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This study presents data on the cultural adaptation to Latino populations of two outcome measures that respond to the need for developing comprehensive instruments for outcome assessments in minority populations. We examined the psychometric properties of outcome measures designed to assess impairment in functioning, and quality of life. Impairment in functioning was measured with the Disability Assessment Schedule II (WHO-DASII) developed by the World Health Organization (1997) and quality of life was measured with A. F. Lehman's (A. F. Lehman, 1983; A. F. Lehman, 1988) shortened Quality of Life Interview (QOLI). Spanish speaking consumers (N = 198) from Fresno (CA), San Antonio (TX) and San Juan (PR) participated in this study. They were recruited from both mental health outpatient clinics and primary care rural clinics. The WHO-DASII showed good to excellent internal consistency in all sites (α = .72 to .97) except for one subscale (Self-Care α = .47). Test-retest reliability estimates were mostly moderate to substantial (.57 to .83), again with one exception, the Self-Care subscale (.46). For the QOLI internal consistency ranged from .34 to .98 and test-retest reliability ranged from .40 to .86 across all sites. An initial validation strategy using both known-groups and concurrent validity produced promising evidence of the construct validity of both measures. The Spanish versions of the WHO-DASII and the QOLI lend support to the translation and adaptation process to which these instruments were subjected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The program evaluated in this article, Check and Connect, was a computer-assisted learning program funded by a competitive subgrant under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part B (ages 3-21) in the amount of $25,000. Various personal development software programs dealing with dropout prevention, improvement of self-esteem, personal development, healthy lifestyles, career paths, human health and study skills were purchased to improve areas of the affective domain. The personal development program focused on connecting parents and other school personnel to the targeted population. The major goal of the program was to create behavioral interventions that enabled students to acquire social and behavioral skills which generalized to the home, employment and community setting.

In this paper we report on the process of translating five mental health outcome measures into Spanish and adapting them to Latino culture. The instruments considered are the World Health Organization-Disability Assessment Scale, the Burden Assessment Scale, the Family Burden Scale, Lehman's Quality of Life Interview and the Continuity of Care in Mental Health Services Interview. A systematic process of translation and adaptation of the instruments was followed with the goal of achieving cultural equivalence between the English and Spanish versions of the instruments in five dimensions: semantic, content, technical, construct, and criterion equivalence. In this paper we present data about the semantic, content, and technical equivalence. Various steps were taken to achieve equivalence in these dimensions, including the use of a bilingual committee, a multi-national bilingual committee, back-translation, and focus groups with mental health patients and their relatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HIV is a family disease. Family research in HIV is challenging because of complexities of family measurement, the range of family constellations across cultures, and the issues specific to HIV-affected families. A Consortium of NIMH-funded investigators is conducting HIV research on families—defined as networks of mutual commitments. A procedure for identifying the “family” is proposed. This article reviews assessment strategies from two research traditions, both of which have been greatly concerned with social context: family assessment tradition—family membership, parenting, and interactional dynamics; HIV/AIDS research tradition—HIV-relevant constructs generalized to minority families. Initially, a systematic procedure for defining family membership is provided. Constructs and measures derived from the family assessment tradition are described, including self-report and observational procedures. Constructs and measures of relevance to family research that originated in the HIV/AIDS research tradition are described: HIV knowledge, stigma, disclosure, and social support. Constructs presented derive from the Consortium's research on the role of families in prevention and adaptation to HIV/AIDS. Most of the research conducted by the Consortium has taken place with inner-city, minority, heterosexual families. By informing the selection of constructs and measures relevant to investigating the role of families in HIV prevention, and adaptation to living with HIV/AIDS, it is the Consortium's intention to enhance the quality and quantity of research at the intersection of families and HIV/AIDS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the changes in marital satisfaction over 11 years in a three-generation sample of Mexican Americans. Absence of significant changes in negative sentiment; Decline in positive interaction among women in all generations and among younger males; Discussion of results in relation to the U-shaped pattern of satisfaction across the life cycle.

