This study investigates the influence of executive functioning, language proficiency, and behavioral-emotional challenges on the academic performance of rural immigrant Latine youth in the Midwest. Using a convergent mixed methods design, we integrated quantitative analyses (N = 178) of academic indicators (GPA, Math, and ELA scores) with qualitative interviews (n = 47) that examined students' lived experiences. Higher behavioral difficulties were associated with lower academic outcomes, while executive functioning predicted academic success. Qualitative findings revealed that behavioral challenges often stemmed from adaptive responses to language barriers, academic stress and social exclusion. These patterns suggest that the cognitive load of second-language acquisition influences student engagement in ways not fully captured by standardized assessments. Results highlight the importance of culturally responsive interventions that support bilingual instruction, executive functioning, and mental health to promote resilience among Latine ELL students.

INTRODUCTION:Cultural strength-based models propose that family ethnic socialization promotes prosocial development in Latino/a youth through cultural values such as ethnic identity and familism. However, longitudinal research testing these serial pathways remains scarce, and prosocial behavior is understudied in rural, emerging immigrant destinations where adversity is heightened, and prosocial behaviors may be differentially shaped. This study examined whether ethnic identity exploration, commitment, and familism at Time 2 sequentially mediate the associations between family ethnic socialization at Time 1 and public and altruistic prosocial behaviors at Time 3 among rural US Latino/a youth. METHODS:This study included 307 US Latino/a youth from rural Midwestern communities (Mage at Time 1 = 12.21 years; 52.1% male), followed across three-waves with 1-year intervals. Structural equation modeling was used to test the serial mediation model, controlling for baseline prosocial behaviors and demographic covariates. RESULTS:Family ethnic socialization at Time 1 was positively associated with Time 2 ethnic identity, but commitment was more strongly associated with familism than exploration. In turn, Time 2 familism was positively associated with Time 3 public prosocial behavior and negatively with altruistic prosocial behavior. Ethnic socialization was indirectly associated to public prosocial behavior primarily through the commitment-familism path (with weaker associations through exploration path). For altruistic prosocial behaviors, both the commitment-familism and exploration-familism indirect paths were significant but negative. CONCLUSIONS:The findings underscore the family's central role in cultivating cultural assets and highlight the need to differentiate ethnic identity dimensions and prosocial forms to refine ecocultural models of positive development.

Latino/a migrant farmworker (LMFW) families travel frequently in search of seasonal farm work. This pattern of high mobility can compromise youth's sense of belonging and social connectedness which consequently can compromise their well-being. However, strengths-based health and wellness orientations such as being optimistic and holding a hopeful look toward the future may offset risks and improve youths' capacity to cope with frequent moves and adversity. This qualitative study thematically analyzed interview data from 24 LMFW youth aged 10-18. Findings revealed how LMFW youth conceptualize "home" and describe the toll that frequent moves can have on their wellbeing. Results also spotlighted how optimistic interpretations of migration can promote hope, future-oriented thinking, and a sense of purpose. These findings underscore the importance of strengths-based approaches and can inform programming aimed at promoting health and wellness among LMFW youth.

Background/Objectives: Overweight and obesity is a continuing health concern for preadolescent youth. We assessed associations between sleep timing and sleep duration and body mass index/body composition in Latine youth. Methods: Participants were 119 Latine youth (mean age 11.53 year; 58.8% girls) and their mothers living in the rural Midwestern U.S. Youth reported their average bedtime and waking time. Heights and weights for children and mothers were measured by trained research assistants and were used to calculate BMI scores (in mothers), as well as BMI percentiles and overweight status (in youth). Mothers completed surveys for demographic variables. Results: Youth who went to bed before 9:30 PM (mean bedtime) obtained more sleep than those with later bedtimes (9.73 h vs. 8.63 h, respectively, t(117) = 7.88, p < 0.001). Each extra hour of sleep duration was associated with a decreased risk of being overweight (OR = 0.53 for weeknight sleep, OR = 0.67 for weekend night sleep), and each hour later to bed was related to increased risk for being overweight (OR = 2.35 on weeknights, and OR = 1.66 on weekend nights). To replicate previous work, we broke the youth up into four sleep timing groups: early-to-bed and early-to-rise (EE), early-to-bed and late-to-rise (EL), late-to-bed and early-to-rise (LE), and late-to-bed and late-to-rise (LL). Youth with LL sleep patterns on weeknights were much more likely to be overweight compared to youth with EE patterns (OR = 4.94). On weekend nights, compared to EE weekend youth, LE and LL weekend youth were more likely to be overweight (OR = 3.45 and OR = 3.32, respectively). Wake times were not significantly related to overweight risk. Conclusions: Sleep timing patterns, especially sleep duration and earlier bedtimes, may be important to address in future research on obesity interventions. Findings suggest that earlier bedtimes may play an important and complimentary role in health, in addition to sleep duration alone, and this study highlights the need for more research in underserved, minoritized populations.

