Citation
Perreira, Krista M. & Smith, Luke B. (2007). A Cultural-Ecological Model of Migration and Development: Focusing on Latino Immigrant Youth. Prevention Researcher, 14(4), 6-9.Abstract
If current trends continue, over 20% of American children will be the children of immigrants and many will be Latino within the next decade (Urban Institute, 2006). Thus, health, education, and prevention professionals will likely work with immigrant youth at some point in their careers. This article provides professionals with a cultural-ecological model for understanding the experiences and social identities of immigrant youth, especially Latino immigrant youth. This model builds on research arguing that cultures, lifestyles, and developmental outcomes among ethnic minority children reflect adaptive responses to contextual demands in their families, schools, and neighborhoods. Additionally, it builds upon scholarship that places the development of immigrant youth in the context of migration and settlement. This perspective rejects deficit models that presume that normative development for children in white middle-class families should be the basis for development in non-white ethnic minority families. Instead, in this article, the authors argue that adaptive developmental pathways for the children of immigrants and ethnic minority youth can be best understood as a function of five major constructs: (1) Child Characteristics; (2) Family Context; (3) Context of Migration; (4) Context of Settlement; and (5) Ethnic Identification. The article concludes with a discussion of this model's implication for policy and practice. (Contains 1 figure and 1 table.)URL
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ793962Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
2007Journal Title
Prevention ResearcherAuthor(s)
Perreira, Krista M.Smith, Luke B.