Copyright 1992 by The Geronwlogical Society of America

Journal of Gerontology: SOCIAL SCIENCES 1992. Vol. 47, No. 6.S279-S288

Acculturation and Psychological Distress in Three Groups of Elderly Hispanics Neal Krause1'2 and Linda M. Goldenhar2 'School of Public Health and institute of Gerontology, University of Michigan.

of acculturation on psychological distress in THEthreeimpact groups of elderly Hispanics — Cuban Americans, Mexican Americans, and older adults who were born in Puerto Rico — was examined in this study. Throughout, an emphasis is placed on the long-term effects of immigration into the United States. Two potentially important intervening mechanisms that are thought to link assimilation with well-being in later life are specified. In particular, this study focuses on the effects of financial problems and social isolation that may arise when older Hispanics are not fully acculturated into the mainstream Anglo culture. Most researchers who have studied the assimilation process have focused primarily on younger persons of Spanish origin. There are at least two reasons why it is important to study the process of assimilation in later life. First, the acculturation process can take a long time to unfold. In fact, there is some evidence that a significant number of older Hispanics are never fully assimilated into the dominant Anglo culture (e.g., Krause, Bennett, and Tran, 1989). Moreover, recent demographic projections suggest that there will be 7.9 million older Hispanics by the year 2050, making this group one of the fastest growing populations of elderly people in the United States (Myers, 1990). If the process of assimilation has effects that extend into later life and the population of elderly Hispanics is growing rapidly, then social service and health care providers must be able to identify and understand the special problems of older Hispanics so that services can be delivered in a more effective and efficient manner. The discussion that follows is divided into three sections. First, a conceptual model is developed that is designed to examine the relationship between acculturation and psychological distress among older Hispanics. Following this, the sample and study measures are presented. Finally, the conceptual model is estimated with data from a recent nationwide survey of Hispanic elderly persons in the United States. A Preliminary Model of Acculturation and Psychological Distress The conceptual model that is evaluated in this study is presented in Figure 1. The notation used in this diagram is

consistent with the notation devised by Joreskog and Sorbom (1988). It should be emphasized that the relationships among the constructs contained in this model were estimated after the effects of age and sex were controlled statistically. The basic theoretical thrust of the model is that members of selected Hispanic groups have different levels of education and that the level of educational attainment influences the degree of acculturation. The level of acculturation is, in turn, thought to affect exposure to ongoing financial problems and social isolation. Finally, financial problems and social isolation are hypothesized to increase psychological distress. The relationships among these constructs may be expressed as a series of structural equations in which the following latent constructs serve as endogenous or dependent variables: education, language acculturation, financial strain, social isolation, and psychological distress. The hypotheses linking the independent variables with each of these outcome measures are discussed below.

Ethnicity and educational attainment. — Most studies that examine acculturation among Hispanic people either focus solely on Mexican Americans or simply pool Hispanics from diverse cultural settings into a single aggregate group for data analysis purposes. The latter approach assumes implicitly that the background, resources, and migration experiences of all Hispanic groups are the same. The present study departs from this overly simplistic view by explicitly incorporating measures of Hispanic ethnicity into the conceptual model. More specifically, three dummy variables were created to represent the membership in three Hispanic groups: older Mexican Americans, elderly Cuban Americans, and older adults of Puerto Rican ancestry. Following standard procedures for analyses with dummy variables, persons of Cuban ancestry serve as the reference category. The relationship between Hispanic ethnicity and social class standing (as measured by education) is examined in the model depicted in Figure 1. Consistent with findings from research by Neidert and Tienda (1984), it is hypothesized that elderly Mexican Americans as well as older Puerto S279

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The goal of this study was to evaluate the relationship between acculturation and psychological distress in three groups of older adults who have immigrated from Mexico, Cuba, and Puerto Rico. Financial strain and social isolation are specified as intervening mechanisms that are thought to link acculturation with well-being in late life. Data from a recent nationwide survey of older Hispanics suggest that levels of psychological distress tend to vary across Hispanic groups and that these differences may be attributed in part to the complex interplay between educational attainment, language acculturation, financial strain, and social isolation.

