Culture, Context, and Mexican American Mental Health

摘要 该提案寻求5年的持续支持，以纵向研究有助于 墨西哥裔美国青年经历的高水平精神病理学。与NIMH的优先事项一致 战略计划（2008年），这项研究旨在（1）绘制墨西哥裔美国青年的精神疾病轨迹， (2)通过识别个体， 环境和社会因素，有助于风险和弹性过程，（3）确定贡献者 墨西哥裔美国人所经历的心理健康差异，以及（4）提供科学基础， 为这一人群设计下一代预防干预措施。从一个多样化的 750个墨西哥裔美国家庭的样本，这项研究测试的假设如何相互作用， 个人的文化取向与家庭、社区、同伴和学校环境的特点有关 这一人群的心理健康负担。这项研究的一个独特方面是评估文化 方向（即，对墨西哥传统文化价值观的认可程度和 美国文化价值观）以及社区和学校支持的程度 这些文化传统。儿童和他们的父母最初评估时，儿童在第5和第7 成绩研究结果支持了以下具体目标：（1）儿童和父母的文化取向的变化是 与更大的精神健康障碍风险有关;（2）家庭特征，如亲子冲突， 在文化取向不匹配与儿童心理病理学之间起中介作用;（3）儿童 和父母文化取向缓冲共同风险因素之间的关系（例如，经济困难）， 儿童的心理健康。拟议的继续将评估这一儿童及其父母的样本， 青少年经历了青春期中期（10年级和12年级）的快速发展变化， 精神病理学加速。具体目标仍然是：（1）儿童与家庭之间的文化不匹配， 社区、学校环境与精神病理学风险相关;（2）家庭和同伴群体 过程将调解文化失配和精神病理学之间的关系;（3）文化 儿童及其父母的取向将调节危险因素与精神病理学之间的关系。 这些目标的纵向测试将为下一代预防计划提供坚实的基础 以减少墨西哥裔美国人的心理健康差异。

ABSTRACT This proposal seeks 5 years of continued support for a longitudinal study of processes that contribute to the high levels of psychopathology experienced by Mexican American youth. Consistent with priorities in the NIMH Strategic Plan (2008), this study is designed to (1) chart mental illness trajectories of Mexican American youth, (2) increase our capacity to predict who in this population is at risk for mental illness by identifying individual, environmental, and social factors that contribute to both risk and resilience processes, (3) identify contributors to the mental health disparities experienced by Mexican Americans, and (4) provide a scientific foundation for the design of the next generation of preventive interventions for this population. Beginning with a diverse sample of 750 Mexican American families, this study tests hypotheses regarding how interactions of individuals' cultural orientations with characteristics of family, community, peer, and school contexts contribute to the mental health burden of this population. A unique aspect of this study is the assessment of cultural orientation (i.e., degree of endorsement of traditional Mexican cultural values and degree of endorsement of U.S. cultural values) of children and parents as well as the degree to which communities and schools support these cultural traditions. Children and their parents were assessed initially when children were in 5th and 7th grades. Results supported the specific aims: (1) changes in children's and parents' cultural orientations are related to greater risk for mental health disorders; (2) family characteristics, such as parent-child conflict, mediate the relation between cultural orientation mismatches and children's psychopathology; and (3) child and parent cultural orientations buffer relations between common risk factors (e.g., economic hardship) and children's mental health. The proposed continuation will assess this sample of children and their parents as youth experience the rapid developmental changes of middle adolescence (grades 10 and 12) when rates of psychopathology accelerate. The specific aims remain: (1) cultural mismatches between children and family, community, and school contexts will be related to risk for psychopathology; (2) family and peer group processes will mediate relations between cultural mismatches and psychopathology; and (3) cultural orientations of children and their parents will moderate relations between risk factors and psychopathology. Longitudinal tests of these aims will provide a strong foundation for the next generation of prevention programs to reduce mental health disparities for Mexican Americans.