Faith,Race‐Ethnicity,and Public Policy Preferences: Religious Schemas and Abortion Attitudes Among U.S. Latinos

Research has demonstrated that white conservative Protestants are more opposed to abortion than their Catholic counterparts. At the same time, conservative Protestantism has made significant inroads among U.S. Latinos. This study augments existing research on religion and racial‐ethnic variations in abortion attitudes by comparing levels of support for legalized abortion among Catholic and conservative Protestant Latinos. Data are drawn from a nationally representative sample of U.S. Latinos. Significantly greater opposition to abortion is found among religiously devout conservative Protestant Latinos when compared with their Catholic counterparts. Latino Catholicism, which functions as a near‐monopolistic, highly institutionalized faith tradition among Hispanics, produces weaker antiabortion attitudes than those exhibited in Latino conservative Protestantism. Among Latinos, conservative Protestantism operates as a niche voluntaristic faith. These factors produce a religious schema that yields robust antiabortion attitudes. This study has important implications for understanding the intersection of race‐ethnicity, religion, and public policy preferences.     

Immigrant Acculturation and Transnationalism: Israelis in the United States and Europe Compared

This article examines relations between social integration into host societies, religio‐ethnic acculturation into group belonging, and ties to home country among Israeli émigrés in the United States and Europe. I use data from a 2009–2010 Internet survey into which I incorporated country‐contextual characteristics. The results of multivariate analyses show that a social integration combining duration of residence abroad and local citizenship enhances religio‐ethnic identification. Another measure of integration, social networks, deters group behaviors. All measures of general integration inhibit attachment to the home country, whereas religio‐ethnic acculturation is largely insignificant for transnationalism. The religiosity of the new country does not influence immigrants’ religio‐ethnic patterns or homeland attachment. Insofar as group size is a significant determinant of particularistic behaviors, it weakens them. The more policy‐based opportunities newcomers receive, the more they dissociate from group behaviors and homeland ties. Irrespective of individual and contextual factors, living in the United States encourages group affiliation more than living in Europe does. The results are discussed in reference to four working hypotheses—marginalization, integration, assimilation, and separation—and from a U.S.‐European comparative perspective.     

Positive reading attitudes of low-income bilingual latinos

Many assume low-income, emergent bilingual Latinos have poor reading attitudes. To investigate this issue, we surveyed 1,503 Texas public high school students through stratified cluster sampling to determine their reading attitudes. Most represented Latinos and mixed-race Latinos/Whites who heard Spanish at home and whose mother tongue was Spanish. Sources included the valid and reliable Rhody Reading Attitude Assessment (RRAS), demographic questions added to the RRAS, and campus summary data. Frameworks were social justice and linguistic funds of knowledge. Significant overall-reading attitude differences appeared in individual and school background variables. Regarding the former, the Latino/White blended group displayed significantly higher reading attitudes than Whites. Though insignificant, those who spoke Spanish and Spanish/English as mother tongues and those hearing Spanish and Spanish/English combinations at home demonstrated higher reading attitudes. Advanced program students had significantly higher reading attitudes than peers in other academic programs. Though insignificant, those in English as a second language (ESL) programs had higher reading attitudes than peers who self-identified as in regular programs. Regarding school-background variables, schools with the highest percentages of emergent bilinguals and students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch had significantly higher reading attitudes. Though insignificant, schools with 98.7% or higher Latino populations had the highest overall reading attitudes. Our findings challenge misperceptions of nondominant students.     

Are You Minority Enough? Language Ability Affects Targets' and Perceivers' Assessments of a Candidate's Appropriateness for Affirmative Action

In the present study, we focus on Spanish language ability as a predictor of the extent to which Latinos are viewed by both others and themselves as full-fledged minorities. Study 1 shows that perceivers viewed Latinos described as Spanish speakers as more appropriate for race-based affirmative action than Latinos who were unable to speak Spanish (controlling for intellectual competence evaluations). Moreover, the affirmative action advantage that the Spanish-speaking Latinos had over the non-Spanish-speaking Latinos was explained by perceivers viewing the Spanish speakers as having greater minority status. The results of Study 2 suggest that Spanish-speaking ability is related to self-perceptions of minority status among Latinos. Like their perceivers in Study 1, Latinos who have less Spanish-speaking ability feel less Latino and report reluctance to apply for race-based assistance in the form of academic minority scholarships.     