Depression is a pivotal mental health concern for Latine adolescents, with research showing they are more likely to report symptoms of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation compared with their non-Latine peers. However, rural Latine children in emerging communities may be especially vulnerable to mental health disparities given these communities often have fewer resources. Further, Latine mothers in immigrant communities often experience acculturative stressors that place them at an increased risk for depression, which increases the risk for depressive symptoms in their children. In contrast, there is limited research on the dispositional and environmental protective factors that benefit rural Latine youth's mental health and functioning. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of mother's internalizing symptoms, youth ego-resiliency, and mother's responsiveness on rural Latine youths' depression both concurrently and 1 year later. Participants were 123 Latine youth in fifth and sixth grade (56.9% female; M-age = 11.53 years; 84.6% two-parent families) and their mothers living largely in rural towns (78.6%) in the Midwest. We found both concurrent and longitudinal negative relationships between youth ego-resiliency and youth depression. Youth ego-resiliency moderated (protected against) the significant link between mother's internalizing symptoms and youth depression concurrently, but not longitudinally. These findings suggest that programs that promote ego-resiliency in Latine youth, and improvement in the quality of mother's responsiveness could impact mental health outcomes in underserved rural Latine families.

Personal relationships research is increasingly addressing the impact of both mothers and fathers parenting behaviors on youth' development. This study addresses the relative dearth of research on the effects of fathers versus mothers on youth behavioral adjustment within U.S. Latine families and examined the relations among parental warmth/ harshness and youth' aggressive behaviors considering anxiety and familism as mediators, and whether associations differed by parent and youth gender. Data were from a sample of 307 U.S. Latine youth (51% boys; Mage = 12.21 years, 46.5% girls). Using a cross-sectional mediational path model, significant indirect associations between parental warmth/harshness and youth aggressive behaviors via anxiety (in both models) and familism (only in the fathers' model) were found. The findings highlight the deleterious effects of parental harshness on youth' social-emotional wellbeing and behaviors and advance understanding on unique associations between mothers' and fathers' behaviors and youth' aggressive behaviors.

Given the increasing number of Latino/a youth in the United States who reside in rural locations and who might be prone to race- and immigrant status-related threats, more research attention is needed that focuses on cultural strengths and positive development. Ecocultural developmental theorists and prior research have postulated and found that family ethnic socialization practices, ethnic identity, and familism values are linked to a variety of positive developmental outcomes in U.S. Latino/a youth. The present longitudinal study addresses the relative dearth of cultural strength-based research among rural U.S. Latino/a youth and examines the relations among family ethnic socialization practices, ethnic identity, familism, civic responsibility, and care-based, responsive prosocial behaviors in these youth. Participants were a sample of 307 rural, U.S. Midwest, Latino/a youth ( M age  = 12.21 years; 46.5% girls). Youth completed measures of family ethnic socialization practices, ethnic identity affirmation, and familism values at Time 1 and civic responsibility and youth care-based, responsive prosocial behaviors 1 year later. Significant indirect associations between family ethnic socialization and youth's care-based prosocial behaviors via ethnic identity, familism, and civic responsibility were found. There were additional direct associations among family ethnic socialization, familism, ethnic identity, civic responsibility, and care-based prosocial behaviors. The findings highlight the central role of culture-group- related mechanisms (ethnic identity and familism) and civic responsibility in understanding the links between family ethnic socialization practices and care-based, responsive prosocial behaviors in rural Midwest U.S. Latino/a youth. These findings are generally in accord with ecocultural strength-based and parental socialization models and have important implications for policy and program interventions aimed at fostering civic and prosocial development in rural ethnic/racial minoritized populations.

