behaviors, 2001

Journal of youth and adolescence, 2011

Hispanic youth are at risk for experiencing depressive symptoms and smoking cigarettes, and risk for depressive symptoms and cigarette use increase as Hispanic youth acculturate to U.S. culture. The mechanism by which acculturation leads to symptoms of depression and cigarette smoking is not well understood. The present study examined whether perceived discrimination explained the associations of acculturation with depressive symptoms and cigarette smoking among 1,124 Hispanic youth (54% female). Youth in Southern California completed surveys in 9th–11th grade. Separate analyses by gender showed that perceived discrimination explained the relationship between acculturation and depressive symptoms for girls only. There was also evidence that discrimination explained the relationship between acculturation and cigarette smoking among girls, but the effect was only marginally significant. Acculturation was associated with depressive symptoms and smoking among girls only. Perceived discrimination predicted depressive symptoms in both genders, and discrimination was positively associated with cigarette smoking for girls but not boys. These results support the notion that, although Hispanic boys and girls experience acculturation and discrimination, their mental health and smoking behaviors are differentially affected by these experiences. Moreover, the results indicate that acculturation, gender, and discrimination are important factors to consider when addressing Hispanic youth’s mental health and substance use behaviors.