Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T08:50:49.642Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Acculturative Stress in Latin-American Immigrants: An Assessment Proposal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 January 2013

José Antonio Ruiz Hernández ,
Ginesa Torrente Hernández ,
Ángel Rodríguez González  and
María del Carmen Ramírez de la Fe
José Antonio Ruiz Hernández*
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain)
Ginesa Torrente Hernández
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain)
Ángel Rodríguez González
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain)
María del Carmen Ramírez de la Fe
Affiliation:
Universidad de Murcia (Spain)
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to José Antonio Ruiz Hernández. Facultad de Psicología. Universidad de Murcia. 30.100 Campus Universitario de Espinardo. Murcia. (Spain). E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The aim of this paper was to develop an instrument to assess levels of stress experienced by Latin-American immigrants in their acculturative process in Spain. A sample of 692 immigrants from Latin America, aged 20 to 63 years, took part on this study (54.9% males and 45.1% females). A 24-item questionnaire with high reliability (.92) was elaborated. Six factors related to acculturative stress were found: 1) discrimination and rejection; 2) differences with the out-group (native Spaniards); 3) citizenship problems and legality; 4) problems concerning social relationships with other immigrants; 5) nostalgia and longing; and 6) family break-up. Our findings show that participants have a high level of stress related to nostalgia and longing, family break-up, and the perception of discrimination and rejection by natives. The usefulness of the instrument and its applications and restrictions are discussed.

El objetivo de este trabajo era desarrollar un instrumento de evaluación de los niveles de estrés vivenciados por inmigrantes hispanoamericanos durante el proceso de aculturación en España. En este estudio participaron un total de 692 inmigrantes de América Latina (54.9% hombres y 45.1% mujeres) de entre 20 y 63 años de edad. Mediante el procedimiento aplicado, se construyó un instrumento de 24 ítems con una elevada consistencia interna (.92) y con seis factores que hacen referencia a diversas fuentes de estrés de aculturación: 1) discriminación y el rechazo percibido de los autóctonos por el hecho de ser inmigrante; 2) diferencias con el exogrupo (autóctonos españoles); 3) problemas de ciudadanía y legalidad; 4) problemas de relaciones sociales con otros inmigrantes; 5) la añoranza y nostalgia respecto a personas del país de origen; y 6) la ruptura de la familia. Los datos obtenidos indican que los participantes presentan un elevado estrés relacionado con la añoranza, la ruptura de la familia y la percepción de discriminación y rechazo por parte de los autóctonos. Se discute la utilidad del instrumento, sus aplicaciones y limitaciones.

Keywords

acculturative stresslatin-american immigrantsinstrumental studyestrés de aculturacióninmigrantes hispanoamericanosestudio instrumental
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 14 , Issue 1 , May 2011 , pp. 227 - 236
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abalos, D. T. (1998). The Latino community in The United States. Personal and political strategies for transforming culture. Westport, CT: Praeger.Google Scholar
Achotegui, J. (2008). Duelo migratorio extremo: el síndrome del inmigrante con estrés crónico y múltiple (Síndrome de Ulises) [Extreme migratory bereavement: The immigrant's syndrome with chronic and multiple stress (Ulysses' Syndrome)]. Revista de Psicopatología y Salud Mental del Niño y del Adolescente, 11, 15–25.Google Scholar
Almoguera, M. P., López, E., Miranda, J., & Valle, C. (2007). Análisis y evolución de la comunidad ecuatoriana en Sevilla: Integración espacial y socioeconómica [Analysis and evolution of the Ecuadorian community in Seville: Spatial and socioeconomic integration]. Cuadernos Geográficos de la Universidad de Granada, 2(41), 133–148.Google Scholar
Arcia, E., Skinner, M., Bailey, D., & Correa, V. (2001). Models of acculturation and health behaviors among Latino immigrants to the US. Social Science and Medicine, 53, 41–53. doi:10.1016/S0277-9536(00)00310-5CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Berry, J. W. (1997). Immigration, acculturation and adaptation. Applied Psychology, 46, 5–68. doi:10.1080/026999497378467Google Scholar
