Language Identity and Mental Health Disparities among Multilingual 1.5 Generation Asian/Asian American Immigrant Young Adults: A Mixed Methods Study

项目摘要 亚裔美国移民特别容易受到健康差异和心理健康状况的影响 在COVID-19大流行期间，与其他种族/族裔群体相比。原因有很多：a 语言障碍及其对孤立和边缘化的影响，以及反亚裔仇恨犯罪和事件。在 建议，我们将重点放在语言障碍的详细组成部分（语言能力和语言 身份）及其对心理健康差异的影响。大多数亚洲/亚裔美国移民开始使用 英语作为一种额外的语言（L2），一旦他们到达美国，在主要使用第一语言（L1）之后， 父母的原籍国。1.5一代亚洲/亚裔美国移民年轻人--那些 当他们还是孩子的时候，他们的父母（第一代）从亚洲国家移民到美国。 5至17岁之间，在美国居住至少2年，目前年龄在18至25岁之间-是一个 人口健康差距很大。然而，到目前为止，很少有研究探讨如何学习L2中， 1.5一代亚裔/亚裔美国移民年轻人告知他们的接受感，包容性， 身份以及他们在美国社会的文化适应，社会化和心理健康。关闭 这一研究空白，拟议的工作的目标是调查学习L2和 亚洲族裔群体/亚裔美国人中1.5代年轻人的心理健康差异， 人口健康差距。这项研究的中心假设是，对于社会经济多样性1.5 一代亚裔/亚裔美国移民年轻人，那些在一种文化中长大的人， 现在可能也需要加入一个新的主导美国文化，更有可能经历心理社会 逆境和心理健康差异。本课题有两个具体目标，采用混合方法研究 设计首先，使用定量分析，我们将确定感知语言 1.5代亚裔/亚裔美国年轻人的语言能力/语言认同与以下因素相关： 心理健康和心理健康（目标1）。第二，运用定性分析的方法， 了解文化适应和歧视的经历，以及这些经历与他们的 对语言技能和心理健康/心理健康差异的看法（目标2）。的数据 这项研究将为制定亚洲移民量身定制的心理健康策略奠定基础， 在美国社会中，成功的文化适应与学习L2有关，而L2在美国社会中并没有得到实质性的发展。 讨论该项目具有实际意义，促进设计和实施多 采取部门干预措施，解决健康差距的结构性驱动因素（例如，种族主义和歧视）。在 此外，它还将提请注意建立文化上一致的多语种能力， 培养1.5代亚裔/亚裔美国人移民群体强烈的认同感， 在美国社会中的包容性和身份，以实现美国所有人的健康公平目标。

PROJECT SUMMARY Asian American immigrants have been particularly vulnerable to health disparities and mental health conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic in comparison to other racial/ethnic groups. There are multiple reasons: a language barrier, its impacts on isolation and marginalization, and anti-Asian hate crime and incidents. In the proposal, we will focus on the detailed component of a language barrier (language proficiency and language identity), and its effect on mental health disparities. Most of the Asian/Asian American immigrants begin using English as an additional language (L2) once they arrive in the U.S., after mainly using a first language (L1) from their parent's country of origin. 1.5 generation Asian/Asian American immigrant young adults—those who migrated to the U.S. with their parents (1st generation) from Asian countries when they were children aged between 5 and 17, have been living in the U.S. at least 2 years, and current ages are between 18 and 25—are a significant health disparity population. However, little research to date has examined how learning an L2 among 1.5 generation Asian/Asian American immigrant young adults informs their sense of acceptance, inclusion, and identity as well as their acculturation, socialization, and psychological well-being in American society. To close this research gap, the objective of the proposed work is to investigate the association between learning an L2 and mental health disparities among 1.5 generation young adults from Asian ethnic groups/Asian Americans as health disparity populations. The central hypothesis of this study is that for socioeconomically diverse 1.5 generation Asian/Asian American immigrant young adults, those who grew up affiliating with one culture and now may also need to affiliate with a new dominant American culture, are more likely to experience psychosocial adversity and mental health disparities. This project has two specific aims, using a mixed-methods research design. First, using quantitative analysis, we will determine the extent to which perceived language proficiency/language identity in 1.5 generation Asian/Asian American young adults is associated with psychological well-being and mental health (Aim 1). Second, using qualitative analysis, we will gain an in-depth understanding of experiences with acculturation and discrimination and how these experiences relate to their perceptions of language skills and psychological well-being/mental health disparities (Aim 2). Data from the study will be the foundation for the development of Asian immigrant-tailored psychological health strategies for successful acculturation in American society associated with learning an L2 that has not been substantially discussed. The project carries practical implications for promoting the design and implementation of multi- sectoral interventions to address the structural drivers of health disparities (e.g., racism and discrimination). In addition, it will bring attention to establishing the culturally congruent multilingual competence for the development of 1.5 generation Asian/Asian American immigrant populations' strong sense of acceptance, inclusion, and identity in American society to achieve the goal of health equity for all in the U.S.