Examining the Effects of Family and Acculturative Stress on Mexican American Parents as Predictors of Child Behavioral Health Functioning: The Protective Nature of Family Cohesion

Abstract

The Family Stress Model posits that environmental stressors place a burden on families that indirectly impact family dynamics and parenting, thereby undermining children’s adjustment. Past studies have acknowledged the potential unique effects of acculturative stress, as a form of family stress, on immigrant families but have rarely documented how it permeates the family, with potential consequences for parent-child relationships and child outcomes. Using data of Mexican American families, the current study examines how mothers’ and fathers’ (N = 467) experiences of acculturative stress have spillover effects for their children’s internalizing behaviors through familial and parenting pathways. Structural equation modeling analyses reveal that acculturative stress leads to heightened depression in parents, compromised family relationships and parenting, and in turn, heightens anxiety and depression in children. The current study also highlights the importance of protective factors, such as family cohesion, as a mechanism that explains the effects of family and acculturative stress on families, thereby weakening its capacity to compromise family dynamics and in turn reduce the likelihood of impacting the well-being of their children.