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EDUCATION

LANGUAGE I ACCULTURATION V

n

2

) S

^ ISOLATION

Ricans will have less formal education than elderly Cuban Americans. Language acculturation. — Acculturation is assessed with a measure of English language use (the rationale for this approach is provided by Krause, Bennett, and Tran, 1989). According to the conceptual model, language acculturation is influenced by educational attainment as well as ethnic identity. It is hypothesized in Figure 1 that as the level of education increases, elderly Hispanics will report using English more frequently. This hypothesis is based on the observations of Padilla et al. (1988), who report that Hispanic immigrants with little formal education are more likely to be intimidated by formal methods of learning English (e.g., adult education classes) and, as a result, are less likely to learn the English language. Research indicates that there may be important variations in the use of English across the various groups of Hispanics. More specifically, Boswell and Curtis (1984) report that even when they are away from home, Cuban Americans are more likely to use Spanish than members of other Hispanic groups (see also Lacayo and Crawford, 1980). Based on these findings, it is predicted in Figure 1 that, compared to older Cuban Americans, elderly people who came from Mexico and Puerto Rico will tend to use English more frequently. Financial strain. — A basic premise in Figure 1 is that acculturation is related to psychological distress among older Hispanics primarily because Hispanics who are less assimilated will be more likely to encounter a series of secondary stressors than Hispanics who have become more acculturated into the dominant Anglo culture. As a first step in evaluating this assumption, we examine the relationship between acculturation and financial strain. Use of this particular stressor is justified because research indicates that Hispanic immigrants are especially likely to encounter economic problems upon coming to the United States (Golding, Potts, and Aneshensel, 1991; Padilla et al., 1988). It is hypothesized in Figure 1 that as levels of language acculturation increase, older Hispanics will report experiencing fewer financial problems. This hypothesis is sup-

Social isolation. — A number of studies suggest that social ties may play a significant role in the acculturation process (e.g., Griffith and Villavicencio, 1985). A measure of social isolation was incorporated into the model in order to evaluate these potentially important effects. As shown in Figure 1, social isolation is influenced by ethnic identification, education, language acculturation, and financial strain. Research by Boswell and Curtis (1984) indicates that upon coming to the United States, Cuban Americans tended to cluster in the Miami area, where they formed a tightly knit ethnic enclave. Because greater community cohesiveness is thought to promote greater social contact (Massey and Bitterman, 1985), it is hypothesized that older Mexican Americans and elderly Puerto Ricans will experience more social isolation than older people from Cuba. A growing body of research suggests that education is related to social isolation in later life (e.g., Krause, 1991). Presumably, this relationship is due to a number of factors, including the fact that education increases voluntary association participation (Danigelis, 1985), thereby providing the opportunity for greater contact with others (Hunter and Linn, 1981). Based on these findings, it is predicted that as the level of education increases, older Hispanics will report being less socially isolated. Research reviewed by Mahard-O'Donnell (1989) indicates that language barriers can promote social isolation by restricting access to the means of contacting others (e.g., limiting the use of public transportation). Consequently, it is hypothesized that as older Hispanics develop a better command of the English language, they will tend to experience less social isolation.

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&2

Figure 1. A model of acculturation and psychological distress.

ported by the work of Olmedo and Padilla (1978), who maintain that the better paying jobs in American society are restricted to those individuals with a command of the English language. Returning to Figure 1, it is further predicted that as levels of educational attainment decline, older Hispanics will report having greater financial difficulty. Although empirical support for this hypothesis can be found in a recent study of younger Mexican Americans (see Golding, Potts, and Aneshensel, 1991), we have been unable to identify any studies that have examined this relationship among older Hispanics. Apart from the effects of language acculturation and education, the literature suggests that some Hispanic groups may experience more financial strain than others. More specifically, research reviewed by Guarnaccia, Good, and Kleinman (1990) suggests that Puerto Ricans are more likely to encounter financial problems than members of other Hispanic groups. Consistent with these findings, it is predicted in Figure 1 that, compared to older Cuban Americans, elderly people who were born in Puerto Rico are more likely to experience financial strain. Similarly, research reported by Lacayo and Crawford (1980) suggests that elderly Mexican Americans have more economic problems than Cuban Americans. Consequently, it is predicted in Figure 1 that older Mexican Americans will be more likely to experience financial strain than elderly people who have immigrated from Cuba.

