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Exploring the Complexities of Familism and Acculturation: Central Constructs for People of Mexican Origin
Author(s) -
Rodriguez Norma,
Mira Consuelo Bingham,
Paez Nancy Denise,
Myers Hector F.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
american journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.113
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1573-2770
pISSN - 0091-0562
DOI - 10.1007/s10464-007-9090-7
Subject(s) - acculturation , biculturalism , psychology , health psychology , mexican americans , identity (music) , social psychology , ethnic group , cultural identity , developmental psychology , public health , sociology , anthropology , feeling , medicine , physics , nursing , neuroscience , neuroscience of multilingualism , acoustics
We examined the relationships between three dimensions of familism: importance of family, family support, and family conflict with acculturation, assessed orthogonally (Mexican and American cultural contributions assessed independently), and the relative contribution these factors make to psychological adjustment among 248 (124 women, 124 men) adults of Mexican origin. After controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, positive associations were found between importance of family and the biculturalism of Mexican and American cultural identity; family support and Mexican cultural identity; but no associations between family conflict and level of acculturation. Psychological well‐being was positively associated with Mexican cultural identity and family support, whereas psychological distress was associated with greater family conflict and lower family support. The greater relative contribution of Mexican cultural identity to familism and well‐being, and the importance of assessing acculturation orthogonally are discussed.