title: A Longitudinal Study of Cultural Adaptation among Mexican and Dominican Immigrant Women.
abstract: The present longitudinal study examined cultural adaptation (i.e., acculturation and enculturation) and its correlates in a sample of 189 Mexican and Dominican immigrant women. Acculturation and enculturation were measured within the domains of language competence, identity and cultural knowledge at two time points over a one-year period. Across groups and domains, cultural adaptation was generally stable over time; only American cultural knowledge showed change, and only for MA women. Several correlates of cultural adaptation were identified. For Mexican women, living in poverty and in immigrant-dense neighborhoods was associated with lower acculturation. For Dominican women, age at immigration was the most robust correlate and was associated with more acculturation and less enculturation, though poverty and neighborhood characteristics emerged as significant for Dominican women too. Findings are consistent with the notion of cultural adaptation as a complex construct that is influenced by cultural context as well as individual immigrant characteristics.
authors.affiliation: New York University School of Medicine Child Study Center.
authors.forename: Esther J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Calzada
authors.affiliation: New York University School of Medicine Child Study Center.
authors.forename: Keng-Yen
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: New York University School of Medicine Child Study Center.
authors.forename: Maite
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Covas
authors.affiliation: New York University School of Medicine Child Study Center.
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ramirez
authors.affiliation: New York University School of Medicine Child Study Center.
authors.forename: Laurie Miller
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Brotman
keywords: Latino population; acculturation; enculturation; immigrant women