ACCULTURATION AND DISTRESS

Finally, a recent study by Krause (1991) suggests that financial strain may be associated with diminished social contact in part because economic problems tend to foster distrust of others. Drawing from these findings, it is predicted that as financial difficulties increase, elderly Hispanics will be more likely to report that they are socially isolated.

telephone survey consisted of all Hispanic origin people aged 65 and over. The total sample size consisted of 2,299 individuals, and the overall response rate was 80 percent. The sample used in the analyses presented below was restricted in two ways. First, only Mexican Americans, Cuban Americans, and Puerto Ricans were included. Persons in other Hispanic groups (e.g., Latin Americans) were excluded because there were not a sufficient number of cases in the remaining categories (i.e., there were only 280 cases in all the other groups combined). The sample was further restricted by limiting the analyses to only those individuals who had immigrated to the United States. This decision was based on preliminary analyses which indicate that 99 percent of the older Cuban Americans were born in Cuba and 100 percent of the elderly Puerto Ricans were born in Puerto Rico. This means that virtually every respondent born in the United States was of Mexican ancestry (i.e., only 48% of the Mexican Americans were immigrants). Including U.S.-born Mexican Americans in the analyses would have confounded migration status with Mexican ancestry. After imposing the two exclusion criteria described above, there were 1,532 cases available for analysis. Due to item nonresponse, the analyses performed in this study were based on the responses of 1,339 older Hispanics. Descriptive data on all study measures for the individuals in this group are presented in Table 1. In order to facilitate the interpretation of these data, it is necessary to briefly identify how these measures are scored. The variables are coded so that a high score indicates more education, greater use of the English language, more financial strain, greater social isolation, more depressive affect symptoms, more positive selffeelings, and a longer period of residence in the United States. Finally, a high score on the gender variable denotes women, and age is coded continuously in years. It should be emphasized that all of the statistics presented throughout this study are computed from weighted data.

Measures Table 2 contains the observed indicators that are used to measure the latent constructs depicted in Figure 1. The standardized factor loadings as well as the measurement error terms that were derived with the LISREL 7 statistical software program are included in this table to provide some preliminary information on the psychometric properties of these measures. One advantage of latent variable modeling is that the reliability and validity of the items are reflected in the factor loadings associated with each observed indicator. Although there are no firmly established guidelines in the literature, experience suggests that factor loadings in excess of .400 are generally acceptable. The data in Table 2 indicate that the factor loadings range from .404 to .941, suggesting that these measures have acceptable psychometric properties.

METHODS

Sample The data for this study come from the 1988 National Survey of Hispanic Elderly People. The sample for this

Education. — The total number of completed years of education was coded into a complex scheme consisting of 18 ordinal categories. This scoring procedure was created by

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Psychological distress. — As shown in Figure 1, psychological distress is assessed with two latent constructs that reflect a depressed affect as well as a positive affect. According to the model, psychological distress is affected by social isolation, financial strain, language acculturation, education, and ethnic identity. Many studies have linked social isolation with greater psychological distress in later life (e.g., Krause, 1991), including several studies involving Hispanic populations (see Miranda and Castro, 1985, for a review of this research). Consistent with these findings, it is hypothesized in Figure 1 that greater social isolation will be associated with increased psychological distress. It is further predicted that as the level of financial strain increases, older Hispanics will report experiencing more psychological distress. Support for this hypothesis may be found in research with younger as well as older Mexican Americans (e.g., Golding, Potts, and Aneshensel, 1991; Krause, Bennett, andTran, 1989). There is considerable disagreement in the literature on the impact of acculturation on psychological well-being among Hispanic immigrants (see Kaplan and Marks, 1990, for a recent review of this debate). We believe that cultural barriers confronting less acculturated Hispanics serve to inhibit their participation in mainstream society and, as a result, they are unable to enjoy such benefits available in Anglo culture as access to medical care. Consequently, it is hypothesized in Figure 1 that as older Hispanics become more acculturated, they will tend to experience less psychological distress. Many studies report an inverse relationship between social class and psychological distress (Kessler, Price, and Wortman, 1985). A direct link is specified in Figure 1 between social class (i.e., education) and psychological distress in order to evaluate this important effect. Research indicates that Puerto Ricans tend to experience more psychological distress than either Anglos or members of other Hispanic groups (e.g., Angel and Guarnaccia, 1989; Guarnaccia, Angel, and Worobey, 1989). Moreover, the literature further suggests that rates of depressive symptomatology tend to be higher among elderly Mexican Americans than among older Cuban Americans (Moscicki et al., 1987). Consistent with these findings, it is hypothesized in Figure 1 that compared to elderly Cuban Americans, older adults who were born in either Puerto Rico or Mexico will experience more symptoms of psychological distress.

