Toward a micro-level perspective on acculturation among U.S. Hispanic college students: A daily diary study

Seth J Schwartz; Charles R Martinez Jr; Alan Meca; Ágnes Szabó; Colleen Ward; Cory L Cobb; Miguel Ángel Cano; Jennifer B Unger; Christopher P Salas-Wright

doi:10.1002/jclp.23009

Toward a micro-level perspective on acculturation among U.S. Hispanic college students: A daily diary study

J Clin Psychol. 2021 Jan;77(1):121-144. doi: 10.1002/jclp.23009. Epub 2020 Jul 6.

Authors

Seth J Schwartz¹, Charles R Martinez Jr², Alan Meca³, Ágnes Szabó⁴, Colleen Ward⁵, Cory L Cobb², Miguel Ángel Cano⁶, Jennifer B Unger⁷, Christopher P Salas-Wright^{1

8}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Public Health Sciences, Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, USA.
² College of Education, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA.
³ Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia, USA.
⁴ School of Health, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
⁵ Centre for Applied Cross-Cultural Research, Victoria University Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand.
⁶ Department of Epidemiology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA.
⁷ Institute for Prevention Research, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
⁸ School of Social Work, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

PMID: 32632991
DOI: 10.1002/jclp.23009

Abstract

Objective: The present study introduces a daily, micro-level perspective on acculturation using a sample of Hispanic college students in Miami.

Methods: We conducted a 12-day diary study with a sample of first- and second-generation Hispanic college students in Miami. Outcome variables were measured on Days 1 and 12, and acculturation components (practices, identities, and values) were measured on Days 2-11. Daily fluctuations in acculturation components between Days 2 and 11 were examined as predictors of well-being, internalizing symptoms, and externalizing problems on Day 12.

Results: Fluctuations in comfort with speaking English negatively predicted three of the four well-being outcomes and positively predicted all of the internalizing and externalizing indicators. Fluctuations in collectivist values predicted two of the well-being outcomes and both anxiety and depressive symptoms, and fluctuations in ethnic identity predicted anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Conclusion: Daily volatility in comfort with English, collectivist values, and ethnic identity appear to be most distressing.

Keywords: Hispanic; acculturation; daily diary; externalizing; internalizing; well-being.

MeSH terms

Acculturation*
Anxiety
Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino*
Humans
Students