Acculturative Stress As a Moderator in the Relationship Between Major Life Events and Trauma Symptoms in a Sample of Latino Youth

PRESENTATION TYPE: Individual Poster

CATEGORY/THEME: Epidemiology and Etiology

ABSTRACT BODY:

Introduction: Experiencing stressful life events has been linked to a range of negative mental health outcomes for adults, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; Ngo, 2006; Hwang & Myers, 2006). Research further suggests that adult psychological distress may be related to acculturative stress (Cuevas et al., 2012). Additionally, Latino youth express higher levels of PTSD symptom severity than European American peers, supporting research that demonstrates acculturative stress as a potential risk factor for Latino youth post major life events (Ngo, 2006; Contractor et al., 2015). Nevertheless, there is a scarcity of knowledge regarding the relationship between acculturative stress, major life events, and PTSD symptoms in Latino youth. The present study will address this gap by examining the moderating role of acculturative stress in the relationship between major life events and PTSD symptoms in a sample of low income, Latino youth.

Methods: Participants include 221 Latino youth (M_age= 11.6; 55.7% female) from public elementary schools in a major city in the Midwest. The study collected data at three time points (T1, T2, and T3) as a screening procedure for participation in a separate longitudinal study and randomized control trial. PTSD symptoms were assessed using the Youth Self Report (Achenbach, 1991). Information regarding major life events over the past year was collected using the Major Event Inventory (Elwood, 1987). Acculturative stress was assessed using the Acculturative Stress Measure (Vega, 1993).

Results: Preliminary analyses revealed significant correlations between major life events and PTSD symptoms (r(221)=.431, p<.01), acculturative stress and PTSD symptoms (r(221)=.287, p<.01), and acculturative stress and major life events (r(221)=.272, p<.01). Further analyses will be conducted to examine the potential moderating role of acculturative stress in changes between PTSD symptoms from T1 to T3. It is predicted that major life events (e.g., parental divorce) will predict higher increases in PTSD symptoms among youth experiencing high acculturative stressors such as language/cultural conflicts and discrimination.

Conclusions: Findings from this study can provide valuable clinical information regarding the role of acculturative stress in the relationship between major life events and PTSD symptoms among Latino youth. These findings suggest that clinical strategies aimed at reducing acculturative stress may increase an adolescent’s capacity to cope with the impact of stressful life events.