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Table 1. Descriptive Data for All Study Measures Mexican Americans (« == 649)

Full Sample (N = 1,287) Variable Education Language acculturation Financial strain Social isolation Depressed affect Positive affect Age Gender Years in the U.S."

Cuban Americans (n == 384)

Puerto Ricans (« == 254)

X

SD

X

SD

X

SD

X

SD

5.78 2.63 1.53 .52 2.15 2.03 73.77 1.53 38.41

4.36 3.03 1.32 .65 .72 .97 6.97 .50 20.59

4.31 2.37 1.69 .47 2.14 2.13 74.38 1.48 47.77

3.60 2.79 1.36 .63 .76 .93 7.25 .50 21.24

8.30 2.35 1.19 .64 2.11 1.91 73.97 1.61 23.71

4.68 2.94 1.18 .69 .63 .91 6.74 .49 12.14

5.70 3.73 1.65 .46 2.23 1.96 71.93 1.54 37.03

3.88 3.48 1.32 .64 .74 1.04 6.26 .50 14.80

Table 2. Endogenous Study Measures Factor Loadings"

Measurement Errors 6

1.000

.000 d

Language Acculturation 1. How well does R speak English? 11 2. How well does R read English? f 3. How well does R write English?'

.779 .941 .902

.393 .115 .186

Financial Strain 1. Is not having enough money to live on a serious problem?^ 2. Is having too many medical bills a serious problem?"* 3. Use of food stamps? 11

.632 .528 .449

.601 .721 .798

Variables t), T]2

y\}

T\A

r\s

r\6

Item Descriptions Education 1. Highest grade level completed 0

Social Isolation' 1. During the past two weeks, did you get together socially with friends and neighbors? 2. During the past two weeks, did you go to a show or movie, sports event, club meeting, classes, or other group event?

.446

.801

.532

.717

Depressed Affect 1. In the past few weeks, have you felt so restless that you couldn't sit still?e 2. In the past few weeks, have you felt depressed and very unhappy?8 3. Is being anxious and worried a serious problem?J

.634 .687 .559

.598 .528 .688

Positive Affect6 1. In the last few weeks, have you felt proud because someone complimented you on something you had done? 2. In the last few weeks, have you felt pleased about having accomplished something? 3. In the last few weeks, have you felt that things were going your way?

.404 .697 .485

.837 .514 .765

"Standardized factor loading. The first-listed item for each latent construct was constrained to 1.0 in the unstandardized solution. b The measurement error estimates are from the standardized solution. 'Education was coded in the original data with a complex ordinal scheme ranging from no formal schooling (scored 1) to four years of college or more (scored 18). d Error term constrained to .000 in the unstandardized solution. c This item was scored in the following manner (coding in parentheses): not at all (0); poorly (1); fairly well (2); very well (3). Note that if the interview was conducted in English, the respondent was automatically assigned a score of 3 (speaks English very well). These items were coded in the following manner: not at all (0); poorly (1); fairly well (2); very well (3). sThese items were coded in the following manner: no (0); yes (1). h This item was coded in the following manner: R is not on food stamps and does not need them (0); R is now on food stamps (1); R is not on food stamps at the present time but feels that food stamps are needed (2). 'These items were coded in the following manner: yes (0); no (1). JThis item was coded in the following manner: was not a serious problem (0); was a serious problem (1).

the original collectors of the data and was the only measure of education available in the study. Language acculturation. — Language acculturation was measured with three observed indicators. These items assess

the self-rated ability to speak, read, and write English. It should be emphasized that if the interview was conducted in English, the respondent was automatically assigned the highest score on the first item, indicating that he or she speaks English very well.

