Social Forces
Volume 79, Issue 3, 2001, Pages 969-1004

Immigrant generation, assimilation, and adolescent psychological well-being (Review)

Harker K.*
  • a Department of Sociology, CB# 3210, Univ. of N. Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3210, United States

Abstract

Utilizing data on adolescents in secondary school from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), this article examines the link between immigrant generation and adolescent psychological well-being. I find that first-generation immigrants experience less depression and greater positive well-being than their native-born agemates of similar demographic and family backgrounds. Second-generation immigrants, however, do not differ significantly from native-born youth in terms of psychological well-being. A number of family influences serve as "protective" factors that enable first-generation immigrants to maintain their higher levels of well-being. These factors include parental supervision, lack of parent-child conflict, religious practices, and social support. Assimilation among first-generation immigrants, as measured by age at arrival in the U.S., does not significantly affect their positive well-being.

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Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-0035529680&doi=10.1353%2fsof.2001.0010&partnerID=40&md5=846149bf1f20163518d0787ae4a1e8c5

DOI: 10.1353/sof.2001.0010
ISSN: 00377732
Cited by: 312
Original Language: English