فرهنگ پذیری و سلامت روانی: پاسخ به مداخله بزهکاری فرهنگی محور

Abstract There is a dearth of research examining intervention effectiveness for ethnic minorities and few studies have investigated within-group differences in response to treatment. This study examined the prevalence of mental health problems among Anglo- and Mexican-American juveniles entering probation and their response to a comprehensive intervention designed to address drug, alcohol, and mental health in a culturally-sensitive manner. We hypothesized that all youths would demonstrate mental health improvements from pretest to posttest, and the improvements would be equal for Mexican-American youth of varying levels of acculturation and an Anglo comparison group. Participants included a total of 103 adolescents ages thirteen to eighteen years, of whom 59 percent were male and 81 percent were Mexican American. Hypotheses were supported, indicating this comprehensive, community-based intervention targeting delinquent adolescents and their families was effective in improving mental health regardless of ethnic background or level of acculturation. That is, regardless of group differences in mental health problems at intake, youth with different cultural orientations reported significantly reduced levels of internalizing and externalizing behavior problems at posttest.

Introduction A majority of adolescents who engage in antisocial behavior experience an overwhelming number of challenges such as poor parent-child relationships, family criminality, family substance use, negative peer influence, drug and alcohol abuse, a history of trauma, and failing school performance (Jimerson, Sharkey, O'Brien, & Furlong, 2004). Attending to the numerous needs of adolescents engaged in delinquent and antisocial behavior is crucial to prevent a lifetime of future problems including substance abuse, criminality, and impaired ability to function in society. Whereas research has been conducted to better understand the experiences of youths engaged in delinquent behavior, few studies have investigated within-group differences in response to treatment. As the population of juveniles in the United States shifts from predominantly Anglo American to a diverse mix of youths from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, it is important to ensure that services are sensitive to language and cultural differences. In the Western United States, further research is particularly warranted to better understand the experiences of Mexican-American adolescents involved in delinquent behavior as this ethnic group is growing faster than any other (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2000).

Results Results of descriptive statistics can be found in Table 3. Pairwise comparisons were computed for all cultural groups on pretest and posttest scores. Statistical analyses revealed that of all groups, Anglo youths reported the lowest levels of internalizing and externalizing behavior problems at intake and exit. In terms of significant differences, Mexican Orient Bicultural youths reported significantly higher internalizing scores at pretest than Anglo-White youths, Mexican Orient Bicultural and Mexican Slightly Anglo Bicultural youths reported significantly higher internalizing scores at posttest than Anglo-White youths, and Mexican Slightly Anglo Bicultural reported significantly higher externalizing scores at posttest than Anglo-White youths (p < .05). Table 3. Intake and Exit Raw Score Means and Standard Deviation by Group Internalizing (32 items) Externalizing (30 items) Group n Intake (SD) Exit (SD) Intake (SD) Exit (SD) Mexican Orient Bicultural 31 15.1 (9.9) 12.8 (9.7) 13.1 (8.6) 9.5 (6.5) Mexican Slightly Anglo Bicultural 33 13.5 (10.0) 10.8 (9.9) 13.5 (1.5) 12.5 (11.8) Mexican Very Assimilated 16 10.9 (6.5) 9.5 (8.5) 11.6 (8.4) 8.8 (5.0) Ethnic White/Anglo 20 9.5 (6.9) 5.6 (4.2) 9.7 (6.1) 6.8 (7.7) Total 103 12.9 (9.3) 10.2 (8.9) 12.6 (8.5) 9.8 (8.8) Table options Results of the MANCOVA revealed significant main effects for internalizing behavior F = 14.22 (p < .05), partial eta-squared = .131 and externalizing behavior F = 10.01 (p < .05), partial eta-squared = .096, but not for Acculturation, which indicates that all groups’ mean scores decreased from pretest to posttest. Plots of estimated marginal means for externalizing and internalizing posttest scores across groups are displayed in Fig. 1. Internalizing Raw Score Means Pretest to Posttest. Fig. 1. Internalizing Raw Score Means Pretest to Posttest.