Perceived discrimination, cultural identity development, and intimate partner violence among a sample of Hispanic young adults.
OBJECTIVE
Despite the prevalence of interpersonal violence (IPV), scientific understanding of the risk and protective factors for unidirectional and bidirectional IPV, and especially the role of sociocultural variables in these behaviors, is limited. This study investigates the association between ethnic-identity search, ethnic-identity affirmation, perceived discrimination, and unidirectional (victimization only, perpetration only) and bidirectional (reciprocal violence) IPV behaviors among foreign-born and U.S.-born Hispanic young adults.


METHODS
Data are from Project RED (Reteniendo y Entendiendo Diversidad para Salud), a study investigating the effect of psychosocial and sociocultural factors on health behavior among a community sample of Hispanic young adults in Southern California (n = 1,267).


RESULTS
Approximately 40% of the sample reported unidirectional or bidirectional IPV, with significant gender differences across the three categories. Compared with men, women had approximately 70% lower odds of victimization (OR = 0.31, 95% CI = 0.15-0.71), over twice the odds of perpetration (OR = 2.53, 95% CI = 1.98-3.62), and 35% higher odds (OR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.04-1.81) of bidirectional IPV. Higher ethnic-identity affirmation was protective for victimization (OR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.81-0.99) and bidirectional IPV (OR = 0.72, 95% CI = 0.62-0.89), whereas higher perceived discrimination scores increased the odds for bidirectional IPV (OR = 1.37 95% CI = 1.26-1.56) and was particularly detrimental for foreign-born participants.


CONCLUSIONS
Intervention strategies should consider gender-specific risk profiles, cultural contexts, and the influence of sociocultural stressors. Addressing the harmful effects of perceived discrimination and leveraging the protective effects of ethnic-identity affirmation may be promising IPV-prevention strategies for Hispanic young adults. Future research directions and implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record
Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Twin Cities.
Myriam
M
Forster
Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California.
Timothy J
TJ
Grigsby
Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California.
Daniel W
DW
Soto
Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California.
Steve Y
SY
Sussman
Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California.
Jennifer B
JB
Unger
D000069:Acculturation; D000293:Adolescent; D002140:California; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology*; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D000066511:Intimate Partner Violence / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012933:Social Identification; D055815:Young Adult