PurposeConsumption norms describe an individual’s perception of what or how much most other people typically eat. While gendered consumption norms are well known, consumption norms linked to other demographic variables are yet to be reported. This study aimed to investigate which food consumption norms in relation to gender, age and income are currently held by the UK population. A secondary research objective was to investigate whether these consumption norms were held equally across people in different age groups and genders within the sample population.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 498 adults participated in an online survey composed of statements on consumption patterns based on gender, age and income for nine foods (e.g. red meat) and five meal patterns (e.g. take-away meals). E.g. “Men tend to eat more red meat than women.” Participants reported their agreement/disagreement with these statements.FindingsThe results indicate that participants have perceived consumption norms that are associated with gender, age and income. Lower energy-dense foods and smaller meal patterns were generally associated with females, older persons and individuals with a higher income. In contrast, more energy-dense foods and meal patterns were generally associated with males, younger adults and individuals with a lower income. These consumption norms were held consistently across the population sample.Originality/valueTo the best of our knowledge, this is the first explicit demonstration of food consumption norms based on age and income.

Some Latine youth from rural migrant farmworker communities engage in farmwork to help support themselves and their families. Although research has documented their motives for working and some characteristics of their employment, knowledge about how these youth construct their work in the fields and how such experiences relate to their positive development is needed to depict their holistic experiences. Using mixed methods, we explored youth's farmwork experiences and examined how these experiences relate to youth's prosocial behaviors, civic responsibility, and ego-resiliency. Data are from a mixed-method study of Latine youth and parents in rural and agricultural families in the U.S. Midwest. The present study uses qualitative data from a subsample of 47 youth ( Mage  = 11.42, 48.8% boys) who participated in interviews and survey activities. Thematic coding of the interviews revealed sociocognitive, socioemotional, skilled-related, and physical experiences, as well as prosocial considerations that included perspective taking, moral reasoning, and empathetic concern. Integrating qualitative and quantitative data showed that these experiences were distinctively associated with higher other-oriented and lower self-oriented prosocial behaviors and higher ego-resiliency. Further, farmworker youth also showed significantly lower civic efficacy, indicating that farmwork may discourage some aspects of civic responsibility. The results can inform policy and program designs on promoting Latine youth's positive development in the face of adversity, such as by highlighting character development and bridging youth engagement with civic spheres.

The family stress model of economic hardship (FSM; Conger & Conger, 2002; Conger et al., 1991) provided one of the first empirically tested models to explain the mechanisms linking economic disadvantage to children's well-being and remains relevant and central to a wide range of families-both in the United States and globally-today. However, the identification of resilience processes that buffer, counteract, or mitigate the stress processes outlined in the model has remained limited. The collection of articles in this special issue of the Journal of Family Psychology seeks to advance FSM scholarship through incorporating empirical tests of resilience processes within an FSM framework. The articles reflect how the FSM can address stress processes experienced by diverse families, as well as the strengths and resources that help them adapt and succeed. Two invited commentaries are also included. The first provides a brief social history of the FSM and future directions, and the second provides a synthesis and critique of the articles, as well as where scholarship on this topic can advance in the future. In this introduction, the authors provide a summary of prior research utilizing the FSM, an overview of the special issue, and directions for future research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Objectives Using a national sample of Americans, this study estimated and compared patterns of depressive symptom trajectories stratified by military service. This study then examined associations between sociodemographic factors theorized to shape entry into military service and trajectory patterns. Method Data came from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, a nationally representative study that followed participants from adolescence (1994-1995) through midlife (2016-2018). Latent growth mixture modeling was used to estimate depressive symptom trajectories among civilians (n=17,644) and participants who served in the military (n=1,266). Associations between trajectory membership and sociodemographic factors were tested with multinomial regression. Results Trajectories were best represented by 4-class linear models. “Low” was the largest class, representing 74.4% of civilians and 70.4% of those who served. The second largest class, “low then increasing,” was comprised of 13.6% of civilians and 19.6% of service members. The third smallest class, “high then decreasing” class, included 8.8% of civilians and 4.5% of service members. An “increasing” class emerged with high depressive symptoms by midlife, comprised of 3.2% of civilians and 5.5% of those who served. Gender and family structure had robust associations with trajectory membership. Discussion A larger percentage of those who served were in the “increasing” trajectory characterized by concerningly high depressive symptoms by midlife, underscoring the need for continued screening in depressive symptoms throughout the life course. Associations between family structure and gender on depressive symptoms support calls for conceptualizing family structure as a social determinant of health and continued investment in women’s health.

