Mexican Immigrant Families Research Articles

Language Brokering Over Time: A Study of Citizenship Becoming Through a Transliteracies Framework

ABSTRACT This paper integrates theories and research from the fields of transliteracies and language brokering to understand the language and literacy experiences of bilingual youth who grew up in Mexican immigrant families. Analyzing data from three interrelated studies that used ethnographic research methods to understand the language brokering of Mexican-American immigrant youth in Chicago from 2000–2010, we asked: How do language brokers negotiate diverse meanings of citizenship in their transnational contexts? How do their transliteracy experiences shape their “citizenship becoming” over time? Findings show how bilingual Mexican-American youth employed their transliteracies and translocal expertise for civic justice, as they increasingly helped family and other transnational community members gain equitable access to goods and just services through their language brokering practices. At the same time, in a period of increasing anti-immigrant discourses and policies, they also experienced personal challenges and developed a deep recognition of hard borders facing their racialized communities. The discussion considers implications of this work for disrupting traditional perspectives about citizenship and employing a stronger notion of politicized funds of knowledge in K-12 classrooms.

Pandemic Precarity: COVID-19's Impact on Mexican and Central American Immigrant Families.

The study examines the association of gender, parenthood, and marriage with reports of perceived pandemic precarity among Mexican and Central American immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic (Fall 2020) to understand predictors of vulnerability in periods of crisis. Latinos/as, immigrants, parents, and women have faced significant challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Family structure, along with social expectations for gender (i.e., self-sacrificing femininity for women and hegemonic masculinity for men), parenthood, and marriage may explain perceptions of pandemic precarity - defined as the material deprivation and economic anxiety resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. This study used data from the Hispanic COVID-19 Rapid Response Study (n=400), a follow-up of the VidaSana Study of Mexican and Central American immigrants, to examine how family structure is associated with pandemic precarity (i.e., food, housing, and economic insecurity). Using linear regression models, average marginal effects (AMEs), and tests for group differences we investigate the independent and interactive effects of gender, parenthood, and marriage on pandemic precarity. Men and parents reported the highest pandemic precarity. Fathers reported higher pandemic precarity than mothers. For men, marriage is associated with greater precarity, and for women, marriage is associated with less precarity, yet marriage increased precarity for those without children. We discuss the importance and implications of examining gender along with family structure to understand how immigrant families were faring in response to the pandemic.

Use of Adolescent "Community Researchers" to Address Obesity Among Mexican Immigrant Families.

Background: Mexican-American immigrants have a disparate prevalence of overweight/obesity, and obesogenic illness. One approach is to train immigrant adolescents as "community researchers." Aims: (1) Design a program to train community researchers to address obesity among Mexican immigrant families and (2) identify the key components of a successful program. Methods: The content included an overview of community research/citizen science; obesity and food insecurity; study design and data collection and analysis for nutrition and physical activity. The students concluded by analyzing the results of group concept mapping (GCM) activities. Results: Post-session class discussions reflected an increased understanding of weekly topics. Analysis of GCM data suggests that members of the Mexican immigrant community may use emotional eating as a way to manage structural stigma, eventually leading to truncal obesity, T2DM and increased cardiovascular risk. Conclusions: Adolescents of Mexican heritage can have a major impact in promoting healthy lifestyles in their communities.

Latinx and Indigenous Mexican Caregivers' Perspectives of the Salton Sea Environment on Children's Asthma, Respiratory Health, and Co-Presenting Health Conditions.

This research investigated Latinx and Indigenous Mexican caregivers' perspectives of the Salton Sea's environment (e.g., dust concentrations and other toxins) on child health conditions. The Salton Sea is a highly saline drying lakebed located in the Inland Southern California desert borderland region and is surrounded by agricultural fields. Children of Latinx and Indigenous Mexican immigrant families are especially vulnerable to the Salton Sea's environmental impact on chronic health conditions due to their proximity to the Salton Sea and structural vulnerability. From September 2020 to February 2021, we conducted semi-structured interviews and focus groups with a total of 36 Latinx and Indigenous Mexican caregivers of children with asthma or respiratory distress living along the Salton Sea. A community investigator trained in qualitative research conducted interviews in Spanish or Purépecha, an indigenous language spoken by immigrants from Michoacán, Mexico. Template and matrix analysis was used to identify themes and patterns across interviews and focus groups. Participants characterized the Salton Sea's environment as toxic, marked by exposure to sulfuric smells, dust storms, chemicals, and fires, all of which contribute to children's chronic health conditions (e.g., respiratory illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis, and pneumonia, co-presenting with allergies and nosebleeds). The findings have important environmental public health significance for structurally vulnerable child populations in the United States and globally.

