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Few bullying studies focus on immigrant youths or acculturation stress as a risk factor for bullying and being bullied. Employing a sample of 1,157 foreign-born secondary students in Spain, we found that acculturation stress was widely experienced, although the average level of stress was moderate. Five percent of the sample reported being bully-victims; that is, simultaneously being a perpetrator and victim of bullying. Another 5% reported only victimization experience, and 12% reported only perpetration experience. Multinomial logistic regression results showed that acculturation stress was associated with increased odds of being a bully-victim but not with the odds of being just a victim or the odds of being just a perpetrator. The findings highlight areas for future research exploring the chronology of perpetration and victimization for bully-victims, whether bullies of immigrant youths are immigrants or natives, and relations between sources of acculturation stress and forms of bullying. (Contains 2 tables.)

Despite elevated levels of substance use among many Latino youths, there has been little research on protective factors against such use. In keeping with federal commitments to address health disparities, this prospective study examined the protective influence of religion on substance use among a school-based sample (N = 804) of youths of Mexican heritage in the American Southwest. Drawing from the social capital literature, the authors posited that both integration into religious networks and trust in religious values at time 1 (T1) would predict less likelihood of using substances at time 2 (T2) but that exposure to religious norms at T1 would not predict subsequent substance use at T2. The hypotheses regarding religious networks and religious norms were largely confirmed, whereas little support emerged for the hypothesis regarding religious values. The results are discussed in light of the various pathways through which religion may exhibit a protective influence.

This article examined the impact of linguistic acculturation and gender on the substance use initiation of a sample of 1,473 Mexican heritage preadolescents attending 30 public schools in Phoenix, Arizona. It was hypothesized that linguistic acculturation operates differently as a risk or protective factor for young children than for older youth. The study used discrete-time event history methods to model the rate at which nonusing children initiate substance use. Alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana, and inhalants were studied separately while inhalant use was examined more closely. Results suggested that while linguistic acculturation is a risk factor for Mexican heritage preadolescents, this association depended on gender, the linguistic acculturation context (family, friends, or media), and the type of substance. For inhalants, higher linguistic acculturation with friends was inversely associated with drug initiation both for boys and girls. Implications for preventive science and future intervention research are discussed. (Contains 5 tables.)

This study examined how ethnic composition and linguistic acculturation within schools affected the efficacy of a youth substance use prevention model program. Data came from a randomized trial of the "keepin' it REAL" program, using a predominantly Mexican American sample of middle school students in Phoenix, Arizona. Schools were randomly assigned to a control group or one of three culturally tailored intervention versions. The authors hypothesized that school ethnic and linguistic acculturation composition (percentage Latino, percentage non-English-speaking at home) and individual level of linguistic acculturation would jointly moderate the efficacy of the prevention program, as indicated by students' alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use. With multilevel linear modeling and multiple imputation techniques used to manage clustered data and attrition, results show that desired program effects varied by linguistic acculturation level of the school, program version, and individual acculturation level. The Latino intervention version was more efficacious in schools with larger percentages of non-English-speaking families, but only among less linguistically acculturated Latino students. There were no significant school-level program effects connected to the percentage of Latino students at school or the other versions of the program, nor were there any such effects among more linguistically acculturated students.

Using a predominately Mexican-origin Latino sample of 5th grade students from the Southwestern United States, this study examined the relative effects of perceived discrimination and acculturation stress on substance use, and it assessed whether these effects were moderated by linguistic acculturation or time in the United States. Although rates of substance use were generally low in the sample, given the young age of the participants, over half (59%) of the sample perceived some discrimination, and almost half (47%) experienced some acculturation stress. Spanish-dominant and bilingual youth perceived more discrimination than English-dominant youth, whereas youth who have been in the United States five or fewer years perceived more discrimination than youth with more time in the United States. Youth who were Spanish-dominant or were recent arrivals experienced the most acculturation stress, with levels declining as linguistic acculturation and time in the United States increased. Multiple regression estimates indicated that perceived discrimination was associated with larger amounts and higher frequency of recent substance use and an array of substance use attitudes, such as stronger intentions to use substances, espousal of pro-drug norms, more positive substance use expectancies, and peer approval of substance use. Although acculturation stress was not associated with substance use, it was positively associated with several substance use attitudes, which are known antecedents of actual use. With a few exceptions, linguistic acculturation and time in the United States did not moderate the effects of perceived discrimination or acculturation stress. (Contains 2 tables and 2 notes.)

This article reports findings of an exploratory study of 71 parents with substance abuse conditions involved in a child dependency court. Over half (59%) of the parents had a co-occurring mental health condition. Parents with co-occurring conditions (PWCC) differed in several important ways from those with only substance abuse conditions. PWCC were also more likely than their case managers were to report a need for mental health treatment. Implications for child welfare practice and research are offered. (Contains 3 tables.)

Using a resilience framework, the authors examined the protective effects of parental support, self-disclosure to parents, parent-initiated monitoring of adolescent behavior, and relationships with school personnel on three critical problems of adolescents: substance use, gang involvement, and perceived threats to safety at school. The sample consisted of 342 ethnically diverse high-school students in an economically disadvantaged urban area in the southwestern United States. The regression analyses controlled for academic performance, poor anger management, risk-seeking propensities, co-occurring substance use, and co-occurring gang involvement. Interactions as well as main effects were examined. The specific protective roles of all four adult relationships were identified with respect to problematic outcomes. Adolescent self-disclosure to parents, a variable rarely examined in resilience research, was associated with less chance of substance use for two high-risk groups: those already involved with gangs, and those with high risk-seeking tendencies. (Contains 5 tables.)

This study examined whether the efficacy of "keepin' it REAL", a model program for substance use prevention in schools, was moderated by gender, ethnicity, and acculturation. Gender differences in program efficacy may arise through boys' higher risk of drug use, inadequate attention to girls' developmental issues, or cultural factors like polarized gender expectations. Data came from a randomized trial in 35 Phoenix, Arizona, middle schools involving 4,622 mostly Latino 7th graders. Using multi-level mixed models and multiple imputation missing techniques, results for the total sample showed no gender differences in program effects on recent substance use, but the program was more effective in fostering boys' than girls' anti-drug norms. Subgroup analyses demonstrated several more beneficial program effects for boys than girls (less alcohol and cigarette use and stronger anti-drug norms), but only among less acculturated Latinos. There were no gender differences in program effects among more acculturated Latinos, nor among non-Latino whites. (Contains 2 tables.)