Discrimination, language brokering efficacy, and academic competence among adolescent language brokers

Abstract

IntroductionDiscrimination is detrimental for the development of ethnic minority adolescents' academic competence. To combat the negative effects of discrimination and promote academic success, it is important to understand the mechanisms underlying the association between discrimination and academic competence. Guided by the integrative model of ethnic minority children's development and the adapting cultural systems framework, this study examined whether a culture-specific factor, language brokering efficacy, mediated the relation between adolescents' perceived discrimination and their academic competence. MethodData were drawn form a two-wave longitudinal study of 604 Mexican American adolescent language brokers residing in and around a metropolitan city in central Texas, USA (54% female; Mage = 12.5; SD = 1.0; 75% born in the U.S.). Path analyses were conducted to answer the research questions. ResultsThe study revealed that the link between discrimination and academic competence was mediated by language brokering efficacy when translating for fathers and mothers, although the path from language brokering efficacy to academic competence was stronger when brokering for mothers. ConclusionsThe results highlight the importance of incorporating ethnic minority children's adapting cultural experiences in linking the contextual influence with their developmental competence. Implications for interventions aiming to reduce the negative impacts of discrimination are also discussed.