Ethnic Identity Development and Acculturation: A Longitudinal Analysis of Mexican-Heritage Youth in the Southwest United States.

Utilizing part of the survey data collected for a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded project from 29 public elementary schools in Phoenix, Arizona (N = 1,600), this study explored the underlying structure of Mexican-heritage youths' ethnic identity and cultural/linguistic orientation. Latent profile and transition analyses identified four distinct orientation profiles endorsed by the early adolescents and their developmental trends across four time points. Most Mexican and Mexican American adolescents endorsed bicultural profiles with developmental trends characterized by widespread stasis and transitions toward greater ethnic identity exploration. Multinominal logistic regression analyses revealed associations between profile endorsement and adolescents' gender, socioeconomic status, parents' birthplace, and visits outside the United States. These findings are discussed in regard to previous findings on acculturation and ethnic identity development. Individuals' adaptation to the immediate local environment is noted as a possible cause of prevalent biculturalism. Limitations and future directions for the research on ethnic identity development and acculturation are also discussed.

Mexican-heritage preadolescents' ethnic identification and perceptions of substance use.

This paper examines the relationship between ethnic identification and substance use for 1,346 Mexican-heritage preadolescents in a National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded study in Phoenix, Arizona (2004-2005). Participants ranged from 9 to 13 years old, 49% reported their gender as male, 33% self-identified as Mexican, and 67% as Mexican American, and 91% of the students reported taking part in the free or reduced-price lunch program. Questionnaire responses were analyzed by fitting regression models. Analyses showed that ethnic identification may play a protective role, with stronger ethnic identification related to more antidrug norms, less positive drug expectations, stronger refusal efficacy, and less intent to use substances. While gender did not significantly moderate the relationships, ethnic identification appears more broadly related to antisubstance-use norms for Mexican-born than U.S.-born participants. This study presents important implications for substance-use prevention research among Mexican heritage preadolescents. Finally, limitations of the study are noted.

Extending the theory of planned behavior to predict alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use among youth of Mexican heritage.

This study examined the applicability of extending the theory of planned behavior to explain the normative processes in substance use among Mexican-heritage youth. The theory identifies norms, attitudes, and perceived behavioral control as predictors of intentions, which in turn, predict behaviors. To date, the theory had a limited conceptualization of norms and had not been extended to youth of Mexican descent, one of the fastest growing segments of the U.S. population and one at particular risk for alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use. Based on norm focus theory, it was hypothesized that norms are multidimensional, consisting of parental injunctive, peer injunctive, descriptive, and personal substance use norms. Second, it was hypothesized that parental injunctive, peer injunctive, and descriptive norms indirectly affect substance use intentions through attitudes, personal norms, and perceived behavioral control. The third hypothesis postulated that the model would operate differently based on Mexican-heritage youths' country of origin. Mexican-heritage youth (N = 1,499) from 30 elementary schools in Phoenix, AZ completed questionnaires in three waves over 18 months as part of a larger study. The findings supported the first hypothesis, showing the multidimensionality of norms. The second hypothesis was partially supported by findings from a multi-group multilevel path analysis using Mplus. Descriptive norms' association with intentions was partially mediated by attitudes, personal norms, and perceived behavioral control, while parental and peer injunctive norms were fully mediated, partially supporting the second hypothesis. Contrary to the third hypothesis, the mediation model did not differ based on Mexican-heritage youths' country of origin.