This article compares the results of a 1985 survey of elderly seasonal migrants to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas with those of five earlier studies to provide a more comprehensive profile of such migrants than is currently available. Sociodemographic, life-style, and health characteristics are reviewed. Based on apparent similarities among elderly seasonal migrants in the six studies, suggestions are made for the direction of future research. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The nature of job termination and causal attribution for termination were examined, for their association with psychological distress among a sample of working-class men in San Antonio, Texas who had recently become unemployed. Laid-off workers were found to experience significantly lower levels of distress than fired workers, largely because the former overwhelmingly defined job loss as a function of the economy. The fired typically attributed job loss to unfair treatment by employers, and they, like the laid off who made similar attributions, indicated significant distress. Psychological reactivity was by far the highest among fired and laid-off workers who reported having been unjustly terminated because of personal shortcomings or deficiencies. Contrary to conventional thought, job loss self-blame was not found to be associated with high levels of distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Functional" marriage textbooks usually state that differences between spouses in class background are, regardless of adult status, influences for marital maladjustment and instability; but a search of the literature revealed no empirical support for this generalization. Data from a sample of males in a high-status occupation reveal no marital instability which can be attributed to an interaction between the class backgrounds of the spouses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A standardized interview including parts of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule was used to determine the prevalence of depressive and generalized anxiety disorders among female family practice patients in San Antonio, Texas, and Monterrey, Mexico. Rates of depression and anxiety were not significantly different in texas and Mexico. There were differences in age-specific rates of anxiety with the disorder being prominent among middleaged women in Mexico. In both countries, women with mental disorders had higher rates of hospitalization, use of psychotropic medication(s), and physical complaints than women without such disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data from a community sample of 1,784 Anglo, African-American, and Mexican-American adults were examined to assess: (I) the nature and magnitude of observed racial/ethnic and acculturation level differences in depression, (2) the relative contribution of sociodemographic and psychosocial factors (fatalism and religiosity) to observed differences, and (3) the joint effects of fatalism and religiosity as sociocultural resources with regard to depression in differing racial/ethnic and acculturation level subgroups. Analyses indicate the most dramatic differences in depression among males- African Americans were roughly similar to Anglos and levels of depression were significantly higher among the least acculturated Mexican Americans relative to Anglos, even after statistical controls. Acculturation level differences among Mexican-American females were explained by statistical controls. Lower levels of depression among more highly acculturated than among less acculturated Mexican Americans provide little support for a simplistic stress formulation of acculturation. Rather, the interplay of acculturation, Fatalism, and religiosity supports a more complex cultural marginality model, emphasizing the consistency of attitudinal elements and language use as facilitators or inhibitors of assimilation into Anglo culture. Both those who successfully acculturate and those who are most insulated in traditional culture appear least depressed from this perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Older Mexican Americans who are members of three-generation families in the San Antonio area are compared with other elderly on a number of demographic and socio-economic characteristics. It is found that members were more fertile, had married and had children at a younger age, and were of slightly lower socioeconomic status. However, elderly members of three-generation families constitute a sizable proportion of San Antonio's elderly Mexican-American population, thus minimizing problems in the study's generaliz- ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the influence of familism and occupational stability on alienation and health care utilization among lower-class Mexican Americans. It was found that familism and occupational stability were positively related to timing of prenatal care, but negatively related to consulting a physician when ill. Powerlessness was negatively related to timing of prenatal care and positively related to consulting when ill. The results suggest it is important to distinguish preventive and curative components of health care behavior in measures of utilization. In addition, the role of familism should be considered in the complex relationship between alienation and health care utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data from seven U. S. national surveys were used to estimate the effects of number of siblings on eight dimensions of psychological well-being among adult white males and white females. All of the statistically significant estimated effects of having siblings are negative, and most of these cannot be accounted for by the lower mean family incomes and amount of education of the persons with siblings. The evidence for negative effects is stronger for white males than for white females. The evidence from this and previous studies is generally inconsistent with the popular stereotype of the unhappy, maladjusted only child, but additional evidence is needed before the issue is considered closed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to evaluate ethnic and gender differences in the diagnostic profiles of patients first admitted to the alcohol/drug rehabilitation unit of a state hospital. The majority of the patients (66%) had more than one diagnosis. African- American patients were significantly more likely to have a single diagnosis, however, in terms of prima,y diagnosis, Mexican Americans were more likely to have an alcohol-related disorder while African-Americans were more likely to have a drug related disorder. Drug-related disorders also complicate the diagnostic profile of African-American patients who had a primary diagnosis of an alcohol-related disorder. Ethnic differences in type of drug abused were observed, African Americans were more likely to use stimulants/hallucinogens, and Mexican Americans were more likely to use depressants. A drug-related disorder was the most common diagnosis among females across all ethnic groups. Findings point to the need of developing gender/ethnic-sensitive treatment programs. Potential ethnic and gender biases in the diagnostic evaluation of substance abuse patients are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data are presented on drinking patterns and alcohol-related problems among 164 Anglo and 149 Mexican American male regular drinkers. The paper examines the role of acculturation with regard to alcohol use by categorizing Mexican American respondents into three acculturation groups using a multi-item measure developed for this study. Data from a random sample of males drinking at least 2-3 times a month, aged 20-50, showed that, even after socio-demographic controls, Mexican Americans were less frequent, but higher quantity drinkers than were Anglos. No ethnic differences were found for alcohol-related problems. Quantity was significantly higher among less acculturated Mexican Americans than among the more highly acculturated. "Escape" drinking motives were most common among Mexican Americans, particularly among the least acculturated. Exploratory analyses among Mexican Americans using a combination of acculturation and generational status measures indicated the heaviest drinking patterns and the highest prevalence of both alcohol-related problems and escape drinking motives among the least acculturated second generation males. These suggestive data do not support either a "simple acculturation" or an "acculturation stress" model. Rather, the data suggest a cultural marginality/stress model wherein risk of heavy and problem drinking is greatest among younger Mexican Americans who have not become acculturated. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, we examine ethnic differences in divorce likelihood for a sample of 900 divorce petitions filed in San Antonio, Texas, during 1985. The present study explores ethnic differences in the nature of the divorce process and examines the extent to which observed ethnic differences in divorce likelihood are accounted for by differences between groups in dimensions such as socioeconomic status, marital history, and nature of complaints. Divorce likelihood is viewed from the perspective of Levinger's (1965) exchange model of marital instability, as recently applied to the phenomenon of divorce petition withdrawal by Kitson et al. (1983). Observed differences between Spanish surname and non-Spanish surname petitions in divorce likelihood and divorce delay are largely explained by controls for background and exchange model variables. Significant interaction effects with ethnicity suggest the complexity of the divorce process. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper we describe a predoctoral internship program sponsored by the Medical Sociology Section of the American Sociological Association. In three years, the program placed 15 graduate students for three-to twelve-month internships in a variety of clinical and research settings and organizations concerned with the development of health policy. We review the history, purpose, accomplishments, and future directions of the program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]