Patterns of drug use and criminal activities among latino arrestees in California: Treatment and policy implications

This study examined the patterns of drug use and criminal activities among Latino arrestees. The findings indicate that while the prevalence of drug use at time of arrest, and in the prior 12 months were significantly lower for Latinos compared to Whites and Blacks, drug use still is of concern for this ethnic group. Almost 50% of Latinos reported drug use in the last year, and more importantly, they were more likely to report using dangerous drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and PCP than any other ethnic group. These findings are even more alarming considering that, for the most part, Latino drug users were treatment-naive, and that less than half perceived a need for drug treatment. Regarding criminal activities, Latinos were less likely to have a history of prior arrests and to have been arrested in the year prior to the interview than any other ethnic group. Interestingly, those immigrants who have resided in the U.S. for less than 1 year were significantly more likely to have been charged with drug-related crimes. U.S. born Latinos were more likely to have been arrested for property crimes, while Central American immigrants were more likely than any other Latino group to have been arrested for violent and domestic violence crimes. Treatment and policy implications of these findings are discussed.     

Context-Dependent Emotion Regulation: Suppression and Reappraisal at the Burning Man Festival

Two studies investigated the combined effects of cultural practices, ancestry, and phenotype on ethnic categorization and the distribution of resources to minorities. Perceivers formed impressions of Latino internship candidates who varied in Spanish language fluency, White/European ancestry, and skin color. Spanish fluency influenced the distribution of minority resources to all targets, but only influenced the Latino categorization of targets who had White/European ancestry. The effect of Spanish fluency on minority resource distribution was explained by the White/European target's Latino categorization and perceived commitment to minority communities. We discuss why factors beyond racial/ethnic categorization may matter in minority resource distribution decisions.     

Violence Exposure and PTSD: The Role of English Language Fluency in Latino Youth

Although Latinos have been a rapidly growing population in the US, little is known about how mental health symptoms may present in Latino children especially in the context of those living in poverty and exposed to violence. We explored the level of violence exposure and trauma symptoms in Latino youth and the relationship of these factors with English language fluency. During 2000–2002, 1,601, Latino students from seven middle schools participated in a school-based screening to identify students with exposure to community violence and symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The students completed a self-report instrument, in either Spanish or English, that combined a modified version of the Life Events Scale and the Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS). Bivariate analyses and multivariate regression models showed that youth with higher English language fluency reported greater violence exposure and PTSD symptoms than those with lower fluency. No difference was found in functioning by English language fluency. English language fluency appears to be related to violence exposure and PTSD symptoms in these Latino youth. We discuss the importance of school-based programs especially designed to serve Latino students of varying English language fluency.     

Implicit Identification with Academic Achievement among Latino College Students: The Role of Ethnic Identity and Significant Others

Two studies were conducted to test the hypothesis that identification with academic achievement among Latino college students was related to the extent to which their ethnic group and significant others were linked to academic achievement. Participants completed a series of implicit association tests measuring the interrelations among academic achievement, self, and ethnic groups (Study 1) or significant others (Study 2). Study 1 revealed that the more college students identified with Latinos (relative to Caucasians) and stereotyped Latinos as low academic achievers (relative to Caucasians), the less they identified with academic achievement. Study 2 showed that the more Latino college students identified with significant others and viewed these significant others as high academic achievers, the more they identified with academic achievement. These findings are consistent with principles of cognitive consistency and stress the socio-relational facets of the academic self-concept.     

Conceptualizing Professional Diaspora: International Medical Graduates in Canada

This paper applies the concept of diaspora to the analysis of the creation and maintenance of an ethnically diverse community of internationally educated medical graduates residing in Canada. Traditionally, the research on diaspora concerns ethnic communities that preserve their homeland ties while residing in foreign countries. We suggest, however, that ethnic roots are not imperative for the analysis of diasporic communities when other forms of shared values and meanings can become a basis for creation of collective identity. Reconfiguring both the homeland and host country as places of geographical and professional belonging provides opportunity to conceptualize an ethnically diverse group of immigrant physicians residing in Canada as professional diaspora. Probing the interviews with 67 international medical graduates living in Canada, we demonstrate (1) how they create medical diaspora, (2) what myths and sensitivities they share in constructing their professional and/or geographic homelands, and (3) the relationship they develop with their hosting society. We suggest that in spite of the increasing mobility of internationally educated health care providers, the analysis of professional diasporas could become a useful tool for analyzing complex relationships between home countries, hosting countries, and international travelers.     

