Selective Acculturation among Latinos in the US

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Selective Acculturation among Latinos in the US

• Vilma Enriquez-Haass, MPH
• UCLA School of Public Health
• APHA 2005

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Introduction

• Latinos have overall health advantages in spite
  of their high poverty, low education, and lack of
  access to health service
• The health advantages are greater among recent
  Latino immigrants
• Latino immigrants follow protective cultural
  practices that erode with time in the US

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Objectives

• This paper examines the role of culture and
  migration in the health advantage of Latino
  immigrants in the US
• The paper discusses the concept of selective
  acculturation as a public health strategy to
  identify and cultivate protective aspects of
  Latino culture.

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Methods

• This conceptual paper examines key literature
  regarding the health protective aspects of Latino
  culture.
• Utilizes the framework of the Latino
  Epidemiological paradox to bridge the health
  advantages among Latino immigrants and their
  erosion by the process of acculturation.

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Why is important?

• Growth of the Latino population
• Latinos are 38.8 million or 13.3 of US
• By 2050 Latinos will be 98 million or 25
• Among Latinos, 41 are foreign born
• Understanding Latinos health advantages can
  provide new knowledge about population health
  that can benefit other communities as well.

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Latino Epidemiological Paradox

• Latinos SES is comparable to that of
  African-Americans but their health outcomes are
  more similar to those for Non-Latino Whites
• Health advantage is greater among recent Latino
  immigrants

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Latino Epidemiological Paradox
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Explanations for Health Advantages
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Cultural Factors

• Culture has protective factors in health
  behaviors, social networks and social context
• Familismo strong attachment, loyalty,
  reciprocity, and solidarity among family members
• Low acculturation or low adaptation and adoption
  of immigrants to the host culture

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Cultural Domains

• Social context
• Social networks
• Health behaviors

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Protective Health Behaviors

• Diet and nutrition
• Exercise
• Stress reduction
• Alcohol and tobacco use (females)
• Self-care
• Adherence to medical treatment

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Social Networks

• Form of social capital
• Provide economic, informational and psychosocial
  resources
• Families, community, businesses and social
  organizations pool resources
• Can increase self-care and medical adherence
• Also have negative aspects

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Social Context

• There are protective health factors in
  communities with a high concentration of
  immigrants
• Ethnic communities act as cultural buffers for
  poverty, discrimination negative aspects of
  acculturation institutionalized racism
• Can also increase less protective behaviors

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Migration Factors

• Migrants are not representative of their sending
  populations
• Immigrants tend to be healthier than those who
  remain in sending countries
• Positive health selection among immigrants may
  not only be genetic
• Immigrants may follow protective health behaviors
  than those who remain in sending countries

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Selectivity Explanation Incidence of Disease X
Latin American, US, and Latino Immigrant
Populations
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Selective Acculturation

• Immigrants can learn to discern between the
  positive and negative health behaviors or their
  culture and American culture
• Identification enables them to promote and
  cultivate protective health behaviors of their
  culture as well as American culture
• Americans can learn from immigrants protective
  health behaviors

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Conclusion

• Cultural factors have profound effects on health
  behavior and health advantages of Latino
  immigrants in the US
• The concept of selective acculturation can be
  utilized as a public health strategy to identify
  and cultivate protective aspects of Latino
  culture.

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Policy Recommendations

• More research is needed to understand the health
  protective behaviors of immigrants cultures
• Need for measures of culture retention
• There is a need for health policies that target
  protective aspects of foreign cultures.
• There is a need for health promotion programs
  that raise awareness of protective practices of
  both immigrant and American culture.

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• Please send your critiques to veh_at_ucla.edu