Assessment of a Refined Short Acculturation Scale for Latino Preteens in Rural Colorado

Abstract

Acculturation level was assessed among 137 fourth- and fifth-grade children in rural, southern Colorado, using the Short Acculturation Scale for Hispanic Youth (SASH-Y), a 12-point, unidimensional instrument adapted for this audience. Reliability was determined by test-retest (70.8% agreement) with a small subsample of this population. Eleven children were considered Mexican, 33 Mexican American, and 93 Euro-American. Analysis of the sample yielded a strong internal consistency (α=.89) and split-half reliability (.84). Based on factor analysis, personal language use, external language use, and ethnic social relations accounted for 82.6%, 13.5%, and 5.9% of all variance, respectively. Latino self-identification did not correlate with acculturation. The findings demonstrate that the SASH-Y, especially questions related to language use, is robust with a young, rural-based Latino population.