Special Education Advocacy and Latino Clients

Abstract

The special education process at times presents barriers that inhibit authentic parental participation. Given the complexities related to language, culture, and limited school resources, Latino parents in particular are prone to being excluded from active, policy making roles within this complex process. This paper reviews some of the barriers that prevent Latinos from becoming good consumers. The integration of important systems and cultural variables in working with Latino clients is stressed as well as the need for a paradigm shift in the thinking of professionals. The need for an integrated model that provides advocacy training to Latinos within a culturally sensitive format along with changes in conceptualizations about client-professional relationships is also developed.     

Priming the Sleeping Giant: The Dynamics of Latino Political Identity and Vote Choice

Latinos are commonly referred to as the “sleeping giant” in American politics, and interest in the political potential of this fastest‐growing American ethnic group has risen in recent years. This article examines the influence of Latino political identity on voting preferences in the 2006 California gubernatorial election. A survey experiment linking Latino identity to support for either the Democratic or Republican candidate finds that vote preferences were influenced by group cues and that this effect was strongest in increasing support for the Democratic candidate among Latino Republicans and independents. The influence of Latino political identity is modeled as a two‐step process of social identification and group influence, both of which are found to interact with prior partisanship. These findings support a model of political identity that views identity as malleable and subject to contextual influences.     

Born in the USA: how immigrant generation shapes meritocracy and its relation to ethnic identity and collective action

Endorsing meritocracy can make low-status group members more accepting of inequality. This study examined whether rejecting meritocracy is related to increased ethnic identification among Latino immigrants, and whether identity in turn is related to increased support for collective action. We hypothesize that these relationships depend upon immigrant generation. A survey was conducted with 184 first- and second-generation Latino immigrants in New York City. Second-generation Latinos endorsed meritocracy less than those in the first generation, at least in part because they perceived that other Americans viewed their group in a less positive light (i.e., lower public regard). Further, meritocracy was negatively linked to ethnic identity and, through it, support for collective action among the second generation. Among the first generation, meritocracy was not related to ethnic identity and was positively related to support for collective action. We discuss the implications of growing up near the bottom of the U.S. social hierarchy for ethnic identity and collective action.     

Factor Structure of the Spanish Version of the Ways of Coping Questionnaire

A Spanish translation of the Ways of Coping (WOC-S) questionnaire was administered to three samples of Latinos sampled from Mexico City, Puerto Rico, and the San Francisco Peninsula, respectively. The factor structure of the WOC-S was assessed with both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The factor structure that emerged was found to have important similarities and differences compared to that previously reported for members of the predominant United States culture. Across the sampled Latino groups, the WOC-S exhibited evidence of both strong and strict factorial invariance (Meredith, 1993), suggesting it is appropriate for cross-cultural research assessing coping within diverse Latino populations.     

Religion,religiosity, and South Korean consumer switching behaviors

• This study investigated the relationship between religious affiliation and level of religiosity and consumer product‐ and store‐switching behavior among South Korean consumers. Comparisons in switching behavior are reported for three different denominational groups prevalent in South Korea (Buddhism, Catholicism, and Protestantism), non‐religious affiliated respondents, and among persons exhibiting different levels of religiosity. Religious affiliation, including non‐affiliation, was not found to be significantly related to switching behavior. However, consumers reporting high levels of religiosity were found to be significantly less likely to engage in product purchase‐ and store‐switching behaviors than those reporting lower levels of religiosity. Consumers reporting high levels of religiosity are also less likely to engage in product purchase switching behavior than non‐religious affiliated consumers (i.e., no religiosity consumers). This pattern held across denominations. Statistically significant differences in switching behavior were not obtained between consumers reporting low levels of religiosity and those respondents who expressed no religious affiliation.

Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Suicide and Religion: New Evidence on the Differences Between Protestantism and Catholicism

Suicide has remained a persistent social phenomenon and now accounts for more deaths than motor vehicle accidents. There has been much debate, however, over which religious constructs might best explain the variation in suicide rates. Our empirical analysis reveals that even though theological and social differences between Catholicism and Protestantism have decreased, Catholics are still less likely than Protestants to commit or accept suicide. This difference holds even after we control for such confounding factors as social and religious networks. In addition, although religious networks do mitigate suicides among Protestants, the influence of church attendance is more dominant among Catholics. Our analysis also indicates that alternative concepts such as religious commitment and religiosity strongly reduce suicide acceptance.     

