The purpose of this study was to ascertain COVID-19 transmission dynamics among Latino communities nationally. Methods: We compared predictors of COVID-19 cases and deaths between disproportionally Latino counties (17.8% Latino population) and all other counties through May 11, 2020. Adjusted rate ratios (aRRs) were estimated using COVID-19 cases and deaths via zero-inflated binomial regression models. Results: COVID-19 diagnoses rates were greater in Latino counties nationally (90.9 vs. 82.0 per 100,000). In multivariable analysis, COVID-19 cases were greater in Northeastern and Midwestern Latino counties (aRR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.11e1.84, and aRR: 1.70, 95% CI: 1.57e1.85, respectively). COVID-19 deaths were greater in Midwestern Latino counties (aRR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.04e1.34). COVID-19 diagnoses were associated with counties with greater monolingual Spanish speakers, employment rates, heart disease deaths, less social distancing, and days since the first reported case. COVID-19 deaths were associated with household occupancy density, air pollution, employment, days since the first reported case, and age (fewer <35 yo). Conclusions: COVID-19 risks and deaths among Latino populations differ by region. Structural factors place Latino populations and particularly monolingual Spanish speakers at elevated risk for COVID-19 acquisition.

The present study evaluated the efficacy of Familias Unidas + Parent-Preadolescent Training for HIV Prevention (PATH), a Hispanic-specific, parent-centered intervention, in preventing adolescent substance use and unsafe sexual behavior. Two hundred sixty-six 8th-grade Hispanic adolescents and their primary caregivers were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 conditions: Familias Unidas + PATH, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) + PATH, and ESOL + HeartPower! for Hispanics (HEART). Participants were assessed at baseline and at 6, 12, 24, and 36 months postbaseline. Results showed that (a) Familias Unidas + PATH was efficacious in preventing and reducing cigarette use relative to both control conditions; (b) Familias Unidas + PATH was efficacious, relative to ESOL + HEART, in reducing illicit drug use; and (c) Familias Unidas + PATH was efficacious, relative to ESOL + PATH, in reducing unsafe sexual behavior. The effects of Familias Unidas + PATH on these distal outcomes were partially mediated by improvements in family functioning. These findings suggest that strengthening the family system, rather than targeting specific health behaviors, may be most efficacious in preventing and/or reducing cigarette smoking, illicit drug use, and unsafe sex in Hispanic adolescents.

Objective-To evaluate the efficacy of Familias Unidas, a Hispanic-specific, parent-centered intervention, in preventing/reducing adolescent substance use, unsafe sexual behavior, and externalizing disorders.Methods-A total of 213 8th grade Hispanic adolescents with behavior problems and their primary caregivers were assigned randomly to one of two conditions: Familias Unidas or Community Control. Participants were assessed at baseline and at 6, 18, and 30 months post baseline.Results-Results showed that, relative to a Community Control condition, Familias Unidas was efficacious in preventing or reducing externalizing disorders, preventing and reducing substance use, and in reducing unsafe sexual behavior. The effects of Familias Unidas on these outcomes were partially mediated by improvements in family functioning.Conclusions-These findings suggest that parent-centered intervention is an efficacious strategy for preventing/reducing specific health risk behaviors in Hispanic adolescents with behavior problems.

An understanding of African American and Hispanic adolescent drug abuse occurs at the intersection of context, development, and behavior. The focus of this review is on the impact of racial/ethnic culture as one of the important contexts that influence adolescent development toward or away from prosocial behaviors. Because family plays a major role in both African American and Hispanic cultures, it is also a centerpiece of any discussion of adolescent development in these groups. This review on the state of the science in drug abuse for African American and Hispanic adolescents focuses on epidemiology, culturally specific risk and protective processes, and prevention and treatment research. From the perspective of a broad lens, specific minority groups such as African Americans and Hispanics would appear to have more in common than not. However, each of these groups encompasses considerable genetic, historical, social, and cultural heterogeneity. Investigation across such diversity will yield a more complete picture of the human condition.

