Different perceptual worlds: Parent and youth perspectives on parenting outcome trajectories from a Latino family-based program.

Discrepancies between parent and youth perceptions of their relationship are a common aspect of generational acculturation gaps influencing immigrant families. Programs designed to strengthen parenting practices among immigrant Latino families commonly address immigration stresses, including differences between parent and youth perceptions, but little is known about discrepancies in their appraisals of program effects on parenting behavior. A randomized trial was conducted examining effects on parent behavior of a program for immigrant families with youth aged 10-14, developed through community-based participatory research principles. Families (346 parents and youth) were recruited by organizations serving Latino families in a Midwestern metropolitan area and randomly assigned to the eight-session psychoeducation and skill-building program or a waitlist control. Parents and youth completed self-report measures at pre-intervention, post-intervention (4 months), and a 6-month follow-up regarding parents' expression of acceptance, efforts to solicit information about the child's experiences, and consistency of discipline, key foci of the program. Based on social cognition theory, the study focused on possible differences in parents' and youths' perceptions of change in parenting behavior. Parents in the treatment group reported pre-post improved acceptance, consistent discipline, and solicitation, whereas youth reported improvement only in parental solicitation, a pattern maintained at follow-up. In the control group, the only change was youth-reported reduction in parental acceptance. Parents' perceptions of improvement are encouraging, but overall lack of improvements from the youth perspective poses a potential problem for impact on parent-child relations. Interventions may need to target both parent and youth cognitions about behavior changes directly.

Piloting a Community-Based, Culturally Adapted Health Promotion Program for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Developmental Disabilities in First-Generation Korean Immigrant Families.

Children with autism spectrum disorder and developmental disabilities (ASD/DD) face barriers to participation in health promotion programs due to the lack of available and/or affordable programs and trained staff at recreation centers. Children with ASD/DD in Korean immigrant families are one of the most underserved minority groups due to language, racial/ethnic discrimination, and stigma and shame within their own ethnic community. However, little research is available on development, implementation, and evaluation of a culturally adapted community health promotion program in this population. The purpose of this study is to assess effectiveness of a pilot program for children with ASD/DD from first-generation Korean immigrant families. The pilot study used a quantitative, quasiexperimental design (one-group design with pre- and posttest) following a seven-week health promotion program. We recruited 15 children with ASD/DD, ages nine through 16, from first-generation Korean immigrant families. The findings of the study suggest that the pilot program was effective in gaining nutrition knowledge and increasing physical involvement among participants. Given the fact that Asian immigrants are a fast-growing population and that nearly 75 percent of them were born abroad, development and evaluation of a community-based, culturally adapted health promotion program is urgently needed.

Longitudinal relations between self-regulatory skills and mathematics achievement in early elementary school children from Chinese American immigrant families.

Drawing from two waves (∼1.5-2.5 years apart) of longitudinal data, the current study investigated the bidirectional associations between self-regulatory skills and mathematics achievement among a socioeconomically diverse sample of school-age Chinese American children from immigrant families (N = 258; 48.1% girls; ages 5.8-9.1 years; first to third grades at Wave 1). Children's self-regulatory skills were assessed with task-based measures of attention focusing, inhibitory control, behavioral persistence, and comprehensive executive function as well as parent- and teacher-reported effortful control. Multiple regressions showed that behavioral persistence and parent-reported effortful control positively predicted math achievement over time. Math achievement positively predicted comprehensive executive function over time. These effects were found when controlling for child age, sex, generation status, family socioeconomic status, parents' cultural orientations, and prior levels of math achievement or self-regulation. The prospective relation of math achievement predicting comprehensive executive function remained significant after a false discovery rate correction.

Mother-Adolescent Perceived Parenting Profiles and Mexican-origin Adolescents' Academic Performance.

