Being Mexican: Strengths and Challenges of Mexican-Origin Adolescents, Essays (university) of English Literature

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Being Mexican: Strengths and Challenges of Mexican-Origin Adolescents Krista M. Malott Villanova University

Abstract This article provides outcomes of a qualitative inquiry with 20 adolescents of Mexican origin, all of whom have lived in the United States at least two years. Questions addressed the perceived strengths and challenges related to the participants’ ethnic heritage. Findings indicated the greatest perceived challenge was discrimination. Strengths were identified as pride in one’s heritage and the ability to overcome difficulties and to respond effectively to discrimination. Suggestions for applying findings to school counselor practices are provided.

Foreign-born youth experience multiple stressors related with immigration, including the severing of ties to friends and families and a loss of coping and financial resources (Hovey, 2000). In addition, they must adapt to a new culture in their new settings (Williams & Butler, 2003), while faced with language barriers, cultural conflicts and the prejudice of others (Hovey, 2000; Krupin, 2001). Foreign born youth have higher dropout rates than their native-born counterparts (22.8%). Factors related to drop out for this population are cited as work demands, schooling difficulties before migration, experiences of racial and ethnic biases, and factors related to poverty (Pew Hispanic Center, 2005). Native-born Mexicans share many similarities with their first generation, foreign- born counterparts. For instance, both experience high dropout rates and a high participation in the labor force related to low-paying, service or Migrant type jobs (Cornelius, 2006). They possess historical and linguistic similarities. In addition, the two groups share multiple cultural traits. For instance, in a study of predominantly foreign- born and first generation Mexicans (Niemann, Romero, Arredondo, & Rodriguez, 1999), cultural traits identified by all participants as meaningful included commitment to family, a strong work ethic, and the importance of celebrations. Participants in that study also recognized and honored traditional gender roles and hierarchical structures in relationships. Finally, considering that both first generation and foreign-born Mexicans have Mexican parents, both adolescent groups must balance a loyalty to family and Mexican culture, language, and traditions with pressures to conform to diverging peer, school, and work expectations (Holleran & Waller, 2003; Rumbaut, 2005).

Considering the multiple stressors or challenges experienced by individuals of Mexican origins, mental health professionals could offer such a population essential support and services. However, the Latino population overall has shown a tendency to underutilize counseling services (Cabassa, Zayas, & Hansen, 2006), with the lowest rate of utilization being that of Mexican-born individuals (Vega, Kolody, Aguilar-Gaxiola, & Catalano, 1999). In addition, for those who do seek services, there is a higher rate of client attrition than for Whites, predominantly related to language and cultural barriers or culturally irrelevant services (Barrio et al., 2006; Lopez, Bergren, & Painter, 2008; Ruiz, 2002). As an example, counselors may attempt to apply interventions or theories informed by an Anglo, dominant-culture paradigm, such as focusing on resolving a problem identified as existing within the client, when that issue may actually be part of the system itself (such as problems created by acculturative stress within the family). In addition, Latino clients may possess world views or preferences for indigenous healing practices that the counselor refuses, or is unable, to honor (Comas-Díaz, 2006). Finally, in school settings, school counselors may lack knowledge or cultural awareness regarding effective identity development in relation to Mexican-origin youth. They may be unaware of the importance of addressing youth ethnic identity in promoting strengths specific to Mexican-origin youth (Kiang, Yip, Gonzales-Backen, Witkow, & Fuligni, 2006). Ethnic Identity A major task of adolescence is to solidify a sense of identity (Erikson, 1968). Ethnic identity is one aspect of self identity and can be defined as an affiliation and

