From home to the streets: Can cultural socialization foster Latinx youths' social responsibility?

Abstract

Grassroots movements such as Poder Quince exemplify how Latinx youth intertwine their cultural heritage and traditions with civic action to create positive change within their communities. Parents' cultural socialization messages have been shown to instill cultural pride and encourage prosocial behaviors (e.g., helping others, caring for younger siblings). However, there is a dearth of research on the sociopolitical discussions Latinx adolescents have with their parents and the mechanisms by which cultural socialization encourages prosocial civic development. Drawing on data from a sample of 269 self‐identified Latinx youth from three Midwestern US schools, the present study explored the direct links between parental cultural socialization and adolescents' sense of social responsibility (i.e., concern for others and caring for community) as well as the potential indirect associations via sociopolitical and civic socialization at home. Our findings suggest direct associations between cultural socialization and caring for their communities. Additionally, we observed indirect associations between cultural socialization and youths' social responsibility via family civic socialization practices and engagement in sociopolitical discussions taking place in the home.

Racial discrimination moderates associations between sociopolitical discussions and internalizing problems among racially minoritized college students.

“…Individuals who have more frequent political discussions—particularly with dissenting viewpoints—have greater political knowledge, are more likely to engage in civic behavior, such as voting, and are more tolerant and understanding of opposing views (Eveland, 2004; Gastil & Dillard, 1999; Mutz & Mondak, 2006). Discussions with parents regarding sociopolitical and racial issues have been related to greater concern for others, community involvement, civic responsibility, and greater knowledge, awareness, and engagement with political issues among youth (Martinez et al, 2022; Pinetta et al, 2020; Warren & Wicks, 2011).…”

“…Two means were calculated for frequency of discussions with friends and family, and higher scores indicated more frequent sociopolitical discussions. More frequent sociopolitical discussions with family have been related to a greater sense of caring for the community, concern for others, community involvement, civic responsibility, and cultural socialization (Martinez et al, 2022; Pinetta et al, 2020), although the subscale regarding frequency of sociopolitical discussions with friends has not been widely administered.…”

A Quantitative Investigation of Black and Latina Adolescent Girls’ Experiences of Gendered Racial Microaggressions, Familial Racial Socialization, and Critical Action

“…While the integrative model discusses how racial socialization plays an important role in informing both ethnic-racial identity and critical consciousness development, more work is needed to understand how familial racial socialization works in tandem with these processes to promote youths' resistance to gendered racism. The communalist nature of Black and Latinx families informs youths' selfdefinition [27,28], sense of agency [11], and sense of responsibility when deciding to take action on behalf of their racial-ethnic group [17,20,31]. As Black and Latina adolescents experience racially salient or discriminatory events, they may turn to their parents for support while reflecting on and responding to what happened [13].…”

“…Emerging literature demonstrates how familial racial socialization is related not just to coping, but also to promoting action [61]. For Latinx youth, political discussions may be incorporated in familial racial socialization, promoting a greater sense of collective responsibility, as well as greater expectation for community involvement [17,20]. A study observing Latinx families' discussions about race and racism found that parents tended to reassure their children about safety, educate them about nativity and documentation, and encourage them to adapt and expect discrimination [18].…”

“…Familial racial socialization has been shown to buffer the deleterious effects of racism, as a critical component in how youth come to understand racism as a systemic problem [15,16]. Emerging literature has also begun documenting how familial racial socialization promotes youths' resistance to systemic oppression, like racism and xenophobia [17][18][19][20][21]. Considering how familial racial socialization contributes to youths' responses to gendered and racial discrimination can help nuance our empirical understandings of youths' critical consciousness, ethnic-racial identity, and overall well-being.…”