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"Due to item nonresponse on this measure, the number of cases for this item only is as follows: full sample (N = 1,245), Mexican American (n = 628), Cuban American (/? = 377), Puerto Rican (n = 239).

ACCULTURATION AND DISTRESS

Financial strain. — Three observed indicators were also used to assess financial strain. These items measure problems associated with not having enough money as well as problems related to having too many medical bills. A word is in order about the third-listed item, which deals with the use of food stamps. As shown in the footnote associated with this indicator, the item is coded so that the highest score represents individuals who were not currently receiving food stamps, but who felt that they needed to do so. This coding scheme assumes that an individual who needs food stamps but is not getting them is in a more stressful situation than the person who is receiving food stamps (see Holden and Smeeding, 1990, for a discussion of this issue).

Psychological distress. — As discussed above, two latent constructs were used to assess nonspecific symptoms of psychological distress (i.e., depressed and positive affect). Three observed indicators were used to measure depressive affect symptoms. The first two items were taken from Bradburn's Affect Balance Scale (Bradburn, 1969). The third item (i.e., being anxious or worried) was devised especially for this study. The items used to assess the positive affect construct were also taken from the Affect Balance Scale.

Hispanic group identity. — As discussed above, three dummy variables were created to represent older Hispanics who identified themselves as being either Mexican American, Cuban American, or Puerto Rican. RESULTS

Table 3 contains the results of the analyses that were derived from estimating the model depicted in Figure 1. Before turning to the substantive findings in this table, it is important to first examine the fit of the model to the data. Several goodness-of-fit estimates are presented in the first footnote in Table 3. Taken as a whole, these estimates suggest that the model fits the data reasonably well. For example, the Adjusted Goodness of Fit Index (AGFI) is .932 (Joreskog and Sorbom, 1988). Although a minimum cutpoint score has not been established for this measure, experience suggests that AGFI values above .900 are acceptable. Similarly, the estimate provided by the Bentler and Bonett (1980) Normed Fit Index was .917, which exceeds the recommended value of .900. However, the estimate derived with Bollen's (1989) nonnormed fit index (.934) is only marginally close to the ideal value of 1.0. In order to facilitate the presentation of the substantive findings, the following discussion is divided into five sections. First, the relationship between Hispanic ancestry and education is examined. Following this, the correlates of language acculturation are reviewed. Next, the impact of the constructs shown in Figure 1 on financial strain is presented. The effects of the variables in the conceptual model on social

Table 3. Acculturation and Psychological Distress (/V = 1,287)a Dependent Variables Independent Variables Age Sex

Education

Language Acculturation

Financial Strain _ |2i***

Social Isolation

- .067*" (-.042)'

-.008 (-.001)

(-.005)

.119 (.004)

- .096*** (-.839)

-.030 (-.053)

-.015 (-.010)

.147*** (.064)

Mexican Americand

-.468*** (-4.079)

Puerto Ricand

- .250*** (-2.738)

270*** (.470) 323*** (.705) .652*** (.130)

Education Language acculturation

-.068 ( - .002)

242*** (.151)

.067 (.029)

-.130** (-.072)

.169*** (.133)

.128* (.070)

.027 (.019)

.056 (.028)

-.056 (-.004)

-.107* (-.005)

.047 (.015)

-.041 ( - .009)

.620*** (.552)

-.151* (-.097)

.007 (.009)

-.261** (-.242)

.408

.124

-.053 (-.004) _ 197***

-.194** (-.010) -.157* (-.039) .174* (.121)

Financial strain Social isolation

.399

.092** (.004) 173***

Positive Affect

-.032 (-.013) 205 *** (.083)

(-.071)

.172

Depressed Affect

.117

.221

(.096)

"The fit of the model to the data was x2 = 515.55; df = 112; GFI = .960; AGFI = .932; Bentler-Bonett A = .917; Bollen nonnormed A = .934. ••Standardized regression coefficient (Beta). c Unstandardized (metric) regression coefficient (b). d Binary variable with Cuban Americans as a reference group. *p < .05; **/; < .01; ***/; < .001.