Latina immigrant mothers living in emerging immigrant destinations often face geographic isolation, discrimination, and socioeconomic stress that adversely affect parenting and mental health. This longitudinal mixed-methods study examined whether neighborhood cohesion contributed to parental knowledge among Latina immigrant mothers in predominantly rural Midwestern communities and whether maternal mental health mediated this relation. Quantitative data (N = 232, Mage = 38.7 years, 60% married, median household income = $30k-$40k) showed that higher neighborhood cohesion at Wave 1 was associated with greater parental knowledge at Wave 2, indirectly through lower levels of maternal mental health problems. Qualitative interviews (N = 19) enriched these findings by revealing that even weak social connections could provide meaningful instrumental, informational, and emotional support. However, barriers like racial discrimination and resource scarcity limited the potential benefits of neighborhood cohesion for some mothers. Together, these findings highlight the indirect role of neighborhood cohesion in supporting parenting by reducing psychological distress and underscore the importance of strengthening community-based support systems for Latina immigrant mothers in emerging immigrant destinations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Objectives: We tested an extended family stress model of economic hardship (FSM; Conger et al., 2010) incorporating structural risks (discrimination, immigration, and COVID-19 experiences) and qualitative data, to better understand the impact of culturally relevant experiences on family stress processes in rural, immigrant Latine families in the U.S. Midwest. Method: Participants were Latine families (N = 307) with a child aged 10-15 (M-age = 12.21 years, 51.0% boys; 71.5% two parent; 93.1% of caregivers and 29% of youth born outside the United States) Mean household income was 25-30K and 65% of caregivers had less than a high school education. We tested a cross-sectional structural equation model in Mplus and analyzed qualitative interviews with a subsample of mother-youth dyads (n = 19). Results: COVID-19 experiences predicted economic pressure, and both COVID-19 and discrimination experiences were linked to caregiver psychological distress. Consistent with the FSM, economic pressure predicted psychological distress, which was associated with interparental relationship problems and parenting. Parenting was associated with youth global health. Unexpectedly, interparental relationship problems to parenting were not significant. The indirect association linking COVID-19 experiences to youth global health via psychological distress and parenting was significant. Qualitative data revealed five themes demonstrating how structural and economic risks contributed to distress, conflict, and maladjustment within the family system. Conclusions: Culturally relevant structural risks exert a negative influence on family processes in rural Latine immigrant families through contributing to economic pressures and parental distress. The additional impact of these experiences should be considered when addressing the FSM in Latine populations.

Social media plays a dominant role in emerging adults' lives, with evidence showing that it can contribute to elevated levels of psychological distress. However, existing findings are contradictory, insofar as the connection between social media use (SMU) and psychological distress remains unclear. To gain a better insight into the above relationship, we focused on different styles of engagement with social media (active social, active non-social, and passive) and examined whether their impact on depression, anxiety and stress symptoms is mediated by loneliness. Data were collected via an online survey from 288 emerging adults in the UK. It was found that increased passive SMU was associated with higher anxiety, depression and stress symptoms; loneliness was associated with both SMU and psychological distress, while increased active non-social media use was associated with decreased stress. However, loneliness showed significant mediation effects only on the relation between passive SMU and psychological distress. Limitations, future research directions and suggestions for practice are discussed.

This study examined the relationship between the accuracy of parental reporting of children's sleep duration compared to objectively measured child sleep and tested whether any discrepancies were related to childhood obesity prevalence in a sample of Latinx families (N = 119). A paired sample t-test revealed that parents significantly overestimated their child's sleep duration by 1.33 hours, t(86) = 6.69, p < .001. Using a one-way ANOVA, no significant differences were found in children's BMI percentile when grouped by the parent's accuracy of their child's sleep duration F(3, 83) = .76, p = .52. A potential, although non-significant, trend regarding parent accuracy and child BMI may merit further examination. Future research should seek to determine if the discrepancy in parent reported child sleep duration is indeed linked with increased child BMI and if this knowledge could be used in targeted intervention efforts to reduce childhood obesity.