individuals of color, and corroborates findings from earlier studies confirming a lack of salience of ethnicity in general for Whites and the importance of it for persons of color (Phinney, 1989; Phinney & Tarver, 1988). Experts have asserted this to be true due to the significance of minority status in the eyes of the larger society (Fuligni, Witkow, & Garcia, 2005). There are many benefits to be gained for Latinos who perceive the positive aspects of their ethnic identities. For instance, embracing positive feelings toward one’s ethnic group has been shown to increase youth psychosocial adjustment (Schwartz, Zamboanga, & Jarvis, 2007). Other researchers have positively linked ethnic identity and well-being (Umaña-Taylor, 2004; Ryff, Keyes, & Hughes, 2003). Academically, increased levels of Latino ethnicity have been correlated with positive school adjustment (Phinney, Horenczyk, Liebkind, & Vedder, 2001), academic achievement (Ong, Phinney, & Dennis, 2006), and school engagement (Shin, Daly, & Vera, 2007). Hence, evidence would suggest the importance of counselors addressing youth ethnic identity, particularly in middle and secondary school settings, where young persons may be initiating the process of ethnic self-exploration. Pride in one’s ethnic identity can build resilience against the negative effects of multiple environmental stressors. Increased counselor understanding of how ethnic identity plays a supportive role, and meaningful aspects of youth ethnicity, can increase school counselors’ abilities to help such clients embrace and value their identities. Attending to Latino clientele and their needs requires knowledge of the population, including the uniqueness across Latino subgroups. The purpose of this study was to increase understanding of the challenges and strengths Mexican youth

perceive related to being Mexican. The following section describes methodology and the interview process that was used to explore how youth draw on their ethnic characteristics for resiliency in addressing environmental challenges. Findings are then applied to counselors in school settings. Method A phenomenological methodology was applied in this study. This tradition entails an in-depth exploration of a phenomenon, in an attempt to identify and describe the general essence of a lived experience shared across individuals (Patton, 1990). Emphasis in this tradition is upon understanding how participants make sense of a phenomenon and how their behavior is influenced by their own understanding (Maxwell, 2005). The uncovering of meaning is accomplished through dialogue with participants, eliciting everyday descriptions regarding the phenomenon studied; in this case, that of making meaning of one’s ethnicity. Participants The participants (see Table 1) were 20 individuals of Mexican origin, ages 14 to 18 (M=16). Participants resided in a small, mid-Atlantic city with a sizeable Mexican population and school district with a 33% Latino-descent population. Nine participants were male, 11 were female. Participant selection was based on similarities regarding age, language ability (Spanish), ethnicity, parentage (e.g., the youth had to have both parents born in Mexico), and parent work status as service workers, allowing the youth to experience similarities across culture, history, and language. Sixteen participants were born in Mexico, two were born in the States but returned shortly after to Mexico for different time periods, and two were born in the States but had returned regularly to

Mexico. The average number of years of residence in the U.S. was 7.85, ranging from 2 to 16 years. The majority of participants (n=18) reported an advanced level of Spanish proficiency, and 2 indicated an intermediate level. Language preference for daily use was cited predominantly as both Spanish and English (n=15). Eight individuals reported family income. Of those, 2 were middle income ($37,774 - $60,000), 3 were lower middle income ($20,035 - $37,774), and 3 were lower income (below $20,035). All parents’ jobs were reported as labor or service jobs. Data Collection Study procedures were approved by the principle investigator’s University Institutional Review Board. A target number of 20 participants were selected with the goal of data saturation, or redundancy, in an effort to verify that all possible responses would be explored. Participants were identified and interviewed at a youth community center. They were purposively selected (Polkinghorne, 2005), meeting the following eligibility criteria: ages 14 to 18, and both parents of Mexican descent. An attempt was made to equally represent males and females. The community center’s director and employees aided in the recruitment of participants, handing out and collecting consent forms signed by parents. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were selected as an appropriate medium for giving voice to the realistic experiences of adolescents. An interview guide was developed, and questions were built upon prior research regarding ethnicity with Latinos (e.g., Bernal, Knight, Ocampo, Garza, & Cota, 1993; Hurtado, Gurin, & Peng,1994; Jones-Correa & Leal, 1996; Malott, 2009). Inquiry explored the adolescents’ perceived

