The role of identity and psychosomatic symptoms as mediating the relationship between discrimination and risk behaviors among first and second generation immigrant adolescents

Abstract

The study examines psychosomatic symptoms, and host and heritage identities as mediators of the relationship between discrimination and aggressive behavior and substance use. Israeli data from the 2013-14 Health Behaviors of School-aged Children study included a representative sample of 1503 first-and second-generation immigrant adolescents aged 11-17 years (45.2% male) from the Former Soviet Union and Ethiopia in Israel. Structural equation modeling, controlling for age, gender, family affluence and immigrant generation, showed different pathways for the two groups. For FSU-heritage adolescents, the relationship between discrimination and aggressive behavior and substance use was partially mediated by psychosomatic symptoms. Lower host and heritage identities also predicted psychosomatic symptoms. For Ethiopian-heritage adolescents, the relationship between discrimination and outcomes was fully mediated by psychosomatic symptoms and a weaker host identity. Results support an externalizing model, whereby discrimination leads to a weaker host identity and increased psychosomatic symptoms, associated with substance use and aggressive behavior.

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

“…The current study examined whether three elements of social capital (parental monitoring, friend and teacher support) moderate the association between perceived discrimination and substance use (problematic alcohol use and cannabis use) ( Lorenzo-Blanco et al, 2017 ; Walsh et al, 2018 ) among immigrant and non-immigrant adolescents in Israel. Firstly, findings of the current study in which all three social capital measures were directly related to lower levels of substance use are in line with previous studies showing an association between parental monitoring ( Gossrau-Breen et al, 2010 ; Thompson et al, 2015 ; Mynttinen et al, 2017 ), friend support ( Wills et al, 2004 ) and teacher support ( Walsh et al, 2010 ) and alcohol and cannabis use.…”

“…Among the many predictors of alcohol and cannabis use among adolescents, increasing literature has pointed to the relationship between perceived discrimination and substance use among majority and minority adolescents ( Gibbons et al, 2004 ; Otiniano Verissimo et al, 2014 ; Acosta et al, 2015 ; Unger et al, 2016 ). A recent study in Israel ( Walsh et al, 2018 ) pointed to the significant relationship between perceived discrimination and substance use (alcohol and cigarettes) among first and second generation immigrant adolescents in Israel. Despite the relationship between perceived discrimination and substance use, literature to date has not examined potential resources which could buffer or moderate the impact of perceived discrimination on young people.…”

Parenting Behaviors as Moderators of the Relationship between Immigrant Status and Alcohol Use among Adolescents in Israel

“…The second-generation adolescents (those born in the receiving country) may acculturate and integrate, and be more influenced by the receiving country’s culture (Svensson & Hagquist, 2010), while first-generation adolescents may be more influenced by the alcohol culture of the country of origin (Barsties et al, 2017). First-generation immigrant adolescents and their families may also face greater immigration stressors such as cultural and language gaps and higher levels of discrimination (Schwartz et al, 2015), which may cause them to turn to alcohol use to alleviate psychological distress (Lorenzo-Blanco et al, 2016; Walsh et al, 2018). Additionally, immigrant adolescents may also be impacted upon by cultural differences in drinking and in acceptable parenting behaviors (Yakhnich, 2016).…”

Dual Embeddedness and Entrepreneurial Activities of Second-Generation Ethnic Entrepreneurs: Multiple Case Studies with Vietnamese Entrepreneurs in Germany

“…Answering that question also helps the descendants of immigrants feel connected to the ethnic community (Borjas, 1992; Portes & Rumbaut, 2001). However, psychological studies on the descendants of immigrants also show that in some ethnic enclaves, children of immigrants have negative experiences regarding their ethnicity, such as discrimination or ethnic conflicts (Verkuyten, 2018; Walsh et al, 2018). In addition, the encouragement by the host society to assimilate could weaken the ethnic identity of the second-generation immigrants (Haller et al, 2011).…”

“…For example, the study of Sandberg (2018) emphasises the unique integration process of second-generation immigrants, which is ‘relatively smooth’. Furthermore, previous literature suggests that this distinctive nature of the second-generation migrants, such as identity and psychosomatic symptoms, is attributed to their identity and behaviour (Walsh, Kolobov, Raiz, Boniel-Nissim, Tesler, & Harel-Fisch, 2018). On the one hand, according to the Segment Assimilation Theory, the second-generation immigrants could integrate into the mainstream population while maintaining their ethnic essence (Portes & Rumbaut, 2001).…”