Mothers and adolescents often perceive parenting differently, but it is unclear how different profiles of mother-adolescent perceived parenting and developmental transitions of such profiles would influence adolescent academic performance longitudinally. The current study adopted a three-wave dataset of 604 Mexican-origin adolescents (54% female; Mwave1.age = 12.92 years) and 595 mothers. Adolescents who agreed on high levels of positive parenting with their mothers in early adolescence (i.e., the Both High group) and stayed in the Both High group demonstrated the best academic performance in late adolescence. However, adolescents who changed from the Both High group in early adolescence and ended with discrepancies in perceived parenting or an agreement on low positive parenting with mothers in late adolescence had the worst academic performance. The findings suggest the plasticity of mother-adolescent relationships during adolescence, which can be an intervention target to improve Mexican-origin adolescent academic performance.

Perceived Parenting Discrepancy Profiles, Feelings about Language Brokering, and Internalizing Symptoms among Mexican-origin Adolescents in Immigrant Families.

While different patterns of perceived parenting discrepancy among mother-adolescent dyads have been shown to be associated with adolescent internalizing symptoms, little is known about the pathway underlying such associations, particularly among immigrant families. The current study considered one culturally salient form of mother-adolescent communication, language brokering (i.e., adolescents translating and interpreting between host and heritage languages for mothers), in order to investigate its mediating role based on two waves of longitudinal data on Mexican-origin immigrant families. Wave 1 included 604 adolescents (54% female; Mage = 12.92, SD = 0.92) and 595 mothers (Mage = 38.89, SD = 5.74); Wave 2 was collected one year later with data from 483 adolescents. Perceived parenting discrepancy patterns at Wave 1 were captured by three profiles based on the levels of both mothers' and adolescents' perceived positive parenting (i.e., Mother High, Adolescent High, and Both High). Compared to the other two profiles, adolescents who reported much lower positive parenting than mothers at Wave 1 (i.e., Mother High) experienced more negative feelings about brokering at Wave 2, relating to more anxiety. Being in the Mother High (vs. Both High) group was also directly related to more depressive symptoms one year later. This study highlights the importance of considering culturally salient forms of communication, such as language brokering, when designing family-level interventions to reduce adolescents' internalizing symptoms by building agreement on high positive parenting among mother-adolescent dyads from immigrant families.

"Do the Best You Can with Resources You Have to Offer": Community stakeholder views on supporting immigrant families.

First and second-generation immigrant families of young children in the United States face potential challenges that may be mitigated with stakeholder support in their communities. We examined self-reported views and behaviors among professionals (n = 76) working with families in a mid-Atlantic urban community, and whether these views correlated with demographic factors. Over half of respondents were not able/willing to report the number of immigrant families served and over half believed immigrant parents are less likely to advocate for themselves or their child. Participants were fairly split in seeking advice from others and comfort in talking with immigrant families about their culture/needs. It is essential to assess stakeholders' views on perceived roles, roadblocks, and desired supports. This analysis informs efforts to work more collaboratively with community partners to improve outreach to immigrant families during those formative years in a child's development. Implications for research, practice, and policy are discussed.

Reconsidering the "Acculturation Gap": Mother-Adolescent Cultural Adaptation Mis/Matches and Positive Psychosocial Outcomes among Mexican-Origin Families.

Previous studies have linked parent-child cultural adaptation mismatches with adolescents' maladjustment without addressing how intergenerational mis/matches are related to positive aspects of adolescent development and parental outcomes. Using data from 604 Mexican-origin families (adolescent sample:54%female, Mage = 12.41, range = 11 to 15), response surface analysis was conducted to investigate how mother-child mis/matches in cultural adaptation (acculturation, enculturation, English and Spanish proficiency) are associated with adolescents' and mothers' resilience and life meaning. Adolescents and mothers reported greater resilience and meaning when they matched at higher, versus lower, levels of acculturation, enculturation and English proficiency; adolescents reported more resilience when they were more acculturated than mothers. The findings provide a strengths-based understanding of parent-child cultural adaptation mis/matches and elucidate how Mexican-origin families thrive in the cultural adaptation process.

Vocabulary production in toddlers from low-income immigrant families: evidence from children exposed to Romanian-Italian and Nigerian English-Italian.

