Pathways between acculturation and health behaviors among residents of low-income housing: The mediating role of social and contextual factors

Abstract

Acculturation may influence health behaviors, yet mechanisms underlying its effect are not well understood. In this study, we describe relationships between acculturation and health behaviors among low-income housing residents, and examine whether these relationships are mediated by social and contextual factors. Residents of 20 low-income housing sites in the Boston metropolitan area completed surveys that assessed acculturative characteristics, social/contextual factors, and health behaviors. A composite acculturation scale was developed using latent class analysis, resulting in four distinct acculturative groups. Path analysis was used to examine interrelationships between acculturation, health behaviors, and social/contextual factors, specifically self-reported social ties, social support, stress, material hardship, and discrimination. Of the 828 respondents, 69% were born outside of the U.S. Less acculturated groups exhibited healthier dietary practices and were less likely to smoke than more acculturated groups. Acculturation had a direct effect on diet and smoking, but not physical activity. Acculturation also showed an indirect effect on diet through its relationship with material hardship. Our finding that material hardship mediated the relationship between acculturation and diet suggests the need to explicate the significant role of financial resources in interventions seeking to promote healthy diets among low-income immigrant groups. Future research should examine these social and contextual mediators using larger, population-based samples, preferably with longitudinal data.

Duration of U.S. stay and body mass index among Latino and Asian immigrants: A test of theoretical pathways

“…While behaviors such as dietary change, smoking, alcohol use, and exercise, are associated with both duration and BMI, they do not fully mediate the relationship (Akresh, 2007;Goel et al, 2004;Gordon-Larsen et al, 2003). Additionally, health behaviors are proximate determinants of body mass and are highly influenced by structural, psycho-social, and environmental factors that precede them, such as socioeconomic issues (Allen et al, 2014). Thus,6 not only are health behaviors insufficient explanations for the duration-BMI association, but they are also preceded by numerous other factors.…”

Acculturation, Income and Vegetable Consumption Behaviors Among Latino Adults in the U.S.: A Mediation Analysis with the Bootstrapping Technique

“…The median household income of Latinos ($40,963) is significantly lower than the national median ($51,939) [20]. Recent research reported that economic hardship partially explained the relationship between acculturation and diet among low-income immigrants [21]. However, no previous study explicitly examined such associations among Latino adults in the U.S.…”

“…The conceptual model was constructed based on the previous studies ( Fig. 1) [21,22]. First, acculturation is negatively associated with vegetable consumption [12,23].…”

“…Greater use of English represented greater acculturation [17]. However, a measurement for acculturation is not established yet [21]. Other possible measures including length of time in the U.S. and age arrived in the U.S. were examined in the preliminary analysis and were found unrelated to vegetable consumption.…”

Smoking change of English-, French-, and Chinese speaking immigrants in Ottawa and Gatineau, Canada

“…[31][32][33] For example, a study shows that acculturation might drive smoking change and the rate of tobacco use among immigrants might change as they become "more acculturated." [34] Nevertheless, other research findings reveal that acculturation did not significantly influence smoking status or smoking rate [29] and tobacco cigarette smoking was inversely associated with the level of acculturation.…”