The role of identity and psychosomatic symptoms as mediating the relationship between discrimination and risk behaviors among first and second generation immigrant adolescents

• Published in: Journal of adolescence (London, England.) Vol. 64; no. 1; pp. 34 - 47
• Main Authors: Walsh, Sophie D., Kolobov, Tanya, Raiz, Yair, Boniel-Nissim, Meyran, Tesler, Riki, Harel-Fisch, Yossi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2018; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Aggression; Aggressiveness; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Bullying; Child; Children; Children & youth; Cigarette Smoking - epidemiology; Cross-Sectional Studies; Discrimination; Drug abuse; Emigrants and Immigrants - psychology; Female; Fighting; Health behavior; Host and heritage identity; Humans; Identity; Immigrant adolescents; Immigrants; Israel; Male; Mental disorders; Noncitizens; Psychophysiologic Disorders - psychology; Psychosomatic symptoms; Risk behavior; Risk-Taking; Social Discrimination - psychology; Structural equation modeling; Substance abuse; Substance use; Surveys and Questionnaires; Symptoms; Teenagers; Israel; Substance use; Bullying; Fighting; Host and heritage identity; Discrimination; Psychosomatic symptoms; Immigrant adolescents
• ISSN: 0140-1971; 1095-9254
• DOI: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2018.01.004

The study examines psychosomatic symptoms, and host and heritage identities as mediators of the relationship between discrimination and aggressive behavior and substance use. Israeli data from the 2013-14 Health Behaviors of School-aged Children study included a representative sample of 1503 first- and second-generation immigrant adolescents aged 11–17 years (45.2% male) from the Former Soviet Union and Ethiopia in Israel. Structural equation modeling, controlling for age, gender, family affluence and immigrant generation, showed different pathways for the two groups. For FSU-heritage adolescents, the relationship between discrimination and aggressive behavior and substance use was partially mediated by psychosomatic symptoms. Lower host and heritage identities also predicted psychosomatic symptoms. For Ethiopian-heritage adolescents, the relationship between discrimination and outcomes was fully mediated by psychosomatic symptoms and a weaker host identity. Results support an externalizing model, whereby discrimination leads to a weaker host identity and increased psychosomatic symptoms, associated with substance use and aggressive behavior.