Predictive variables of resilience in young Moroccan immigrant

Abstract

The immigration of young people from Morocco has increased considerably in Spain. However, there are few studies on this particular subpopulation of immigrants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of resilience in young immigrants and to determine what differences there were compared to the young non-immigrant population, analysing the sociodemographic and psychosocial variables that are most predictive of resilience in these young people from Morocco. The total sample comprised 326 young men (M = 19.63 years; SD = 1.13), 154 were Moroccan immigrants aged between 18 and 22 (M = 19.33; SD = 1.28) and 172 non-immigrant Spanish men aged between 18 and 23 (M = 20.1; SD = 1.06). The results showed a higher level of resilience in young immigrants than in young people from the general population, with negative inverse relationships in both samples between all the protective variables (optimism, hope, self-efficacy and social support) and anxiety and depression, and positive relationships with resilience. In addition, a predictive model of resilience in young Moroccan immigrants was found with adequate goodness of fit indices (R2adj = .81; F = 126.54; p < .001) made up of age, work, religion, hope, self-efficacy and social support. This study provides a useful characterization of resilience and vulnerability in young Moroccan immigrants. It is essential to promote the modulating factors that predict high levels of resilience in order to improve the early adaptation of this group to the destination country.