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Social isolation. — Two observed indicators were used to measure social isolation (see Table 2). The first item focuses on visits with friends and relatives, and the second indicator evaluates participation in social events.

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Table 4. Decomposition of Effects

isolation are examined after this. Finally, the influence of all the study measures on psychological distress is reviewed.

Causal Effects Indirect (B)

Total (A + B)

- .468*" (-4.079)"

.000 (.000)

- .468* (-4.079)

-.250* (-2.738)

.000 (.000)

- .250* (-2.738)

Language Acculturation (r\2)/ Mexican American (£,)

.270* (.470)

-.305* (-.531)

-.035 (-.061)

Language Acculturation (y]2)/ Puerto Rican (£2)

.323* (.705)

-.163* (-.356)

.160* (.349)

Language Acculturation (T]2)/ Education (T],)

.652* (.130)

.000 (.000)

.652* (.130)

.242* .169* (.133)

.032 (.020) -.018 (-.014)

Financial Strain (T)3)/ Education (r\,)

-.053 ( - .004)

-.128* (-.009)

.151* (.119) -.181* (-.013)

Financial Strain (%)/ Language Acculturation (TI2)

-.197* (-.071)

.000 (.000)

-.197* (-.071)

Social Isolation (T)4)/ Mexican American (£,)

.067 (.029)

.144* (.063)

.211* (.092)

Social Isolation (TI4)/ Puerto Rican (£2)

.128* (.070)

.050 (.027)

.178* (.097)

Social Isolation (n4)/ Education (-n,)

-.194* (-.010)

-.134* (-.007)

-.328* (-.017)

Social Isolation (r\4)/ Language Acculturation (t]2)

-.157* (-.039)

-.034 ( - .009)

-.191* (-.048)

.174* (.121)

.000 (.000)

.174* (.121)

-.130* (-.072)

.196* (.109)

.066 (.037)

Depressed Affect (T)5)/ Puerto Rican (£2)

.027 (.019)

.116* (.081)

.143* (.100)

Depressed Affect (r\s)/ Education (T|,)

-.056 ( - .004)

-.084 (-.005)

-.140* ( - .009)

Depressed Affect (-n5)/ Language Acculturation (r\2)

.047 (.015)

-.124* (-.040)

-.077 (-.025)

Depressed Affect (-q5)/ Financial Strain (T|3)

.620* (.552)

.001 (.001)

.621* (.553)

Depressed Affect (•%)/ Social Isolation (-n4)

.007 (.009)

.000 (.000)

.007 (.009)

Positive Affect (TI6)/ Mexican American (£,)

.205* (.083)

-.032 (-.018)

.173* (.065)

Positive Affect (t]6)/ Puerto Rican (£2)

.056 (.028)

-.018 (-.025)

.038 (.003)

Positive Affect (TI6)/ Education (T|,)

-.107* (-.005)

.086* (.004)

-.021 (-.001)

Positive Affect (T)6)/ Language Acculturation (T)2)

-.041 (-.009)

.080* (.018)

.039 (.009)

Positive Affect (r\6)/ Financial Strain (T)3)

-.151* (-.097)

-.045* ( - .029)

-.196* (-.129)

Positive Affect (r\6)/ Social Isolation (T\4)

-.261* (-.242)

.000 (.000)

-.261* (-.242)