The relationship between first and second language in early vocabulary acquisition in bilingual children is still debated in the literature. This study compared the expressive vocabulary of 39 equivalently low-SES two-year-old bilingual children from immigrant families with different heritage languages (Romanian vs. Nigerian English) and the same majority language (Italian). Vocabulary size, vocabulary composition and translation equivalents (TEs) were assessed using the Italian/L1 versions of the CDI. Higher vocabulary in Italian than in the heritage language emerged in both groups. Moreover, Romanian-Italian-speaking children produced higher proportions of TEs than Nigerian English-Italian-speaking children, suggesting that L1-L2 phonological similarity facilitates the acquisition of cross-linguistic synonyms.

Parent-Child Conflict Profiles in Chinese American Immigrant Families: Links to Sociocultural Factors and School-Age Children's Psychological Adjustment.

Research suggests that parent-child conflict is a salient family process in Asian immigrant families and often a stressful experience for Asian American youth due to value discrepancies between Asian and Western cultures. The present study examined ratings of parent-child conflict across conflict topics from parents' and children's perspectives in a sample of Chinese American immigrant families with school-age children (N = 239; age = 7.5-11 years). Latent profile analyses identified three parent-rated conflict profiles and four child-rated conflict profiles. Parent and child conflict profiles were unrelated to each other and differentially related to family sociocultural factors and children's psychological adjustment. Parents' moderate conflict profile scored highest on parent-rated child behavior problems and had the highest household density and lower parent Chinese orientation. Children's moderate-specific and high conflict profiles scored higher on child-reported behavior problems than the low conflict profile. These results highlight the need to assess family conflict from both parents' and children's perspectives and target parent-child conflict communication as a pathway to prevent or reduce behavioral problems in Chinese American children of immigrant families.

Las investigaciones sugieren que el conflicto entre padres e hijos es un proceso familiar destacado en las familias de inmigrantes asiáticos, y generalmente una experiencia estresante para los jóvenes estadounidenses de origen asiático debido a las discrepancias de valores entre las culturas asiáticas y occidentales. El presente estudio analizó las evaluaciones del conflicto entre padres e hijos entre varios temas de conflicto desde las perspectivas de los padres y los hijos en un muestra de familias de inmigrantes sinoestadounidenses con niños en edad escolar (N = 239; edad = 7.5 a 11 años). Los análisis de perfiles latentes identificaron tres perfiles de conflicto evaluados por los padres y cuatro perfiles de conflicto evaluados por los niños. Los perfiles de conflicto de los padres y los hijos no se relacionaron entre sí, y estuvieron asociados diferencialmente con los factores socioculturales familiares y con los resultados de la adaptación de los niños. El perfil de conflicto moderado de los padres tuvo el puntaje más alto en los problemas de comportamiento de los niños evaluados por los padres, tuvo la densidad familiar más alta y una menor orientación china de los padres. Los perfiles de conflicto alto y moderado-específico de los niños tuvieron un mayor puntaje en los problemas de comportamiento informados por los niños que el perfil de conflicto bajo. Estos resultados destacan la necesidad de evaluar el conflicto familiar tanto desde las perspectivas de los padres como desde las de los niños y se centran en la comunicación de conflictos entre padres e hijos como vía para evitar o reducir los problemas de comportamiento en los niños sinoestadounidenses de familias inmigrantes.

Interpersonal Psychotherapy-Adolescent Skills Training With Youth From Asian American and Immigrant Families: Cultural Considerations and Intervention Process.

Although research has identified effective evidence-based depression prevention interventions for diverse youth, little is known about how the intervention process unfolds with immigrant family youth. This study utilized a qualitative approach to explore cultural and clinical differences in the implementation of Interpersonal Psychotherapy-Adolescent Skills Training (IPT-AST) in two schools, one serving youth from primarily immigrant, Asian American families and the second, youth from mostly nonimmigrant, non-Hispanic White families. A total of 131 IPT-AST sessions were audio recorded, transcribed, and coded for presence and patterns of cultural and clinical constructs. Results revealed that sessions with immigrant family youth were more likely to contain discussions of interpersonal problems characterized by estrangement, goals of spending time together with important others, mentions of emotion suppression and academic achievement expectations, conversations about acculturation, differences in value orientation, and discomfort with implementing new intervention skills. Dialogue from interventionist and youth exchanges is presented to illustrate how these themes emerged and were addressed by interventionists in a culturally responsive manner. The study highlights how IPT-AST with immigrant family and Asian American youth may unfold differently compared to youth from nonimmigrant families. Implications of findings for providers are discussed.