Abstract P611: A Multi-Sector, Collaborative Approach to Improve Diet in Mexican and Chinese American Immigrant Families

Introduction: Latinx and Asian American communities in the U.S. face unique yet similar structural barriers to maintaining adequate diet quality, contributing to an increased burden of diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in these groups. These inequities have been exacerbated in recent years due to overt anti-immigrant and anti-Asian sentiment during the COVID-19 pandemic, invoking fear and cultural shame for these groups, and amplifying challenges towards accessing food and economic stability. Hypothesis: Herein we describe a community-centered, multi-level approach aligned with the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities Framework. We hypothesize our study will result in increased fruit and vegetable intake (self-report, measured via skin carotenoids), social cohesion and ethnic pride at the individual level and improved socioeconomic outcomes at the neighborhood level. Methods: Working collaboratively with 8 community-based and farm partners, the goal of the Building Access to Food through Systems and Solidarity (BASIS) Study is to improve diet and economic stability in Sunset Park—a neighborhood of Mexican and Chinese American families in Brooklyn, NY. This neighborhood has been hard-hit during the COVID-19 pandemic and lagged in economic recovery, and its residents are disconnected from government support. BASIS addresses food access, nutrition education, policy change, and hands-on learning (e.g., gardening, cooking) incorporating culturally appropriate values, foods, and taste preferences throughout each of these activities. Results: To date, we have held four group model-building workshops with partners to identify common priorities/goals towards improving nutrition in immigrant communities; co-developed Mexican and Chinese American-specific nutrition education materials; held eight virtual and in-person sessions with community members (n=291); conducted qualitative interviews (n=19) and quantitative data collection (n=175) amongst community residents to inform program development; and implemented a subsidized, community-supported agriculture pilot program for 20 weeks in 2022 (n=38). BASIS resources have been well-received by community members, with high engagement (90% attend weekly produce box pick-up events) and acceptance (100% indicated they would recommend the program to others). Conclusions: Planned evaluation will include mixed methods and administrative data analyses for assessment of multi-level outcomes. BASIS will expand to more participants (n=150), and will include additional program components (e.g., food policy assessment; workforce development; small business owner education). BASIS presents a powerful model to improve diet in immigrant communities applying systems thinking and community-centered best practices, lessons which may be gleaned for other immigrant communities.

리처드 로드리게스의 『기억의 굶주림』에 나타난 언어적 아비투스와 문화자본

Richard Rodriguez is a Mexican-American author and intellectual who is famous for his strong opposition to affirmative action and bilingual education in the United States. His first book, Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez, is an autobiographical account of Rodriguez in which he learned English as a dominant language and then became a ‘middle-class American man’ from a ‘socially disadvantaged child,’ separating from a Spanish-speaking Mexican immigrant family. The purpose of this paper is to examine the function and significant influence of public education and to discuss what mechanism is working behind it in that education reproduces the value system of the dominant class. Based on the concepts of the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, this paper will analyze the symbolic violence and influence of dominant language on the American middle class and Mexican immigrant working class, respectively. And it will explore how linguistic habitus acquired in public education can function as cultural capital and can be converted into social capital and economic capital.

THE TIES THAT RECRUIT, RETAIN, AND BIND: ENGAGING HISPANIC IMMIGRANT FAMILIES IN THE TIME OF CRISIS

Abstract In 2008, we launched Project RAMA (Risk Assessments for Mexican Americans) in Houston, Texas, seeking to understand how multigenerational Mexican immigrant families communicate about familial risk for complex disease. Several lessons were learned. First, our community advisory committee endorsed research goals. Second, we listened to the community with regards to immigration concerns and structural racism. Finally, in the summer and fall of 2008, Hurricane Ike struck the region. Because our team provided support and resources to families in need, we had a higher participation rate post-disaster. Pausing recruitment and postponing assessments led us to unexpectedly discover a long-term intervention effect that was not originally hypothesized. These lessons guide a new initiative focused on Hispanic immigrant families affected by rheumatoid arthritis in Washington DC. We discuss how we address challenges in the on-going project during the Covid pandemic, including recruiting through embedded community clinics and integrating community needs into study design.

