Acculturative Stress, Perceived Social Support, and Mental Health: The Mediating Effect of Negative Emotions Associated with Discrimination

María José Baeza-Rivera, Camila Salazar-Fernández (), Diego Manríquez-Robles, Natalia Salinas-Oñate and Vanessa Smith-Castro
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María José Baeza-Rivera: Departamento de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Católica de Temuco, Temuco 4813302, Chile
Camila Salazar-Fernández: Laboratorio de Interacción, Cultura y Salud, Temuco 4813302, Chile
Diego Manríquez-Robles: Departamento de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Católica de Temuco, Temuco 4813302, Chile
Natalia Salinas-Oñate: Departamento de Psicología, Facultad de Educación, Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco 4811322, Chile
Vanessa Smith-Castro: Instituto de Investigaciones Psicológicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José 11501, Costa Rica

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 24, 1-17

Abstract: The role of perceived social support in the acculturation process of immigrants remains unclear. In this study, we jointly evaluated the associations between acculturative stress and negative emotions associated with discrimination as antecedents of anxiety, depression, and stress symptoms in 283 immigrants living in Chile. Three competing models were tested via structural equation modelling to assess (1) the association among these variables and mental health symptoms and (2) to clarify the role of perceived social support. The third model was theoretically more adequate, showed a better fit, and explained 42.7% of the variance of mental health symptoms. In this model, perceived social support was associated with acculturative stress by reducing mental health symptomatology. Moreover, a direct relationship and an indirect relationship were found between acculturative stress (through negative emotions associated with discrimination) and mental health symptomatology. These results contribute to the understanding of the acculturation process experienced by immigrants in Chile and provide empirical evidence to be used to improve migration policies.

Keywords: migration; acculturative stress; perceived social support; mental health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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