Youth and Caregiver Agreement of Youth Symptoms in Language Concordant and Discordant Dyads: Is Something Lost in Translation?

Abstract

Caregivers are primarily responsible for seeking care on behalf of youth, so understanding how primary language relates to caregiver-youth agreement of youth symptoms is critical to extending the reach of mental health services. In this study, 145 youth (61% female; ages 12-17 years) and their caregivers, who received behavioral health services at primary care clinics, completed measures of youth symptoms in their primary language. We hypothesized primary language concordant caregiver-youth dyads would show higher agreement when reporting on youth symptoms than language discordant dyads, and youth and their caregivers would show higher agreement when reporting on behavioral (e.g., doing drugs, getting into arguments) rather than on internal (e.g., worrying, feeling worthless) symptoms. Overall, agreement in language concordant dyads ranged from r = 0.551 to 0.615, while in discordant dyads agreement ranged from r = 0.279 to 0.441. Consistent with our hypothesis, language concordant dyads demonstrated significantly greater agreement than discordant dyads for most of the analyses. Contrary to our hypothesis, agreement was similar for internalizing and externalizing symptom clusters. Results suggest primary language differences between youth and caregivers are associated with lower agreement about youth problems; youth generally report higher symptom frequency than their caregivers.

Caregiver stress and social determinants of health in key populations: immigrant parents, parents of children with medical complexity, and adolescent parents

“…Another unique stressor that immigrant caregivers face is acculturation, the psychological process by which an individual of a minority group adopts the culture, language and customs of the majority group [35 ▪▪ ]. The counterpart to acculturation is enculturation, which is the psychological process by which a minority group retains connection with their culture of origin [35 ▪▪ ,36]. Recent research shows that enculturation can be a protective factor since maintaining ties to one's own cultural background reduces mental health problems [35 ▪▪ ,36].…”

“…Acculturation impact may also vary depending on caregiver age at the time of immigration [35 ▪▪ ]. For example, learning English would be more difficult for an individual who immigrated later in life while a younger immigrant may have more difficulty with the development of their personal identity [36]. The incongruent rate at which parents and their children acculturate can also result in an acculturation gap [36].…”

“…For example, learning English would be more difficult for an individual who immigrated later in life while a younger immigrant may have more difficulty with the development of their personal identity [36]. The incongruent rate at which parents and their children acculturate can also result in an acculturation gap [36]. Also known as dissonant acculturation, this gap leads to more conflicts between caregivers and their children; parenting can become less effective due to this gap, especially when there are differences in language [36].…”

“…The incongruent rate at which parents and their children acculturate can also result in an acculturation gap [36]. Also known as dissonant acculturation, this gap leads to more conflicts between caregivers and their children; parenting can become less effective due to this gap, especially when there are differences in language [36].…”

“…The counterpart to acculturation is enculturation, which is the psychological process by which a minority group retains connection with their culture of origin [35 ▪▪ ,36]. Recent research shows that enculturation can be a protective factor since maintaining ties to one's own cultural background reduces mental health problems [35 ▪▪ ,36].…”