Distorted Reflections: Media Exposure and Latino Adolescents' Conceptions of Self

Because Latinos are underrepresented and often negatively stereotyped in the media, concern is frequently expressed that repeated exposure to these portrayals may reflect poorly on Latino adolescents' self-esteem. To test this issue empirically, we conducted 2 studies examining associations between multiple dimensions of self-esteem and several forms of media use. Testing 40 Latino high school students in Study 1, we found that more frequent and more active TV viewing was associated with lower social and appearance self-esteem. Many of these general patterns were replicated in Study 2 with 115 college students and with several demographic controls. Additional analyses of possible moderators revealed more consistent negative correlations among women and among participants with a stronger Latino ethnic identity. Together, these findings provide powerful evidence of a potential link between media use and the self-conceptions of Latino youth.     

Acculturation Among Three Racial/Ethnic Groups of Host and Immigrant Adolescents

This study compares Latino host, Latino immigrant, Asian-American host, Asian-American immigrant and European-American host groups of adolescents with respect to four acculturation-related variables: ethnic identity exploration, ethnic identity affirmation/belonging, outgroup orientation, and American identity. Using the five ethno-generational categories as a grouping variable, we conducted analyses of 313 survey responses to the acculturation items at two time periods, 9 weeks apart. Results showed that differences among the three host racial/ethnic groups can best be explained by a group dominance perspective, whereby the two racial/ethnic minority groups are more similar to each other than they are to the European-American group. Furthermore, the relationship between American identity and ethnic identity components is stronger among the three host groups, as compared to the immigrant groups. Implications for future research with adolescent members of the host group whose heritage culture is non-European are drawn.     

Searching for Protestantism in the Encyclopedia of Protestantism

This article uses Hans Hillerbrand's Encyclopedia of Protestantism¹ to explore the protean character of Protestantism. In considering the question What is Protestantism? it assesses two characterisations of Protestantism: as a rejection of Catholicism and as a religious prelude to secularisation. The article discusses the history of the religion, the challenge of defining a 500-year-old religious family, the ambiguous boundary between Protestantism and Catholicism, and the thin line separating Protestants from their post-Protestant descendants. It concludes by reflecting on the implications of the Encyclopedia of Protestantism for the field of religious studies.     

Searching for Protestantism in the Encyclopedia of Protestantism

This article uses Hans Hillerbrand's Encyclopedia of Protestantism ¹ to explore the protean character of Protestantism. In considering the question What is Protestantism? it assesses two characterisations of Protestantism: as a rejection of Catholicism and as a religious prelude to secularisation. The article discusses the history of the religion, the challenge of defining a 500-year-old religious family, the ambiguous boundary between Protestantism and Catholicism, and the thin line separating Protestants from their post-Protestant descendants. It concludes by reflecting on the implications of the Encyclopedia of Protestantism for the field of religious studies.     

Acculturation and its determinants among adult immigrants in France

The present study pursued three aims. First, it sought to determine the distribution of types of identification among adult immigrants in France; second, it investigated certain determinants that might contribute to the emergence of exclusively French or ethnic identifications; and third, it attempted to assess the outcomes of French or ethnic identification strategies for well-being. Participants of the study were 6211 adult immigrants in France, aged between 45 and 70 years (M = 55.8, SD = 7.21), 53.6% males. Findings revealed that participants' dominant identification style of belonging was either French (n = 2758, 44.4%) or home country/ethnic group affiliation (n = 1899, 30.6%), with a greater tendency towards the former. In relation to the study second question, it was found that lower levels of education and involvement with French society, higher degrees of religiosity, and shorter lengths of residence in France were positively connected with home country/ethnic group identification as against French and vice versa. Stronger feelings of being settled in France and a command of French, and lower degrees of involvement with the initial national/ethnic community, were associated with a significant decrease in the likelihood of home country/ethnic group identification as against French and vice versa. While respondents' personal experiences of discrimination in home country/ethnic group before migration to France predicted a lower likelihood of home country/ethnic group identification compared to French and vice versa, immigrants' reports of being discriminated against in France had no significant effect on identification choices. Findings revealed also that those identifying with their home country/ethnic group recorded relatively higher degrees of maladjustment than those asserting a French identification.