Latino/a children in migrant farmworker (LMFW) families are an underrepresented student subpopulation at high risk of school-dropout. To understand the factors that contribute to school competency in children in LMFW families, this mixed-method study examined academic mastery and explored perspectives from children, mothers, and Migrant Education Program (MEP) providers. Youth in LMFW families aged 8–18 (N = 65, Mage = 12.9, 52

OBJECTIVESWe explore the experiences of people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (pwME/CFS) during the first UK COVID-19 lockdown period. We specifically probe perceived commonalities and departures in experience between government- and health-imposed lockdowns, application of coping strategies for social isolation, and predictions for inclusion of the chronically ill in post-pandemic society.METHODS AND MEASURESThirty semi-structured interviews were conducted in pwME/CFS between June - July, 2020. Responses were qualitatively analysed using an experiential, thematic framework.RESULTSWhile participants reported enhancements in digital accessibility during lockdown, they perceived this as an unintentional benefit from changes designed to cater universally. Similarly, their expectation was that the general population's limited experience of restriction would not engender greater understanding for those who would continue to experience health-imposed lockdowns, post-pandemic. Participants described numerous strategies for coping with restriction and isolation, developed during prior health-imposed lockdowns and applied to this novel circumstance, highlighting the presence of acceptance and resilience in the sample.CONCLUSIONSOur findings suggest that future work may fruitfully examine whether our participant's predictions for post-pandemic societal inclusion have been met, and how resilience and acceptance might be developed and nurtured in chronically ill populations through times of adversity.

Little is known about preservice depressive symptoms, their linkages to subsequent depressive symptoms, and the role of sociodemographic factors in shaping depressive symptoms of those who serve in the military. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (n = 18,910), we modeled depressive symptom trajectories from baseline (Mage = 15.67) through midlife and compared differences in depressive symptoms between participants who did and did not enter military service. Those who served in the military went on to develop lower levels of depressive symptoms than civilians during their prime military service years, even after accounting for sociodemographic factors that shape pathways into military service. Differences in depressive symptoms by military affiliation were no longer significant by their mid-30s. Results provided a more complete account of depressive symptom patterns associated with military service by including data on individuals before and during military service.

The COVID-19 pandemic had significant health and socioeconomic repercussions for Latine immigrant families and their children due to long-standing social, economic, and immigration-related inequities, with rural families particularly vulnerable. In particular, the mental health and well-being of Latine youth may have been detrimentally impacted due to disproportionate family stressors and burdens. In the present study, we examined the effect of parent and youth COVID-19 pandemic stress on youth mental health, and in turn, on youth well-being using quantitative and qualitative data. Participants were Latine youth in rural and agricultural families in the US Midwest (N = 210, Mage = 12.10 years, 52.4% male, 36.2% first-generation immigrants) and a primary caregiver (86.5% mothers, 92.7% first-generation immigrant, mean income = 25-30 K) as well as n = 19 dyadic qualitative interviews. Quantitative analyses revealed that both youth and primary caregiver COVID-19 stressors were associated with youth mental health problems, and indirectly impacted five domains of youth well-being (engagement, perseverance, optimism, connectedness, and happiness). Qualitative findings provided insights into how the COVID-19 pandemic increased stress for mothers and children (e.g., job loss and economic hardship, COVID-19 infection, online education challenges). The study demonstrates how the environmental context of the COVID-19 pandemic shaped the individual and family-level functioning of Latine immigrant families during this uniquely challenging time period.

Although high school completion rates for Latinx adolescents have improved, rural Latinx youth experience more barriers to academic success than their urban counterparts. Using a culturally informed model, we tested prospective associations between adolescents’ Wave 1 familism values (cultural values emphasizing the importance of family relationships and connections) and Wave 2 academic competencies in a sample of predominantly rural Latinx adolescents ( N = 123) in the U.S. Midwest. We also examined whether youth-reports of mother’s and father’s warm parenting at Wave 1 and 2 moderated these associations. Familism values predicted higher self-reported school attachment and academic aspirations and expectations. Neither maternal nor paternal warmth predicted school attachment, academic aspirations, or academic expectations. Maternal warmth at Wave 2, but not at Wave 1, moderated the positive associations between familism and academic aspirations and expectations. These associations were more pronounced under circumstances of low maternal warmth. Paternal warmth did not significantly moderate the proposed associations predicting academic aspirations and expectations. Paternal warmth at Wave 1, but not at Wave 2, moderated the positive association between familism and school attachment. This association was stronger in the context of low paternal warmth. Results emphasize the joint roles of culture and parenting context for fostering academic competence in Latinx youth living in primarily rural regions of the Midwest during a critical developmental stage.