High rates of trauma exposure can impede school functioning, which is predictive of many negative long-term outcomes. This study examined school functioning in Latinx children with clinically elevated levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms. We found that child gender, parent language use, and parent school involvement were associated with school…

Language brokering refers to the global practice whereby children in immigrant communities are called upon by family members to serve as linguistic and cultural intermediaries by translating and interpreting. Past research has examined the effects of brokering on parent-child relationships, mental health, and substance abuse and feelings toward…

We examined parental preferences in raising Spanish/English bilingual children. We identified factors influencing their decisions, and the strategies used to promote bilingualism. Focus groups were conducted with Spanish-primary-language parents of children 3 to 7 years old. These groups were audiotaped and transcribed. Three reviewers…

In this study, we investigate individual-level language shift in a population of Mexican origin Latinos/as aged 65 and up. By using data from the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly, we investigate their English language use as the dependent variable in a hierarchical linear model. The microlevel independent…

Language is an important marker of identity. Guided by social identity theory and using a grounded theory approach, this study examined how languages are chosen and shape experiences in the workplace. Results suggest that language use is influenced by both external (norms, business needs) and internal (identity, language comfort) processes.…

Recent literature has noted that in some cases, less acculturation may be protective against adverse outcomes. This study sought to clarify the relationships between acculturation, food insecurity, and child outcomes. A sample of 339 low-income participants, comprised of non-Hispanic Whites (n = 171), English-speaking Hispanics (n = 89), and…

Reliability and validity evidence is provided for the Demographic Index of Cultural Exposure (DICE), consisting of six demographic proxy indicators of acculturation, within two community samples of Mexican-origin adults (N= 497 for each sample). Factor analytic procedures were used to examine the common variance shared between the six demographic…

Recent evidence suggests that culture is a dynamic construct activated in response to cues encountered in a given situation. Research on acculturation indicates that this is a complex construct that might be domain specific. Two studies were undertaken to investigate the effect of two ways of priming culture on acculturation and enculturation…

Interviews with 30 Chicano adolescents in 2 Austin barrios examined the varieties of English and Spanish used by respondents and their Anglo and African American peers, functions of the language varieties, maintenance of Spanish, language shift toward English, Spanish-accented English, and ethnic and social identity. Contains 43 references.…

Data suggest that, given a situation where no rewards are expected and no gain is to be found by exhibiting convergent behavior, there will be no difference in speech accommodation (the attempt to adopt speech patterns of an interlocutor) by male and female Mexican American bilinguals. (Author/CM)

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Brief Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-II (ARSMA-II) using two samples of Mexican American children: 292 middle school students from a mid-sized culturally diverse southwestern city, and 116 third- through fifth-graders in culturally homogeneous rural elementary schools.…

In 2002, the National Center for Health Statistics conducted Cycle 6 of the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), surveying a nationally representative sample of 12,500 women and men from 15 to 44 years of age, including more than 2,700 Hispanics. The process for developing the Spanish version of the NSFG included modified committee…

An acculturation scale for Mexican Americans was cross-validated on 450 Mexican American college freshmen in south Texas. Factor analysis yielded four factors identified earlier: language preference, ethnic identity/generation removed from Mexico, ethnicity of friends/associates, extent of direct contact with Mexico and ability to read/write in…

Classroom interactional patterns by language choice and speech partner of six four-year old Spanish-preferring children in a bilingual preschool, observed over one year, indicated that those children using relatively more English with peers in the classroom and increasing their English usage over time generally showed the greatest increases in…

Reports two-year sociolinguistic study of English use by five immigrant children. Observational findings compare "substantial" and "minimal" English contacts by experienced children. Illustrates benefits and hindrances to English learning, and how contacts depend principally on children's English abilities. Discusses English…