Rationale: Latino immigrants have been shown to average better health and longevity than native whites, in spite of their relative socioeconomic disadvantage. However, mental health outcomes stand in stark contrast to this epidemiological “paradox,” as factors such as depression are significantly higher for Latino immigrants than other groups. Objective: We explore the link between migration and depressive feelings using a binational random survey of Mexicans in Durham, NC and sending communities in Mexico. Method: Explanations for the link between migration and depression, such as acculturative stress, lack of social support, and powerlessness and isolation, are analyzed by comparing results for protective vs. risk factors between residents of Mexico and Durham, and among immigrants themselves. Besides, selection hypothesis is explored using propensity matching scores. Results: Results show little support for selection as an important source of migrant depression, and instead provide strong evidence that migration itself, and the disruption of social networks that it entails, is primarily responsible for the association. Family separation, in particular, is the strongest predictor of depressive feelings and accounts for a sizeable portion of the heightened depression among migrants. Conclusions: Understanding the subjective experiences of migration is necessary to better integrate newcomers into host societies. © 2018

Migration Family separation Depression Mental health Acculturative stress Mexico

depression educational status immigrant mental health human sex difference North Carolina comparative study social network social support ethnology Mexico procedures Hispanic Americans marriage United States social status Humans psychology Hispanic male Acculturation residential area female Mexican Durham [North Carolina] cultural factor Psychometrics Latino people Article psychometry adult environmental stress legal aspect migration international migration Mexico [North America] age distribution Emigration and Immigration community assessment devices