A Longitudinal Study on Bidirectional Relations between Executive Functions and English Word-Level Reading in Chinese American Children in Immigrant Families.

This two-wave (1.5 years apart) longitudinal study examined the bidirectional relations between measures of executive function (EF; working memory, attention focusing, inhibitory control, and a comprehensive EF measure) and two types of English word-level reading (pseudoword reading and word reading) among 258 school-aged children (52.6% boys, age = 5.8-9.1 years, in 1st to 3rd grades at Wave 1) from Chinese American immigrant families. Cross-lagged panel analyses were conducted to test whether the four EF measures and English word-level reading proficiency predicted one another controlling for prior levels of EF or word reading, as well as demographic characteristics and children's English and Chinese language proficiency. We found a positive bidirectional association between the comprehensive EF measure and pseudoword reading. By contrast, although the comprehensive EF measure positively predicted word reading over time, word reading did not predict comprehensive EF. Additionally, both word reading and pseudoword reading positively predicted working memory over time. The results provided partial evidence that English word-level reading is bidirectionally related to EF among early elementary school-age dual language learners.

Latinx Immigrant Farmworker Community Health Promotion: A Needs Assessment.

The present study examined the health promotion intervention needs of Latinx immigrant farmworker families residing in Oregon. Grounded theory qualitative procedures were used to analyze the needs assessment data from 31 Latinx immigrant farmworker residents and key informant interviews as well as four focus groups with resident youth and parents. A theoretical model of how key family-based health behaviors can both confer risk for and protection against negative physical, mental, and social health outcomes among Latinx farmworking communities emerged. Six primary areas of concern emerged from these data, leading to the identification of primary health promotion intervention needs with three foci: (a) the provision of sustainable supports and resources, (b) skill development so that individuals could successfully negotiate identified challenges, and (c) greater community efficacy. Findings underscore the importance of social support and resource accessibility for Latinx immigrant populations.

The Distal Role of Adolescents' Awareness of and Perceived Discrimination on Young Adults' Socioeconomic Attainment among Mexican-Origin Immigrant Families.

Cultural-ecological frameworks posit that there are harmful effects of social stratification on developmental outcomes. In particular, awareness of aspects of social stratification in society and interpersonal experiences of discrimination, more generally and within specific contexts, may differentially influence outcomes across life stages; yet, few studies have examined the distal effects during adolescence on early adult developmental outcomes. The current study fills this gap by examining distal mechanisms linking adolescents' (Time 1: ages 13-15) awareness of and perceived general and school discrimination to young adults' (Time 3: ages 23-25) socioeconomic attainment (i.e., educational attainment, occupational prestige, earned income) through adolescents' (Time 2: ages 16-18) academic adjustment (i.e., grades and educational expectations). The study also examined variation by adaptive culture (i.e., English and Spanish language use behavior, familism values) and youth gender. Data are from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (N = 755 Mexican-origin adolescents and their foreign-born parents; 51.5% male adolescents; Time 1 M age = 14.20 years). The results revealed that adolescent's awareness of societal discrimination (Time 1) related to adolescents' higher grades (Time 2), which, in turn, related to higher educational attainment and occupational prestige in early adulthood (Time 3). For young women, but not men, sources of perceived discrimination within the school context during adolescence related to lower educational attainment. Additional variation by adaptive culture and gender was also found. Implications discussed are related to positive development among Mexican-origin youth in immigrant families.

The quality of child-directed speech depends on the speaker's language proficiency.

