Mothers’ characteristics as predictors of adolescents’ ethnic–racial identity: An examination of Mexican-origin teen mothers.

Abstract

The current longitudinal study examined Mexican-origin mothers’ cultural characteristics and ethnic socialization efforts as predictors of their adolescent daughters’ ethnic-racial identity (ERI) exploration, resolution, and affirmation. Participants were 193 Mexican-origin adolescent mothers (M age = 16.78 years; SD = .98) and their mothers (M age = 41.24 years; SD = 7.11). Findings indicated that mothers’ familism values and ERI exploration were positively associated with mother-reported ethnic socialization efforts one year later. Furthermore, mothers’ ERI affirmation was a significant positive predictor of adolescents’ ERI affirmation two years later, accounting for adolescents’ ERI affirmation one year earlier. Discussion emphasizes the significance of ERI development among adolescent mothers who are negotiating the normative development of ERI and faced with their new role as parents and cultural socializers of their young children.

Ethnic–racial socialization in Latino families: The influence of mothers’ socialization practices on adolescent private regard, familism, and perceived ethnic–racial discrimination.

“…Hughes and colleagues (2016) further delineated that, to understand parents’ teaching about race and ethnicity, researchers need to investigate the links between discrimination, identity, and socialization experiences in concert and in response to context to fully describe how families help foster ethnic minority youth adaptation. We propose that maternal cultural value endorsement and identity factors drive maternal socialization messages (Derlan, Umaña-Taylor, Updegraff, & Jahromi, 2016; Knight, Carlo, Mahrer, & Davis, 2016), and that contextual experiences of discrimination are key to messages about discrimination (Hughes et al, 2016). At the same time, as youth hear these messages, they influence their own endorsement of values, identity, and perceptions of discrimination (Derlan et al, 2016; Hughes et al, 2016; Knight et al, 2016).…”

“…We propose that maternal cultural value endorsement and identity factors drive maternal socialization messages (Derlan, Umaña-Taylor, Updegraff, & Jahromi, 2016; Knight, Carlo, Mahrer, & Davis, 2016), and that contextual experiences of discrimination are key to messages about discrimination (Hughes et al, 2016). At the same time, as youth hear these messages, they influence their own endorsement of values, identity, and perceptions of discrimination (Derlan et al, 2016; Hughes et al, 2016; Knight et al, 2016). In this study, we attempted to address this complexity by integrating these key variables across multiple reporters while also introducing and examining the role of a fourth type of cultural socialization, familism socialization, or teaching youth values about the centrality and importance of family, that we believe is key to understanding socialization practices in Latino families.…”

“…Existing literature has included examinations of parental ethnic–racial socialization practices predicting youth cultural characteristics, primarily using youth report (Grindal & Nieri, 2015; Umaña-Taylor & Fine, 2001; Umaña-Taylor, Alfaro, Bámaca, & Guimond, 2009). However, those studies that have investigated how parental cultural characteristics predict youth cultural characteristics through socialization practices used parent report (Derlan et al, 2016; Knight et al, 2016), which presents the question of whose report should be used. In this vein, researchers have identified possible discrepancies in adolescent and parent report regarding familial processes (De Los Reyes, Salas, Menzer, & Daruwala, 2013; Hughes et al, 2008; Hughes, Hagelskamp, Way, & Foust, 2009).…”

Latent profiles of American and ethnic–racial identity in Latinx mothers and adolescents: Links to behavioral practices and cultural values.

“…For example, in a 2-year longitudinal study of 749 Mexican American fifth-graders and their families, Umana-Taylor and colleagues (2014) found that mothers’ ERS messages at Wave 1 predicted youth’s identity exploration and resolution 2 years later. More recent scholarship also suggests that mothers’ ERS messages mediate the relation between mothers’ and youth’s ERI (Derlan, Umaña-Taylor, Updegraff, & Jahromi, 2016, 2017). This means that parents’ identity beliefs affect the socialization messages they give and these messages, in turn, influence youth’s ERI.…”

The Development and Validation of the Doctoral Student Identity Scale

“… Umaña-Taylor and Fine (2004) compiled the Ethnic Identity Scale (EIS) for 17 items on the basis of MEIM-R. In 2015, it simplified the scale to nine questions ( Derlan et al, 2015 ). Parham and Helms (1981) compiled the Racial Identity Attitudes Scale-Black (RIAS-B), after which Cross and Vandiver (2001) compiled the Cross Racial Identity Scale (CRIS).…”