Demographic and Psychosocial Characteristics, Air Pollution Exposure, and Housing Mobility of Mexican Immigrant Families.

People of color and lower socioeconomic status groups in the USA, including those of Mexican origin, are exposed to higher concentrations of air pollution, including fine particulate matter (PM2.5). Associations were examined between neighborhood air pollution levels and the psychosocial and demographic characteristics of linguistically isolated Mexican-origin immigrant families. Housing mobility and changes in air pollution levels due to changes in residence were also examined. A sample of 604 linguistically isolated Mexican-origin families in central TX provided data on demographic and psychosocial experiences. Outdoor air pollution concentrations at participants' home addresses were based on high-resolution estimates of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and its constituents. Movers were identified as families whose residential addresses changed during the study period; these participants were further grouped and compared based on the change in their residential PM2.5 concentration from before to after their move. Lower PM2.5 concentrations were associated with reports of more ethnic discriminatory experiences, higher socioeconomic status, and higher perceived neighborhood safety. Among the 23% of families who changed residences, PM2.5 concentrations were generally lower at the new family address. Families with mothers reporting a greater sense of neighborhood safety or acculturation levels tended to move from one area low in air pollutants to another, and mothers reporting the lowest levels of neighborhood safety or acculturation tended to move from one area high in air pollutants to another. There are limits to assimilation for Mexican immigrant families. Living in more advantaged neighborhoods is associated with experiencing better air quality, but this advantage may come at the cost of experiencing more ethnic discrimination.

Effects of Familism, Parenting, and Family Cohesion on Child Internalizing Symptoms among Mexican Immigrant Families

Effects of Familism, Parenting, and Family Cohesion on Child Internalizing Symptoms among Mexican Immigrant Families

Through Their Cultural Lens: A Qualitative Approach to Understanding Mexican Immigrant Families’ Experiences with the Transition to School

Through Their Cultural Lens: A Qualitative Approach to Understanding Mexican Immigrant Families’ Experiences with the Transition to School

Do Mothers' Experiences Count? An Actor-Partner Interdependence Model of Language Brokering Experiences in Mexican Immigrant Families.

Language brokering is a shared parent-child experience with implications for parent-child relationships and, in turn, individuals' psychological well-being; however, few studies recognize the role of parents. This study took a dyadic approach to investigate the association between brokering experiences and internalizing symptoms, and the mediating role of parent-child alienation. Participants were 604 Mexican-origin adolescents (54% female, Mage = 12.41) and their mothers (N = 595). Both adolescents' and their mothers' brokering experiences were related to their own internalizing symptoms via their self-reported parent-child alienation. Mothers' brokering experiences also affected adolescents so that when mothers experienced more negative brokering experiences, adolescents perceived greater parent-child alienation, and in turn more internalizing symptoms, suggesting the necessity of considering language brokering's influence on members involved as a dyadic process.

Culturally relevant stressors as moderators of intergenerational transmission of mother-adolescent executive function in Mexican immigrant families

The intergenerational transmission of executive function may be enhanced or interrupted by culturally salient environmental stressors that shape the practice of executive function in the family. Building upon past research, the current study tests whether culturally relevant stressors such as economic stress and foreigner stress have a direct effect on adolescent executive function, as well as whether they modify the intergenerational transmission of mother–child executive function (i.e., working memory, inhibitory control, and shifting) in low-income Mexican immigrant families. The sample consists of 179 Mexican American adolescents (Mage = 17.03 years; SDage = 0.83; 58% females) and their Mexico-born mothers (Mage = 43.25 years; SDage = 5.90). Results show that mothers’ perceived economic stress is associated with poor inhibitory control in adolescents. Low levels of mothers’ perceived foreigner stress related to a stronger association between mothers’ and adolescents’ working memory, while high levels of mothers’ perceived foreigner stress related to enhanced intergenerational transmission of poor shifting ability. Study findings demonstrate the prominence of perceived foreigner stress as a contextually relevant factor moderating the intergenerational transmission of mother–child executive function in low-income Mexican immigrant families.