challenges and strengths related to their ethnic identities. Those questions were open ended, allowing for additional exploration of responses as they emerged. Interviews were conducted in English or Spanish (or bilingually), according to each participant’s preference. Interviews lasted from 30 to 90 minutes, with the average interview lasting 45 minutes. All conversations were audio recorded, following introduction of the researcher and topic and review of the participants’ rights. Interviews were completed with a demographic questionnaire and a $10 gift certificate as thanks for contributing. Data Analysis A phenomenological data analysis procedure was implemented. Procedures were followed according to suggestions by Morrissette (1999). Audio tapes were transcribed verbatim by the author and two graduate students. The recordings were checked against transcriptions in various sections, to verify transcription accuracy. The written interviews were then reviewed, along with field notes, to achieve an overall impression of the interview experience and to cross check findings (LeCompte & Preissle, 1993). A team of two assistant professors and one graduate and one undergraduate student assisted in analyzing the data. Because of the differing levels of knowledge across the team regarding analytic procedures, the principle author devoted several meetings to informing members regarding the phenomenological data analysis process. During training, to increase familiarity with one another’s assessment of the data, team members identified thematic codes for several pages of data, and codes were compared and contrasted and explanation for code selection was shared.

participants and team members, and records of emerging themes and influences upon data collection and analysis (Morrow, 2005). Credibility (related to internal validity) was established through development of researcher reflexivity through field notes, immersion in the data, and use of personal quotations to provide a rich description of participants’ experiences. Additionally, participant checks were implemented through use of email, whereby each participant was sent a copy of their typed interview and a summary of the interview that included identified themes. Those who provided feedback largely indicated that they found the summaries and thematic findings accurate. Changes were made for only one participant indicating who noted a misinterpretation of her interview, whereby she clarified level of importance for her values according to religion and family (e.g., she perceived that we had interpreted those values as more important to her than they actually were). Results Themes identified (Table 2) as significant were those found in half or more of the transcripts and in relation to the research questions regarding perceived strengths and challenges of being Mexican. Themes related to challenges were cited as discrimination or related stereotypes. Themes entailing strengths were pride in one’s ethnicity and working hard to overcome difficulties , and participants’ responses to discriminatory experiences. Challenges Participants cited a total of eight different challenges related to their ethnicities, including challenges related to poverty, immigration status (or a lack of), and the conflict between Latino subgroups (e.g., between those that had been in the States for several

Table 2 Thematic Findings and Representative Quotes

Second Order Theme First Order Theme Representative Statements Challenges Discrimination “Just because you‘re Mexican, [they assume] you’re undocumented … taking away jobs … you’re one of those, like, gangster people … who steal … who get high … you’re gonna drop out … you’re gonna be pregnant.” Strengths Pride “I’m proud of being Mexican because I learned my heritage and I know my history.” “I like myself a lot because I’m Mexican.” “The Mexican people are my family and I feel proud to be a part of them.” Working Hard to Overcome Difficulties

“It takes a lot of courage to come to another country with no English, with nothing behind you, no money.” “[My dad] worked hard to provide us with what we have now and I mean, it’s just overcoming struggle.” Responses [to Discrimination]

“[I] just ignore it” “I will fight for it” “When someone looks down on me, I try harder to make my way up.”

Another participant cited a stereotype related to language proficiency, saying, “they think that I don’t speak English … this happened yesterday, they started talking to me like I didn’t know English.” Several males discussed experiencing profiling by the police, as a result of stereotyping. They described this as a singling out by police and subsequent hassling, when driving or walking in public. Many of the participants noted a shared experience of oppression or mistreatment with African Americans. As one youth stated, “we’re not seen like Americans … we are [seen] like the Afro-Americans, like criminals.” The participants also believed that others viewed them as less capable or intelligent as their Anglo peers. One youth described her reaction to this stereotype, saying, “I was very hurt because people … thought I was not good enough or that I couldn’t do it.” That stereotype manifested itself in the schools as lowered academic expectations by teachers or counselors. One teen explained of the teachers, “They all expect you to do bad in classes and they don’t pay attention to you because they all think you’re going to fail anyway.” One teen described moving to a new school district and immediately being placed into a class for students with lower academic skills. He explained, “In this school district, not many of my type made it very far, sadly … it took a while to get back on par, and I [still] don’t think I’m on par.” In another instance, a school counselor advised a youth who hoped to attend a Big-Ten university that he “‘should look more at the smaller schools.’” He perceived that the school counselor believed he would fail academically because he was Mexican. However, he had been prepared for such advice, and he eventually went on to a Big-Ten university. He explained, “when I walked out of there …

