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16 - Familism Values and Disclosure Among Latinx Youth

from Part III - Informant and Contextual Differences in Disclosure and Secrecy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 December 2024

Judith G. Smetana
Affiliation:
University of Rochester, New York
Nicole Campione-Barr
Affiliation:
University of Missouri, Columbia
Lauree C. Tilton-Weaver
Affiliation:
Örebro University
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Summary

US Latinx adolescents strongly endorse familism, a salient cultural value characterized by close family relationships, interdependence between family members, and the prioritization of family over self. Cultural values, like familism, can serve as cultural scripts that inform behaviors, such as Latinx adolescents’ routine and self-disclosure. In this chapter, we examine routine and self-disclosure and/or domains of disclosure to parents among US Latinx youth while attending to parent and youth gender. Further, we explore associations between familism values and Latinx adolescents’ routine and self-disclosure and/or domains of disclosure to parents and siblings. Based on this literature review, we identify limitations of the current literature. We also recommend future research directions, for example, examining how associations differ based on involvement in US mainstream culture, exploring Latinx youth’s disclosure to extended family members, and investigating Latinx cultural values beyond familism.

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