Media exposure and language experience: Examining associations from home observations in Mexican immigrant families in the US

The current exploratory study describes exposure to digital media in young children from Mexican immigrant homes and its association with language input and output. Using multiple recordings of children’s home environments, we report on the rate (i.e., percentage of total recording time), language (Spanish or English), and type (adult- or child-directed programming) of auditory media exposure in toddlers under three years of age (N = 30; Mage = 20;3 months). We also examine total adult words and adult-child conversational turns, as indicators of child language input, and the number of child language vocalizations as a measure of early language development. Findings showed that digital media comprised approximately 14 % of the child language environment that families selected to record, with wide variability observed. Children were more likely to be exposed to media in Spanish than English and adult-directed than child-directed programming. Children’s general media exposure was negatively associated with the amount of children’s vocalizations and conversational turns but not the quantity of adult words in the environment, suggesting that the relation between media exposure and child language development is likely not mediated by a general decrease in adult input in Mexican immigrant homes. Instead, media exposure may decrease opportunities for children to engage in conversation and practice language expression, both critical mechanisms for successful language acquisition. Selection of child-directed programming may encourage child vocalizations but is less likely to be in Spanish in these homes, which may reduce opportunities for engagement with Spanish-dominant adults. Together these findings provide a window into the nature of media exposure in children from Mexican immigrant homes and into the associations between media and language input and output. Directions for future research are discussed.

The U.S. Mexican immigrant family in a changing society: a critical overview

This article charts literature debates about the structural changes of the Mexican immigrant family in the United States. It presents, first, a critical overview of the conventional literature on the Mexican immigrant family, typically framed around assimilation models, their major themes, and shortcomings. Then, shifting frameworks, this paper shows how structural inequality and feminist models, as critical approaches to emerging immigrant family forms, help us to understand the transformational parallels between U.S. society and the Mexican immigrant family structure. It is argued in this article that the Mexican family is structurally diverse. In doing so, the discussion is placed in the larger context of the U.S., explaining how historical and present social forces associated with unequal access to economic, labor, and educational opportunities have perpetuated the marginality of the Mexican immigrant family vis-à-vis the mainstream family. The paper also outlines and discusses the ways feminist, intersectional, and postmodernism frameworks shape the current literature debates on immigrant families. Lastly, it discusses how diversity in terms of family structure and family life contributes to the general field of family study in the U.S. and globally.

Brokering Tareas: Mexican Immigrant Families Translanguaging Homework Literacies

Brokering Tareas: Mexican Immigrant Families Translanguaging Homework Literacies

Differences in Community Members' and Academics' Perceptions of Factors Contributing to Food Insecurity and Obesity among Mexican Immigrants: An Application of Concept Mapping.

Differences in Community Members' and Academics' Perceptions of Factors Contributing to Food Insecurity and Obesity among Mexican Immigrants:An Application of Concept Mapping Karen T. D'Alonzo, PhD, RN, APNC, FAAN, Frances Munet Vilaró, PhD, RN, Lisa Garsman, PhD, RN, APNC, Scott R. Rosas, PhD, and Maria Vivar Purpose • This study described and statistically evaluated the factors felt to contribute to weight gain and obesity among Mexican immigrant families. • Specifically, we focused on the differences and similarities in perceptions among community members and academics in a community-academic partnership. Problem • Community-based participatory research has been described as a collaborative approach where community members, organizational representatives, and academic researchers all participate in the research process. • As research partners, community members and academics may find some common ground in identification of problems, but frequently differ in their perception of the cause of those problems and struggle with finding common ground. • Failure to account for these differences ultimately leads to issues with the design of community health programs. • Group concept mapping is a research approach that lends itself well to the conduct of community-based participatory research and the results can be used to easily compare the perceptions of different groups of participants. Findings • We examined two separate concept maps generated by the two independent groups, one consisting of community members and the other consisting of academic members. • The results indicated the conceptualized patterns, represented by the two concept maps, were more similar than expected by chance, although meaningful differences existed. • Members of the Mexican immigrant community categorized their personal experiences attempting to incorporate healthy eating and physical activity into their lifestyles. • In contrast, academics tended to organize their thinking based on prior knowledge of the concepts. [End Page e9] Who Should Care Most? • Mexican immigrants and their families, local government officials, health care providers, educators. Recommendations • Building from the primary study, this analysis was a step in generating the knowledge needed for intervention planning and development. [End Page e10] Karen T. D'Alonzo School of Nursing, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Frances Munet Vilaró School of Nursing, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Lisa Garsman School of Nursing, St. Peter's University Jersey City Scott R. Rosas Concept Systems Incorporated Ithaca Maria Vivar Lazos America Unida Copyright © 2021 Johns Hopkins University Press

Differences in Community Members' and Academics' Perceptions of Factors Contributing to Food Insecurity and Obesity among Mexican Immigrants: An Application of Concept Mapping.