Many children learn language, in part, from the speech of non-native speakers who vary in their language proficiency. To investigate the influence of speaker proficiency on the quality of child-directed speech, 29 mothers who were native English speakers and 31 mothers who were native speakers of Spanish and who reported speaking English to their children on a regular basis were recorded interacting with their two-year-old children in English. Of the non-native speakers, 21 described their English proficiency as 'good', and eight described their English proficiency as 'limited'. ANCOVAs, controlling for differences in maternal education and child language level, revealed significant effects of group on lexical and grammatical properties of child-directed speech that the literature has identified as positive predictors of child language development. These results suggest that the child-directed speech of native speakers and non-native speakers with good proficiency provide a richer database for language acquisition than the child-directed speech of speakers with limited proficiency.

Language Proficiency, Parenting Styles, and Socioemotional Adjustment of Young Dual Language Learners.

Dual language learners (DLLs) make up 32% of all children in the U.S. Past research showed that proficiency in a heritage language (HL) was associated with better psychological adjustment in school-aged children and adolescents, but the associations of HL and English (EL) proficiency to preschool-aged DLLs' socioemotional adjustment remain understudied. This study included a sample of low-income Mexican and Chinese immigrant families with preschool-aged DLLs (N = 90). Children's HL and EL proficiencies were assessed using language tests. Parents rated their own cultural orientations, parenting styles, and children's socioemotional adjustment. Children's expressed anger/frustration and sadness were observed from an emotion-evoking task. Path analyses were conducted to test: 1) the unique relations of children's HL and EL proficiency and parents' American and heritage cultural orientations to parenting styles, and 2) the relations of parenting styles to children's adjustment. Results showed that children's expressive HL proficiency and parents' American and heritage cultural orientations were positively associated with authoritative parenting, which in turn, was associated with children's lower externalizing problems and higher prosocial behaviors. Children's expressive EL was negatively associated with parents' use of authoritarian parenting, and both expressive and receptive HL were negatively associated with children's expressed sadness. These results indicate that children's HL development and parents' host and heritage cultural orientations are associated with socioemotional benefits for young DLLs growing up in low-income immigrant families.

ADHD medication in offspring of immigrants - does the income level of the country of parental origin matter?

BACKGROUND: Child psychiatric treatment facilities vary greatly worldwide and are virtually non-existent in many low-income countries. One of the most common psychiatric disorders in childhood is ADHD, with an estimated prevalence of 3-5% in Sweden. Previous studies have shown a similar prevalence of ADHD in minority and majority children in Sweden and the UK. However, clinical studies demonstrated that children from immigrant families living in Sweden received less psychiatric care than those of native-born parents. We tested the hypothesis that the consumption of child psychiatric care in immigrant families would be determined by the availability of such treatment in the parents' country of origin. Patterns of medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were studied as a proxy for child psychiatric care. METHODS: This was a register study of dispensed stimulant medication during 2013-2014 in Swedish national birth cohorts from 1995-2009. The study population, consisting of nearly 1.4 million children, was divided by national income of the parental country of origin and whether the parents were native Swedes, European immigrants, non-European immigrants or a mixture. Logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratios of having been dispensed at least one ADHD drug during 2013, with adjustments for gender, family status indicating whether the child is living with both parents, household income and area of residence. RESULTS: Having parents born in low-income (OR [95% confidence interval] 0.27 [0.24-0.29]) or middle-income (European: OR 0.23 [0.20-0.26], non-European: OR 0.39 [0.34-0.41]) countries was associated with lower ADHD treatment levels than having parents born in high-income countries (European: OR 0.60 [0.54-0.66], non-European: OR 0.68 [0.59-0.79]), when compared to children of parents born in Sweden. In families with a background in low or middle income countries, there was no significant association between household income and ADHD medication, while in children with Swedish and mixed backgrounds high level of disposable income was associated with lower levels of ADHD medication. CONCLUSION: The use of child psychiatric care by immigrant families in Sweden was largely associated with the income level of the country of origin.

Somali, Latino and Hmong parents' perceptions and approaches about raising healthy-weight children: a community-based participatory research study.