Berry, J. W. (2005). Acculturation: Living successfully in two cultures. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 29, 697–712. doi:10.1016/j.ijintrel.2005.07.013CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bodega, M. I., Cebrián, J. A., & Martín, M. A. (2006). El crecimiento de la población extranjera en Madrid: Un episodio característico de la inmigración internacional en la España del cambio de siglo [The increase of the foreign population in Madrid: A typical episode of the international immigration in Spain at the turn of the century]. Estudios Geográficos, 67, 385–416.Google Scholar
Centro Regional de Estadística de Murcia (2008). Padrón Municipal de Habitantes de Murcia 2007 [Municipal Census of inhabitants of Murcia 2007]. Retrieved from http://www.carm.es/econet/home.htmlGoogle Scholar
Cervantes, R. C., Padilla, A. M., & Salgado de Snyder, N. (1990). Reliability and validity of the Hispanic Stress Inventory. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 12, 76–82. doi:10.1177/07399863900121004CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cervantes, R. C., Padilla, A. M., & Salgado de Snyder, N. (1991). The Hispanic Stress Inventory: A culturally relevant approach to psychosocial assessment. Psychosocial Assessment, 3, 438–447. doi:10.1037/1040-3590.3.3.438CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cruz, T. H., Marshall, S. W., Bowling, J. M., & Villaveces, A. (2008). The validity of a proxy acculturation scale among U.S. Hispanics. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 30, 425–446. doi:10.1177/0739986308323653CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cuellar, I., Arnold, B., & Maldonado, R. (1995). The Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-II (ARSMA-II): A revision of the original ARSMA scale. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 17(3), 275–304. doi:10.1177/07399863950173001CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Derogatis, L. R., & Cleary, P. A. (1977). Confirmation of the dimensional structure of the SCL-90: A study of construct validation. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 33, 981–989. doi:10.1002/1097-4679(197710)33:4<981::AID-JCLP2270330412>3.0.CO;2-03.0.CO;2-0>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Díez, J. (2005). Las dos caras de la inmigración [The two faces of immigration]. Madrid: Documentos del Observatorio Permanente de la Inmigración. Ministerio de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales.Google Scholar
Edward, A. L. (1957). Techniques of attitude scale construction. New York, NY: Appleton Century Crofts.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Finch, B. K., Hummer, R. A., Kolody, B., & Vega, W. A. (2001). The role of discrimination and acculturative stress in the physical health of Mexican-origin adults. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 23, 399–429. doi:10.1177/0739986301234004CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Finch, B. K., & Vega, W. A. (2003). Acculturation stress, social support, and self-rated health among Latinos in California. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 5, 109–117. doi:10.1023/A:1023987717921CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
González de Rivera, J. L., De las Cuevas, C., Rodríguez, M., & Rodríguez F. (2002). Cuestionario de 90 síntomas SCL-90-R de Derogatis. Adaptación española [Derogatis' 90-Symptom Check-list SCL-90. Spanish adaptation]. Madrid: TEA Ediciones.Google Scholar
Hovey, J. D. (1999). Psychosocial predictors of acculturative stress in Central American immigrants. Journal of Immigrant Health, 1, 187–194.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hovey, J. D., & King, C. A. (1996). Acculturative stress, depression, and suicidal ideation among immigrant and second-generation Latino adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 35, 1183–1192. doi:10.1097/00004583-199609000-00016CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kasirye, O. C., Walsh, J. A., Romano, P. S., Beckett, L. A., Garcia, J. A., Elvine-Kreis, B., … Schenker, M. B. (2005). Acculturation and its association with health-risk behaviors in a rural Latino population. Ethnicity and Disease, 15, 733–739.Google Scholar
Kossek, E. E., Meece, D., Barrat, M. E., & Prince, B. E. (2005). U.S. Latino migrant farm workers: Managing acculturative stress and conserving work-family resources. In Poelmans, S. A. Y. (Ed.), Work and family: An international research perspective, (pp. 47–70). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Lara, M., Gamboa, C., Kahramanian, M. I., Morales, L. S., & Hayes-Bautista, D. E. (2005). Acculturation and Latino health in the United States: A review of the literature and its sociopolitical context. Annual Review of Public Health, 26, 367–397. doi:10.1146/annurev.publhealth.26.021304.144615CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ministerio de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales (2008). Informe del Observatorio Permanente de la Inmigración sobre Extranjeros con tarjeta o autorización de residencia en vigor a 31 de marzo de 2008 [Report of the Permanent Observatory of Immigration about Aliens with residence card or authorization in force from March 31, 2010]. Retrieved from: http://extranjeros.mtas.es/es/InformacionEstadistica/Informes/Extranjeros31Marzo2008/index.htmlGoogle Scholar
