Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences current issue

"The Price of Being Mexican": Sentencing Disparities Between Noncitizen Mexican and Non-Mexican Latinos in the Federal Courts

Logue, M. A. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

With the increasing discourse about a crime-immigration nexus and Latinos, it is critical to ascertain how the criminal justice system responds to noncitizen Latino defendants. Using federal sentencing data to investigate the role of national origin and immigration status on noncitizen Latinos’ sentencing outcomes, several findings emerge. First, national origin conditions the sentences received for Mexicans and non-Mexican Latinos. Second, immigration status perpetuates disparities among defendants within each Latino subgroup. Third, examining the aggravating factors within each immigration status category shows that national origin poses greater sentencing penalties for Mexican defendants.

The Role of Quality of Life in the Rural Resettlement of Mexican Immigrants

Garcia, C. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

The past 10 years have seen the continued growth of the Mexican-origin population in the United States. This growth has been accompanied by the movement of immigrants away from traditional settlement locations in the Southwest. Using data collected from 45 interviews with immigrant workers in Northeastern Oklahoma, this study explores factors that motivate the movement of Mexican immigrants to nontraditional locations. The study finds that along with economic and political variables, a search for a higher quality of life than is available in urban locations also plays a key role in relocation decisions. The availability of employment opportunities, housing, and low crime rates make rural America an attractive alternative to urban settlement.

Mexican Immigrant Fathers' and Mothers' Engagement With School-Age Children

Hossain, Z., Shipman, V. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

This study examined mothers’ and fathers’ reports of their time spent in their school-age children’s care and academic work and the relationships between socioeconomic status and social support variables with fathers’ time spent in children’s care and academic work within two-parent Mexican immigrant families. Mother and father dyads from 79 two-parent Mexican immigrant families with a second- or third-grade child residing in rural towns in southwestern United States participated in the study. Multivariate analyses of variance indicated that mothers spent significantly more time in children’s basic care, care on demand, and both academic interaction at home and at school than did fathers. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that fathers’ time spent in children’s care was positively related to their educational level and extrafamilial support and that their time spent in children’s academic work, although positively influenced by their education, was negatively influenced by family size. Findings are discussed with regard to gender role differences in parental engagement with children within Mexican immigrant families and their implications for informing policy makers, educators, and parents of the importance of parental time spent in enriching children’s development and culturally sensitive strategies for doing so.

Friendship, Educational Engagement, and School Belonging: Comparing Hispanic and White Adolescents

Vaquera, E. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

The current study explores the relationship between friendship formation, school engagement, and belonging among White and Hispanic students. It employed the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a nationally representative sample of adolescents in high school. The sample consisted of 6,366 Mexican, 1,132 Cuban, 1,330 Puerto Rican, 4,446 Central/South Hispanic origin youth, and 46,592 non-Hispanic Whites. Hispanic students are less likely to report having friends and to having their best friend at school. Both Hispanic and White students who have a best friend report fewer engagement problems and a higher school belonging. However, only students whose best friend attends their same school report higher levels of school belonging. Findings suggest that ethnic origin is an important stratifier among Hispanics for the studied school outcomes. Signs for optimism are discussed as some Hispanic ethnic groups report higher levels of school belonging compared with their White counterparts.

Peer Victimization and Depressive Symptoms in Mexican American Middle School Students: Including Acculturation as a Variable of Interest

Bauman, S., Summers, J. J. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

This study examined direct and indirect victimization and depressive symptoms in a sample of 229 Mexican American middle school students. The effects of gender, grade, and acculturation on both victimization and depressive symptoms were investigated. The moderating effect of receiving prosocial actions from peers was also explored. Approximately 23% of students in the sample were victimized. Females were recipients of more prosocial behavior, but receiving prosocial behavior did not moderate the influence of victimization on depressive symptoms. Significantly more depressive symptoms were reported by victims than by nonvictims. Anglo-oriented participants reported significantly more depressive symptoms than did their bicultural classmates. Indirect victimization made the largest contribution to a regression equation predicting depressive symptoms. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Protective Effects of Ethnic Identity on Mexican American College Students' Psychological Well-Being

Iturbide, M. I., Raffaelli, M., Carlo, G. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

The current study investigated whether different ethnic identity components moderate the associations between acculturative stress and psychological adjustment among Mexican American college students (N = 148; 67% female) who completed self-report surveys. For women, ethnic affirmation/ belonging and ethnic identity achievement moderated the relation between acculturative stress and depression at low but not high levels of acculturative stress. Among men with low levels of other group orientation, levels of self-esteem were similar regardless of levels of acculturative stress. Discussion focuses on the role of ethnic identity in Latino students’ psychological adjustment and of protective factors that buffer students from acculturative stress. Future research should identify other protective factors that serve as buffers for students experiencing high levels of acculturative stress.

The Use of Female Commercial Sex Workers' Services by Latino Day Laborers

Galvan, F. H., Ortiz, D. J., Martinez, V., Bing, E. G. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

This article reports the characteristics of Latino day laborers who have sex with female commercial sex workers (CSWs). A sample of 450 day laborers in Los Angeles was used. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association of independent variables with the likelihood of having sex with a CSW. Overall, 26% of the 450 day laborers reported having had sex with a CSW in the previous 12 months. A lower likelihood of having sex with a CSW was found for those with more than 6 years of education and for those who were married and living with their spouses. A higher likelihood of having sex with a CSW was found for those who met the criteria for harmful drinking or drug dependence. Commercial sex work has been associated with sexually transmitted infections and other problems among clients of CSWs and warrants further attention by providers working with day laborers.

Latino Definitions of Success: A Cultural Model of Intercultural Competence

Torres, L. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:23:37 PST

The present study sought to examine Latino intercultural competence via two separate methodologies. Phase 1 entailed discovering and generating themes regarding the features of intercultural competence based on semistructured interviews of 15 Latino adults. Phase 2 included conducting a cultural consensus analysis from the quantitative responses of 46 Latino adults to determine the cultural model of intercultural competence. The major results indicated that the participants, despite variations in socioeconomic and generational statuses, shared a common knowledge base regarding the competencies needed for Latinos to successfully navigate different cultures. Overall, the cultural model of Latino intercultural competence includes a set of skills that integrates traditional cultural values along with attributes of self-efficacy. The findings are discussed within a competence-based conceptualization of cultural adaptation and potential advancements in acculturation research.