OBJECTIVE: Immigrants in the USA are confronted with health disparities, including childhood obesity and obesity-related chronic diseases. We aimed to identify perceptions of childhood body weight, approaches to raising healthy children and desires for supportive programmes of Somali, Latino and Hmong (SLM) parents in the Twin Cities, Minnesota, USA. DESIGN: Using community-based participatory research, ten focus groups (FG) were conducted with sixty-seven parents (n 28 Somali, three FG; n 19 Latino, four FG; n 20 Hmong, three FG) of 3-12-year-old children in their native language. Demographic information was collected. RESULTS: SLM parents perceived that health is not necessarily weight-based; childhood obesity is caused by overeating, eating unhealthy foods and sedentary activities; traditional foods are generally healthy while American foods are generally unhealthy; and healthy children are inherently physically active. Parents identified their goals as feeding children so they would be healthy and happy, helping them be active and safe, and teaching them to cook traditional foods to be self-sufficient and maintain their cultural identity. Parents were challenged by children's unhealthy food and sedentary preferences, their own uncertainties about healthy foods and behaviours, and structural factors. Parents thought interventions could help them with these challenges, including information about healthy foods, age-appropriate portion sizes, safe places to be active and strategies tailored to their cultural norms. CONCLUSIONS: SLM parents are trying to raise healthy-weight children based on their understanding of children's health, weight, diet and physical activity, while dealing with social, economic and environmental challenges and trying to maintain cultural identity and traditions.

Language Brokering among Latino Immigrant Families: Moderating Variables and Youth Outcomes.

The children of immigrants often serve as language brokers, or cultural and linguistic intermediaries, between their families and the host culture. Although language brokering is common practice among immigrant communities, it is a growing body of research in need of theoretical grounding and further study. The present study empirically tested a theoretical model of the effects of language brokering with moderating variables, informed by the segmented assimilation literature, among 362 (48% female) Latino adolescents ranging in age from 11 to 18 years (M = 13.62, SD = 1.47) utilizing structural equation modeling. Model-testing results indicated that translating in High-Stakes situations negatively affected academic achievement and increased perceived stress, while Everyday translating situations positively affected academic achievement and did not affect stress. Youth who reported higher levels of family obligations also reported higher academic achievement. Implications for theory development and culturally relevant interventions are discussed.

How far can the apple fall? Differences in teacher perceptions of minority and immigrant parents and their impact on academic outcomes.

While a large body of research has focused on increasing parental involvement in schools, less work has considered teacher perceptions of parental involvement. Teacher perceptions of parents are important because they influence teacher practices and relationships with students, with ensuing consequences for student outcomes. Prior research suggests that teacher perceptions of parents vary by children's family background, but empirical work comparing teacher perceptions of parental involvement across groups and the impact of such perceptions on different student outcomes is lacking. Using nationally representative data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, we find that even after taking into account parents' self-reported involvement in their adolescent children's education, teachers are less likely to perceive that minority immigrant parents are as involved as native-born White parents. Patterns also differ for teachers of English and teachers of math in ways that are consistent with racial and ethnic stereotypes about academic ability. Further, teacher perceptions of parental involvement matter for student GPAs and teacher recommendations.

Psychological Acculturation and Parenting Behaviors in Mexican Immigrant Families.

This study examined the relation between mothers' and fathers' psychological acculturation and parenting behaviors in two samples of Mexican immigrant families. The middle childhood sample included 47 mothers, 38 fathers and 46 children in families with children age 9 - 12, and the early childhood sample included 185 mothers and 155 fathers in families with children age 2 - 6. In both samples, compared to families in which fathers reported feeling connected only to Latino culture, fathers who reported feeling connected to both Latinos and Americans engaged in fewer aversive and withdrawn interactions and more warm interactions with children. In families where fathers reported feeling connected to both Latinos and Americans, mothers also engaged in fewer aversive and withdrawn interactions and more warm interactions with children. Results were consistent across the two samples and across different family member reports of parent-child interactions.