Social Capital as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Perceived Discrimination and Alcohol and Cannabis Use Among Immigrant and Non-immigrant Adolescents in Israel

Abstract

Literature highlights the relationship between perceived discrimination and frequency and severity of alcohol and cannabis use. One mechanism for explaining this is the nature of perceived discrimination as a potentially traumatic interpersonal stressor, which can lead to the depletion of social and personal resources. Within a Recovery Capital (RC) framework, the current study explores whether the existence of social capital in the form of parental monitoring, friend and teacher support can buffer the relationship between perceived discrimination and alcohol and cannabis use among immigrant and non-immigrant adolescents, by replenishing the depleted resources. The study included a representative sample of 8,598 students in Israel, aged 11–18, from the Health Behaviors of School Aged Children (HBSC) 2013–2014 data: 1503 immigrant adolescents from the Former Soviet Union [FSU] (N = 955) and Ethiopia (N = 548) and 7086 non-immigrants. Results confirmed that perceived discrimination was positively related to substance use; all three forms of social capital were negatively related to alcohol and cannabis use and moderated the relationship between perceived discrimination and substance use, with the exception of friend support in the case of alcohol use. When all three social capital measures were included together, the adult social capital measures were significant predictors of substance use. Results suggest that levels of social capital, especially as provided by parents and teachers, can help young people, both immigrant and majority group adolescents, to cope with perceived discrimination.

Perceived Discrimination and Motivation to Pursue Higher Education in Ethiopian-Origin Students: The Moderating Role of Ethnic Identity

“…Our finding that perceived discrimination was positively associated with personal/career-driven academic motivation is surprising considering previous research about the adverse effects of discrimination ( Alfaro et al, 2009 ; Walsh et al, 2018 ). However, there is evidence that discrimination may be also associated with increased motivation ( Isik et al, 2018 ).…”

Why Do Ethnically Harassed Immigrant Adolescents Engage in Violent Behaviors? The Role of Affiliation With Violent Peers

“…Interestingly, our findings showed that ethnically harassed immigrant adolescents were more prone to display violent behaviors over time when they were less orientated toward Swedish culture. This finding is consistent with prior empirical research that highlights the critical role of a low level of cultural orientation toward the mainstream society in exacerbating the link between adolescents’ perceived discrimination and externalizing difficulties (e.g., Delgado et al, 2011; Walsh, Kolobov, & Harel-Fisch, 2018). This finding further supported the tenants of integrative risk and resilience model (Suárez-Orozco et al, 2018) by showing that lack of orientation toward the mainstream culture may elevate the risk of behavioral maladjustment among ethnically harassed immigrant adolescents.…”

Mental Health in Adolescents with a Migration Background in 29 European Countries: The Buffering Role of Social Capital

“…However, there are theoretical grounds to expect that social capital protects immigrant adolescents from the risks that migration entails, and consequently buffers against poor mental health. At the individual level, high levels of perceived social support from teachers and students have been found to protect immigrant adolescents from the negative effects of perceived discrimination (Walsh et al, 2018) and counteract feelings of interpersonal rejection (Smart Richman & Leary, 2009), with obvious positive effects on their mental health. Also, perceived parental support might protect against the negative mental health effects of acculturative stress as a consequence of the process of migration (Sirin et al, 2013;Tummala-Narra, 2015).…”