Suchergebnisse

Brokering, or the work immigrant youth do to help their families adapt to a new society, is a common phenomenon in immigrant families, but has only recently been explored in research studies. Most researchers focus on language brokering (translating and interpreting) rather than non-linguistic types of brokering (e.g., helping parents study for the citizenship exam), and studies have mainly involved Latino adolescents. The current study simultaneously examines different types of, and feelings about, brokering work among first-generation immigrant young adults (Mage = 22.92, SD = 2.89; 63.5% female) from Eastern Europe (N = 197). Both existing and newly developed brokering measures were administered to the participants. Findings indicate that immigrant youth engage in non-linguistic brokering for their parents more often than in language brokering, and feel more positive about non-linguistic brokering than language-focused brokering. Further, findings point to the diversity of immigrant experiences, and the implications of these findings are discussed in detail.

AbstractSome of the world's 84 million forcibly displaced persons (approximately half are youth under the age of 18) obtain legal refugee status, which allows them passage to resettle in new communities. Although much has been documented about experiences of stress and trauma among refugees, we know less about their resilience and coping abilities. Furthermore, a lack of an overarching theoretical framework hinders our understanding of the complete refugee experience, which includes stressors, but also significant strengths and resources. In this paper, we offer a unified conceptual model inspired by family stress, ecological systems, and resilience science that outlines hypothesized stress and resilience pathways during resettlement. We also provide an illustrative review of research from the past two decades involving both the stressors and resources influencing refugee youth during resettlement. We note critical questions that warrant future directions for investigators, particularly those pertaining to resettlement resources that promote resilience at multiple levels.

Seventy-seven ethnic Serbian refugee young adults (mean age = 23) from Bosnia and Croatia (in the former Yugoslavia) presently living in the United States completed an online survey. Young adults reported their own and their parents' level of acculturation to both Serbian and U.S. cultures. In contrast to most prior studies, acculturation gap was operationalized taking into account the direction of youth-parent discrepancy rather than as absolute value of the difference. Serbian refugee young adults perceive themselves to be more Americanized than their parents. The more acculturated young adults are to the U.S. than their parents, the lower young adults' reports of family and individual well-being. Unlike immigrant youth in most prior studies, Serbian refugee young adults report acculturation to their native culture at the same level as their parents. As a result, as many young adults exhibit higher Serbian acculturation than their parents as show lower Serbian acculturation than their parents. Young adult/parent Serbian acculturation discrepancy is associated with diminished family well-being when young adults have lower Serbian acculturation than their parents, but with increased family well-being when young adults' Serbian acculturation is higher than their parents'. The finding that acculturation gap concerning native culture is differentially linked to family well-being depending on the direction of the youth-parent discrepancy contrasts with prior research, and shows the importance of operationalizing youth-parent acculturation discrepancies as a directional rather than absolute value difference.

This special issue showcases research on the 90% of the world's adolescents growing up in the "majority world" (i.e., Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean). Articles were solicited that addressed three focal areas by (1) evaluating existing developmental models or proposing culturally based approaches to studying adolescent development; (2) describing successful models of interventions to improve the well‐being of youth; and (3) examining how global factors are experienced locally by adolescents. Contributors address these themes in a range of adolescent populations from majority world nations. We hope this special issue will be a useful resource to scholars who conduct research and teach about adolescence, to practitioners working with adolescents from different national backgrounds, and policymakers working on international issues.

Immigrants from Latin America are increasingly settling in rural U.S. communities that welcome them as workers but are often unprepared to address their needs and promote their well‐being. Building on recent descriptive studies, we examined factors associated with individual and family well‐being in a sample of 112 immigrant Latina mothers (mean age 34.5 years, 93% Mexican) who completed in‐person interviews. Mothers who reported a more negative community climate reported lower levels of individual and family well‐being (life satisfaction, financial well‐being, and food security). Composite measures of economic and social capital were positively related to family well‐being; unexpectedly, mothers with higher levels of human capital reported lower levels of life satisfaction. Discussion focuses on implications of results for future research, theory‐building, and practice.