Gender Roles and Substance Use Among Mexican American Adolescents: A Relationship Moderated by Acculturation?

Abstract

This research assesses the effects of adaptive/ maladaptive gender roles and acculturation in predicting substance use in a 2007 sample of 1466 Mexican American seventh-grade adolescents from Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Multiple regression analyses found significant effects for both adaptive and maladaptive gender roles, as well as several gender-specific interactions between gender roles and linguistic acculturation that predicted substance use. Limitations of the research are noted, as well as implications for understanding the impact of acculturation on how gender roles differentially affect substance use in Mexican American boys versus girls.

RÉSUMÉ

Le rôle entre les sexes et l'usage de substance chez les adolescents américains d'origine mexicaine: Une relation modérée par l'acculturation?

Cette recherche évalue les effets des rôles entre les sexes adaptifs/inadaptifs et de l'acculturation dans la prédiction de l'usage de substance, sur des données de 2007 relatives à un échantionnage de 1466 adolescents américains d'origine mexicaine de la classe de cinquième, résidant à Phoenix, en Arizona. De nombreuses analyses de régression ont révélé des effets significatifs pour les deux rôles des sexes –adaptifs et inadaptifs –ainsi que plusieurs interactions spécifiques aux filles et aux garçons entre les rôles des sexes et l'acculturation linguistique prédisant l'usage de substance. On aura noté les limitations de cette recherche ainsi que ses implications pour comprendre l'impact de l'acculturation sur la façon dont les rôles des sexes exercent une influence différente sur l'usage de substance chez les garçons par rapport aux filles. Cette étude a été subventionnée par NIH/NIMHD et NIH/NIDA.

RESUMEN

Los roles de género y el consumo de drogas entre adolescentes mexicano americanos: ¿Una relación moderada por la aculturación?

Esta investigación evalúa los efectos que tienen los roles de género positivos/ negativos y la aculturación en predecir el consumo de alcohol y otras drogas en una muestra de 1.466 adolescentes mexicano americanos que cursaban el 7° grado en el año 2007 en Phoenix, Arizona. Análisis de regresión múltiple encontraron efectos significativos para ambos roles de género positivos y negativos, así como varias interacciones específicas de sexo entre los roles de género y la aculturación lingüística que predijo el uso de sustancias. Se tomó nota de las limitaciones de la investigación, así como las consecuencias para la comprensión del impacto de la aculturación sobre cómo los roles de género afectan diferencialmente el consumo de sustancias entre niños y niñas mexicano americanos. Este estudio fue financiado por NIH/NIMHD y NIN/NIDA.

Keywords :

• gender roles
• gender
• acculturation
• substance use
• Mexican American adolescents

THE AUTHORS

Stephen Kulis (Ph.D., Columbia University, 1984) is Cowden Distinguished Professor of Sociology in the School of Social and Family Dynamics at Arizona State University (ASU), and an affiliated faculty member in the School of Social Work, the Justice and Social Inquiry Program, and the Women and Gender Studies Program. He is the Director of Research at the Southwest Interdisciplinary Research Center (SIRC) at ASU, which is an NIH/NIMHD (National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities)-funded Center of Excellence for health disparities research. His research has focused on cultural processes in health disparities, such as the role of gender and ethnic identity in youth drug use and prevention interventions; cultural adaptation of prevention programs for ethnic minority youth; contextual neighborhood and school level influences on individual level risk and protective behaviors; gender and racial inequities in professional careers; and the organizational sources of ethnic and gender discrimination.

Flavio F. Marsiglia, Ph.D., is the Distinguished Foundation Professor of Cultural Diversity and Health at ASU's School of Social Work and the Director of the SIRC. SIRC is an exploratory Center of Excellence on health disparities research and training is funded by the NIMHD of the NIH. Dr. Marsiglia is the principal investigator on other externally funded research projects, studying risk and protective factors associated with health and mental health outcomes among Mexican/Mexican American and American Indian youth and their families. He also leads a global health initiative with projects in Mexico, Spain, and Tanzania.

Julie Nagoshi is a Ph.D. student in the School of Social Work at ASU and is a graduate associate with the SIRC. Julie has received a predoctoral fellowship from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Julie's research interests include gender identity, gender roles, acculturation, and substance use.