This study investigated the effect of acculturation on Halstead-Reitan neuropsychological test performances on nonimpaired Hispanics. The sample consisted of three groups of 50 subjects, representing distinct levels of acculturation: (a) Mexican-American, (b) Anglo-American, and (c) Mexican. A significant effect ( p > .05) for acculturation was found on several measures, including the Tactual Performance Test (TPT; Dominant, Nondominant, and Total), the Seashore Rhythm Test, and the Halstead Category Test. Measures not affected by acculturation were TPT Localization and Memory, Finger Tapping, and the Trail Making Test. Recommendations for further research and clinical implications of findings are discussed.
A 28-item acculturation rating scale for Mexican Americans was introduced, which was designed not only to measure the extent to which subjects vary in Mexican versusAnglo orientation, but also the extent to which they are comfortable with their cultural identity. The scale was adninistered to 844 subjects, comprising three different student populations in extreme south Texas. The scale demonstrated high internal consistency, and its validity was corroborated by commonly used criteria. The items in the scale clustered around five factors. Factor subscale scores computed for each subject related in meaningful ways with established validity criteria. Factor subscale scores were used to measure comfort with the subject's ethnic identity. The measures of comfort with ethnic identity related meaningfully with validity criteria. The measures of comfort with ethnic identity may prove useful in identifying individuals under pressure from acculturation stress.
An acculturation scale for Mexican American populations introduced by Cuellar, Harris and Jasso (1980) was cross-validated on a sample of 450 Mexican Americans and Anglo college students in south Texas. The results closely corresponded to the original normative data provided by Cuellar, et al., although the population of the present study was markedly different. Internal consistency of the scale was high, and a factor analysis yielded the same four factors identified by Cuellar, et al. The four factors included (a) language preference, (b) ethnic identity and generation removed from Mexico, (c) ethnicity of friends and associates, and (d) extent of direct contact with Mexico and with abilitv to read and write in Spanish. The findings also neatly supported work by others done in the area of empirically defining the concept of acculturation. For example, the findings were consistent with those that have reported that measures of behavioral acculturation are reliable and those that have suggested that individuals who are not Anglo-oriented may occupy a relatively imiarginal position in United States society.
Previous researchers have concluded that differences in MMPI performance between Anglo and Mexican American surnamed subjects were due to cultural differences. The present research directly investigated this assumption by comparing MMPI scale score differences of 365 Anglo and Mexican American college students, with Acculturation, Age, and Socioeconomic status statistically controlled. Anglos scored significantly differently from Mexican American subjects on 10 of the 13 MMPI scales. With Acculturation and Age statistically controlled, however, Anglo vs. Mexican American subjects differed on only the L and MF scales. These results support previous conclusions that most MMPI differences between Anglo and Mexican American subjects are due to culture, or Acculturation. Our results are consistent with major findings within the MMPI literature and also support the hypothesis that personality differences identified by the L and MF scales reflect genuine characteristics of the Mexican‐American culture.
Data were presented to test aspects of a model relating health and acculturation as proposed by Cervantes and Castro. The model was tested with a sample of 844 high school and college students who varied in level of acculturation along a continuum from Mexican to Anglo orientation. Questionnaires were administered that assessed level of acculturation and comfort with acculturation status, potential stressors, general health, and headaches. Aspects of the model tested were that level of acculturation could function both as an external stressor and as an internal mediator to influence both one's appraisal of environmental stressors and somaticlhealth outcomes. The model was supported in that (a) level of acculturation and one's comfort with acculturation status were related to differences in appraisal of environmental stressors, and (b) level of acculturation was related to somatic outcome.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.