Maternal and Child Health Journal
Volume 15, Issue 7, 2011, Pages 1076-1080

Immigration status, acculturation, and dating violence risk for hispanic adolescent girls in new Mexico (Article)

Ramos M.M.* , Green D. , Booker J. , Nelson A.
  • a Department of Pediatrics, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, 300 San Mateo NE Suite 902, Albuquerque, NM 87108, United States
  • b Epidemiology and Response Division, New Mexico Department of Health, 1190 St. Francis Drive, Santa Fe, NM 87502, United States
  • c Department of Pediatrics, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, 625 Silver Avenue SW, Suite 324, Albuquerque, NM 87102, United States
  • d New Mexico Department of Health, Office of School and Adolescent Health, 300 San Mateo NE Suite 902, Albuquerque, NM 87108, United States

Abstract

Little data exist on dating violence experienced by immigrant Hispanic adolescents. The present study examined the relationships between immigration status, language spoken at home, and dating violence experienced by Hispanic adolescent girls in New Mexico. Data from the 2007 New Mexico Youth Risk and Resiliency Surveys were analyzed. Adjusted logistic regression analyses were conducted among the full sample of Hispanic females (N = 3,412) and among strata based on immigration status. Immigrant Hispanic girls were as likely as non-immigrant Hispanic girls to have experienced dating violence in the prior year (P = 0.93). Among immigrant Hispanic girls, those who were Non-English-dominant were one-fourth as likely to have experienced dating violence as those immigrant girls who were English-dominant (aOR 0.27 [95% CI 0.08-0.87]). Among US-born Hispanic girls, those who were Non-English-dominant were less likely to have experienced dating violence; however, this value did not reach statistical significance (aOR 0.65 [95% CI 0.33- 1.27]). Past sexual experience was a significant risk factor for dating violence for US-born Hispanic girls (aOR 4.99 [95% CI 3.18-7.83]) but not for immigrant Hispanic girls (aOR 1.66 [95% CI 0.63-4.43]). Immigrant status was not found to be protective against dating violence for New Mexico Hispanic girls. However, those immigrant girls who were less acculturated in terms of language used at home were found to have only a quarter of the risk of dating violence as those more acculturated. The use of heritage language by immigrant Hispanic girls may be a protective factor against dating violence. Further studies are indicated to confirm this finding.© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2009.

Author Keywords

Hispanic Adolescent health health disparities Immigration status Dating violence

Index Keywords

information processing Courtship sexual behavior human risk assessment violence ethnology Hispanic Americans United States Humans Hispanic Adolescent Acculturation female cultural factor Article New Mexico migration Emigration and Immigration Data Collection
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-81855216368&doi=10.1007%2fs10995-010-0653-0&partnerID=40&md5=7a4a8dfc870c00cb069ae8298e644267
DOI: 10.1007/s10995-010-0653-0
ISSN: 10927875
Cited by: 15
Original Language: English