I was laughing because I knew … she was going to tell me that, because it was something that they told my sister, also.” Strengths Participants cited a total of ten different strengths related to their ethnicities, including the perception that being bilingual and bicultural increased career options and made them unique, in a positive way, in the eyes of others. However, only three strengths were cited by 50% or more of the adolescents. These included pride, working hard to overcome difficulties , and responses to discrimination. Pride. Pride in one’s Mexican traits was the most frequently noted strength. Representative comments of this theme included, “I’m proud of saying that I’m Mexican,” “I like myself a lot because I’m Mexican,” and “I’m proud of myself being from there [Mexico].” Pride was related to multiple aspects of Mexican traits, including pride regarding one’s appearance, culture, and history. As one youth explained, “I am proud of being a Mexican because I learned my heritage and I know my history.” In turn, she eventually joined a Mexican dance troupe as an expression of that pride. Pride was also reflected in the participants’ experiences of solidarity with the Mexican people in general. As one youth explained, “in Mexico, we are all like family,” and another: “ellos [Mexicans] son mi familia y me siento orgullo de ser parte de ellos,” (the Mexican people are my family and I feel pride to be a part of them). Friends, mentors, and family inspired or modeled pride for the adolescents. As one teen explained of her mentor, a professional in the community, “she would introduce herself … and [say] ‘I am Mexican American.’ She said it with such pride. I wanted to be proud of being a Mexican too.” Others cited family members as instilling

… with nothing behind you, with no money.” Similarly, another youth recognized his parents’ sacrifices and struggles in overcoming poverty: The part that I’m from, I mean, Mexico, there’s … really poor areas … and my dad had four kids … so there was no way for him to stay there. I mean, he worked hard to provide us with what we have now and I mean, it’s just overcoming struggle and that’s what I’m proud of. Several youth discussed facing peer pressure, particularly in relation to joining gangs. One youth described using pride in his identity as a tool for resistance. When faced with peers taking drugs or joining gangs, he explained, “that is the moment that I say ‘I’m Mexican and can overcome this.’” Youth described how sacrifices by parents and their own hard work inspired them to seek educational achievement. For instance, one youth explained that her decision to go to college and “get a really good job” was based on the challenges that her mother described facing in Mexico and then in the U.S. She stated that her mother, “told me … how it’s hard to get a job over there, and hard to get food to feed your families … she told me about her lifestyle, how it was over there and how it was here.” Another youth explained, “my parents told me that they are bringing me to the United States just to have a better life, to have a better education, to be something when I grow up.” In turn, he chose a future career in medicine, stating that it was important for him to “be smart or make my parents proud of me.” Responses. Participants were quick to describe ways they responded to discriminatory incidents or behaviors of others. Many responses were not necessarily visible to others, as several participants cited making conscientious decisions to, “just

ignore it … I am not going to let it put me down.” They explained that this decision was based on advice from family members. Similarly, several participants dismissed the offender, one stating, “I’m not going to let it bug me … there’s nothing I can do to change what they think or change what they believe.” Reactions of anger and frustration were common. However, several participants also cited an increase in ethnic pride as a positive response to discriminatory events. As one individual explained, “seeing that other people don’t accept you … it just made me think more and more about [being Mexican] and eventually just to be even prouder.” Other responses to discrimination were action-oriented in nature. As one participant stated, “there are times when I will fight for it,” and “when someone looks down on me, I try harder to make my way up. I like to work hard.” In the case of being perceived as a monolingual Spanish speaker, one youth explained, “I talk to them all sophisticated in English.” With peers, the adolescents described confronting and challenging prejudiced comments or acts. When faced with adults with lowered expectations, youth felt compelled to achieve more, academically, in an effort to disprove stereotypes regarding their abilities. For instance, one adolescent who was told to “go back to Mexico” decided, “I don’t want to hear more people telling me that. It was making me feel strong to keep studying, to keep studying my English class or my other classes.” Others got involved in the community, to combat stereotypes. One young woman explained: It is just hard sometimes when people think that you are like everyone else and that the whole Hispanic community is just trash and that is why … we started