Community-based participatory research has been identified as an approach to research where community members, organizational representatives, and academic researchers all participate in the research process. As research partners, community members and academics may find some common ground in identification of problems, but frequently differ in their perception of the cause of those problems and struggle with arriving at a "shared interpretation" of the data. Failure to account for these differences ultimately leads to issues with the design of interventions. Group concept mapping is a rigorous mixed-methods approach that lends itself well to the conduct of community-based participatory research and the results can be used to systematically compare the conceptualized models of different groups of participants. Building from a previous study, where group concept mapping was used to describe the factors felt to contribute to weight gain and obesity among Mexican immigrant families, this study described and statistically evaluated the different conceptualizations between community members and academicians. Using a Procrustean comparison approach and permutation strategy, we assessed the spatial correspondence of concept maps generated by the two independent community members and academic groups. The results indicated the conceptualized patterns, represented by the two multidimensional scaling configurations (i.e., concept maps) produced by community and academic groups, were more similar than expected by chance, although meaningful differences existed. We describe how these differences in perspective have important implications for the cooperative development of an intervention addressing the multiple factors related to the perceived causes of obesity.

Rural Midwestern Mexican Fathers’ Perspectives on Family Food, Mealtimes, and Physical Activity

ABSTRACT Two focus group interviews with eight low-income Mexican fathers in two communities in a rural Midwestern state explored fathers’ perceptions, behaviors, and roles related to child and family food consumption, mealtimes, and physical activity. On average, fathers were 34 years of age, had 10 years of formal education, and annual household incomes ranged from $36,250 to $46,249. Findings include the identification of fifteen themes through the process of thematic analysis that are organized by five thematic areas of interest (family food patterns, strategies for healthy eating, family roles in food shopping and preparation, family mealtimes, physical activity among families). Findings revealed ways fathers contributed to their children’s and families’ health and well-being, and challenges they faced. Health promotion efforts aimed at rural, low-income Mexican immigrant families can benefit from embracing fathers’ perspectives and how they influence the health and well-being of their children and families.

Immigrant family socialization

Using convenient and purposive sampling augmented with snowball sampling, this study examines the perceptions of family socialization between two cultures, using in-depth interviews of 15 pairs of adult child-parent dyads (n=30) of Mexican origin in the United States. In sum, despite variations in the pace of acculturation, our study shows that both adult children and their parents proactively adopted compromising strategies (e.g. mutual respect, acceptance, openness, and realistic expectations) to bridge the differences in acculturation and reach common ground in family communication. Several core values and family practices, such as respect to family authority, family interdependence, retention/preservation of cultural heritage (e.g. language, customs, and identity), a strong work ethic, patriarchal gender norms, Mexican versus American parenting styles, and adult children striving for more freedom from traditional customs (e.g. conventional gender roles and living arrangements), were emphasized in Mexican immigrant family socialization in our study. Despite their differences in belief systems and ideologies, our study shows that family communication between the adult child-parent dyads was built on a set of implicit expectations that focus on minimizing family conflicts, yet providing a ‘culturally instrumental’ and supportive/caring context. In contrast to the postulation of the acculturation gap-distress model, our study found that discrepancies in acculturation between immigrant parents and their children were not necessarily associated with poorer family functioning and adjustment.

Lessons for teachers: A wordless picturebook in the hands of one Mexican immigrant family

Wordless picturebooks provide opportunities for both families and teachers to engage with narrative texts beyond the confines of a particular language. In this ethnographic study, the researchers examined how one multilingual family interacted with a wordless picturebook across time. They observed shifts in who engaged with the reading; evidence of sense‐making as the mother, older sister, and younger sister engaged with the book; scaffolding the mother and older sister provided for the younger sister as her telling of the story became more sophisticated; and intimacy and humor. These observations may have implications for classroom teachers who are interested in using wordless picturebooks to support culturally and linguistically diverse learners. The authors conclude with suggestions for incorporating wordless picturebooks into classroom practice in ways that may be welcoming and productive for students from diverse backgrounds.