The current study was conducted to ascertain the validity of two commonly used markers of acculturation (nativity and years in the receiving culture) in an enclave context. Relationships between these markers and a bidimensional measure of acculturation were examined in a convenience sample of Hispanic immigrant adolescents and their caregivers in Miami. Nativity was examined using adolescent-reported data; approximately half of the youth were U.S.-born and half foreignborn, but all of the caregivers were foreign-born. Years in the receiving culture was examined using both adolescent and caregiver data. Results indicated that nativity was significantly associated with adoption of receiving-culture practices, with a small to moderate effect size. Years in the receiving culture was significantly associated with adoption of receiving-culture practices only for adolescent girls and for female caregivers who immigrated as youth. Neither nativity nor years in the receiving culture explained even moderate amounts of variance in retention or loss of culture-of-origin practices. Summer Sullivan is a research associate at the Center for Family Studies, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami School of Medicine. She received her master's degree in marriage and family therapy from the University of Miami and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in counseling psychology at the same university. Her major research interests are the prevention and treatment of adolescent problem behaviors, including drug use and risky sexual behavior, and family psychology.

The purpose of this article is to illustrate how an

Preventing/reducing substance use and HIV among Hispanic youth is essential to eliminating the health disparities that exist between Hispanics and other segments of the population. The objective of this article is to describe a program of research involving Familias Unidas, a Hispanic-specific, parent-centered intervention, aimed at reducing substance use and HIV health disparities among Hispanic youth. This article will focus on the theoretical foundation of the intervention, the empirical research supporting the theoretical model, the intervention model itself, the findings of the program of research, and the translation of this intervention into community practice.

The present study investigated the role of identity in the relationship between family functioning and behavior problems in a sample of Hispanic immigrant early adolescents and their families. The sample consisted of 181 Hispanic immigrant adolescents (92 males, 89 females) and their participating caregivers (who were mostly mothers). Identity was measured using adolescent reports, whereas family functioning and early adolescent behavior problems were measured using both adolescent and parent reports. Correlational analyses indicated that previously obtained relationships among family functioning, identity, and behavior problems were replicated in the present sample. Structural equation models indicated that 20% of the relationship between family functioning and behavior problems operated indirectly through identity, and identity confusion partially mediates the relationship between family functioning and early adolescent behavior problems. Implications for intervention are discussed. KeywordsHispanic; family; identity; behavior problems; structural equation modeling Adolescence is a time when both positive and negative developmental trajectories begin to take shape. Positive outcomes, such as the formation of a coherent sense of identity (Erikson, 1950;Marcia, 1980), begin to appear prominently during the adolescent years. On the other hand, behavior problems also tend to appear and increase during adolescence (Loeber, Farrington, Stouthamer-Loeber, Moffitt, & Caspi, 1999). Although there is some evidence that these positive and negative developmental processes may be related (e.g., Adams et al., 2001;Wires, Barocas, & Hollenbeck, 1994), studies investigating these relationships have generally not attended to ecological factors (e.g., family functioning) that may be related to both identity and behavior problems in adolescence.Identity is one of the pivotal developmental tasks of adolescence (Erikson, 1950(Erikson, , 1968 and is a central positive process during this stage. A coherent sense of identity helps to organize and give meaning to one's experiences and to guide one's decisions and behaviors, whereas a NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript fragmented, confused, or poorly structured sense of identity may render one especially susceptible to external events (Côté & Levine, 2002;Erikson, 1950). Ultimately, some degree of both identity synthesis and identity confusion is adaptable, provided that identity synthesis predominates over identity confusion (Erikson, 1950).Both identity and behavior problems may be, to some extent, a function of family processes and environment. The effects of family functioning on adolescent identity (e.g., Adams, Dyk, & Bennion, 1987;Grotevant & Cooper, 1986) and on adolescent behavior problems (Dishion, Capaldi, & Yoerger, 1999;Olson, Bates, Sandy, & Lanthier, 2000;Pettit, Bates, & Dodge, 1997) have been widely (and separately) studied. What has generally been found is that adaptive family functioning (e.g., family cohesion and pos...