Advances in Latino Family Research: Cultural Adaptations of Evidence‐Based Interventions

Abstract

The stark contrast between frequent calls for research and practice that are applicable across a broad spectrum of cultural and ethnically diverse groups and the dearth of empirical knowledge about Latino families provided the impetus for this special issue on advances in Latino family research. A focus on empirically based practice frames the issue, focusing specifically on how concepts (expressed emotion, parenting style) can be used within interventions, how Latino parents perceive efforts to deliver evidence-based interventions, and how pilot projects that delivered culturally adapted interventions in three separate cities impacted family functioning. In all, the introduction highlights the complexities for researchers in meeting the needs of the field to ensure that effective interventions are applicable across cultural groups. Meeting the challenges is important to address the need of the growing Latino population. Advances in intervention research with ethnic minorities also stand to contribute to the advancement of intervention research broadly. This special issue provides examples of efforts that are underway to better understand what treatments work for Latino families, provided by whom, for what specific problems, and in which specific circumstances, paving the way to begin attempting to answer a challenge posed more than 40 years ago by Gordon Paul.

Redefining Conflict Resolution Styles for Latino Couples: Examining the Role of Gender and Culture

“…Thus, research examining cultural nuances within the context of the marital relationship has become a necessity in order to offer effective couples therapy (Bray & Jouriles, 1995). Future studies examining cultural nuances embedded in communication processes would create a recursive effect in which research informs therapeutic interventions and appropriate adaptations are made (Bernal & Domenech Rodriguez, 2009). …”

Issues and Challenges in the Design of Culturally Adapted Evidence-Based Interventions

“…Bernal and colleagues have defined cultural adaptation as the systematic modification of an EBT (or intervention protocol) to consider language, culture, and context in such a way that it is compatible with the client's cultural patterns, meanings, and values (Bernal et al 2009). …”

Principles of Precision Prevention Science for Improving Recruitment and Retention of Participants

“…Damashek et al (2011) hypothesized that greater participation and retention of families in a salary model versus fee for service reimbursement system may have been because the home visitor could be flexible to family schedules, make unscheduled visits, and allow for intermittent calls to families. In addition to the content, more research is needed to understand how the characteristics of implementing institutions may affect their ability to engage and adapt for diverse cultures (Bernal and Domenech Rodríguez 2009). Finally, organizational functioning may contribute to greater or lesser staff burnout and retention, a factor discussed previously as strongly related to participant engagement (Latimore et al 2017).…”