Miranda, A. O., & Matheny, K. B. (2000). Socio-psychological predictors of acculturative stress among Latino adults. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 22(4), 306–317.Google Scholar
Moya, M., & Puertas, S. (2008). Estereotipos, inmigración y trabajo [Stereotypes, immigration, and work]. Papeles del Psicólogo, 29, 6–15.Google Scholar
Padilla, A. M., & Borrero, N. E. (2006). The effects of acculturative stress on the Hispanic family. In Wong, P. T. P. (Ed.), Handbook of multicultural perspectives on stress and coping (pp. 299–317). Dallas, TX: Spring Publications. doi:10.1007/0-387-26238-5_13CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rodriguez, N., Myers, H. F., Bingham, C., Flores, T., & Garcia-Hernandez, L. (2002). Development of the Multidimensional Acculturative Stress Inventory for Adults of Mexican Origin. Psychological Assessment, 14, 451–461. doi:10.1037/1040-3590.14.4.451CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ruiz, J. A., Torrente, G., Ramírez, M. C., & Benito, J. (2005, September). Fuentes de estrés y salud en inmigrantes hispanoamericanos [Sources of stress and health in Latin-American immigrants]. Communication presented at the IX Congress of Social Psychology. Universidad de La Coruña, Spain.Google Scholar
Ruiz, J. A., Torrente, G., Rodríguez, A., & Ramírez, M. A. (2007). Estrés de aculturación en inmigrantes hispanoamericanos [Acculturative stress in Latin-American immigrants]. In Guillén, C. L., & Guil, R. (Eds.), Psicología social: un encuentro de perspectivas (pp. 392–396). Cádiz: Asociación de Profesionales de la Psicología Social.Google Scholar
Sam, D. L. (2006). Acculturation and health. In Sam, D. L., & Berry, J. W. (Eds.), Acculturation psychology (pp. 452–468). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Santiago-Rivera, A. L., Arredondo, P., & Gallardo-Cooper, M. (2002). Understanding Latino/a families: Historical and sociopolitical multicultural contexts. In Santiago-Rivera, A. L., Arredondo, P., Gallardo-Cooper, M. (Eds.), Counseling Latino/as and family: Practical guide. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Torrente, G., Ruiz, J. A., Ramírez, M. C., Benito, J., & García, A. B. (2005). El papel de la familia en la adaptación de los inmigrantes [The role of the family in immigrants' adaptation]. In Sabucedo, J. M., Romay, J., & López, A. (Eds.), Psicología política, cultura, inmigración y comunicación social (pp. 131–136). Madrid: Biblioteca Nueva.Google Scholar
Torres, L. (2008). Chilenos en Madrid: Perfiles, trayectorias y su mirada inmigrante [Chileans in Madrid: Profiles, trajectories, and their immigrant gaze]. Revista de Antropología Iberoamericana, 3, 249–279.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tran, T., Fitzpatrick, T., Berg, W. R., & Wright, R. Jr. (1996). Acculturation, health, stress and psychological distress among elderly Hispanics. Journal of Cross Cultural Gerontology, 11, 149–165. doi:10.1007/BF00114858CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Urdiales, M. E., & Ferrer, A. (2005). La inmigración latinoamericana en España [Latin-American immigration in Spain]. Anales de Geografía, 25, 115–134.Google Scholar
Vargas-Willis, G., & Cervantes, R. C. (1987). Consideration of psychosocial stress in the treatment of the Latina immigrants. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 9, 315–329. doi:10.1177/07399863870093007CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vinuesa, L., & Suris, A. (2004). Acculturation and acculturative stress as predictors of psychological distress and quality-of-life functioning in Hispanic psychiatric patients. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 26, 293–311. doi:10.1177/0739986304267993Google Scholar
Ward, C., Bochner, S., & Furnham, A. (2001). The psychology of culture shock. East Sussex, UK: Routledge.Google Scholar
Zarza, M. J., & Sobrino, M. I. (2007). Estrés de adaptación sociocultural en inmigrantes latinoamericanos residentes en Estados Unidos vs. España: Una revisión bibliográfica [Sociocultural adaptation stress in Latin-American immigrants residing in the United States vs. Spain: A bibliographic review]. Anales de Psicología, 23, 72–84.Google Scholar