Dependent Variable/ Independent Variable

Correlates of language acculturation. — Returning to Table 3, the data initially appear to support the hypothesis that older Cuban Americans are less likely to use English (i.e., they are less acculturated) than members of the other Hispanic groups. In particular, the findings suggest that, compared to older Cuban immigrants, elderly people who came from either Mexico (b = .470; p < .001) or Puerto Rico (b = .705; p < .001) tend to be more acculturated into the dominant Anglo society. The findings presented in Table 3 also indicate that, as predicted, high levels of educational attainment are associated with greater language acculturation (Beta = .652; p < .001). When viewed in conjunction with the results presented above, the data suggest that levels of language acculturation among Hispanic immigrants are determined in part by the interplay between ethnic group identity and levels of educational attainment. Greater insight into the relationships among these measures can be obtained by examining the indirect effect of Hispanic group membership on language acculturation that operates through education. Recent developments in the LISREL 7 statistical software program make it possible to derive explicit estimates of the indirect as well as the total effects that operate through the linkages shown in Figure 1 (Joreskog and Sorbom, 1988). In addition, the program also computes standard errors, making it possible to determine whether the indirect and total effects are statistically significant. It is assumed by convention that a coefficient is significant at the .05 level if the unstandardized estimate is at least twice as large as its standard error. Table 4 contains a complete listing of the direct, indirect, and total effects that operate through the conceptual model. Although the direct effects reviewed above suggest that

Education (T^,)/

Mexican American (£,) Education (iq,)/ Puerto Rican (£2)

Financial Strain (T^)/ Mexican American (£,) Financial Strain (T)3)/ Puerto Rican (£2)

Social Isolation (r\4)l Financial Strain (-n3) Depressed Affect (T]5)/ Mexican American (£,)

(.151)

.274* (.171)

"Standardized regression coefficient (Beta). "Unstandardized (metric) regression coefficient (b). *Unstandardized coefficient is at least two times as large as its standard error.

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Direct (A)

Ethnicity and education. — Before reviewing the findings related to ethnicity it is necessary to briefly discuss the interpretation of findings involving dummy variable analyses. As Cohen and Cohen (1983) point out, the size of the standardized regression coefficient associated with a dummy variable depends upon the number of cases in each nominal category (e.g., the standardized estimate representing the impact of Mexican American ancestry on education will be affected by the number of Mexican Americans in the sample). Because this problem does not affect unstandardized regression coefficients, only metric regression estimates will be discussed whenever the impact of the Hispanic group identity measures is reviewed. The data in Table 3 reveal that, as predicted, older Cuban Americans report having higher levels of educational attainment than either elderly people of Mexican ancestry (b = -4.079; p < .001) or older adults from Puerto Rico (b = -2.738;/? < .001). These findings suggest that immigrants from selected Hispanic cultures do not possess the same resources (i.e., equivalent levels of education). As the results in subsequent sections will show, these resources may play an important role in shaping the financial and psychological well-being of older Hispanic immigrants.

ACCULTURATION AND DISTRESS

Factors affecting financial strain. — The data in Table 3 indicate that, as predicted, older Mexican American immigrants tend to report experiencing more financial problems than elderly immigrants from Cuba (b = .151; p < .001). Moreover, the data further reveal that elderly Puerto Ricans encounter more financial difficulties than older Cuban Americans (b = .133;/? < .001). The findings in Table 3 also tend to support the hypothesized relationship between language acculturation and financial strain. More specifically, the data suggest that as the level of language acculturation declines, older Hispanics report having more financial difficulties (Beta = — .197; p < .001). Turning to the findings presented in Table 4, the results indicate that neither the indirect effect of Mexican ancestry (b - .020) nor the indirect effect of Puerto Rican heritage on economic problems {b = - .014) is statistically significant. However, due to the significant direct effects reported ear-

lier, the resulting total effects reveal that older Mexican Americans (b = . 171 ;p < .05) and elderly Puerto Ricans (b = . 119; p < .05) tend to encounter more financial difficulties than older adults from Cuba. Earlier, it was hypothesized that lower levels of educational attainment would be associated with increased financial difficulties. The direct effects contained in Table 3 do not appear to support this hypothesis (Beta = — .053; not significant). However, before concluding that education does not affect financial strain, it is important to examine the indirect effects reported in Table 4. These data reveal that education exerts a significant indirect effect on financial strain that operates through language use (Beta = — . 128; /? < .05), suggesting that education is a significant factor in the genesis of financial problems among older Hispanics (total effect Beta = -.181;/? < .05). Two major findings emerged from the data reviewed in this section. First, the current economic problems of older Hispanic immigrants may be traced to resources attained earlier in life (i.e., the level of education) as well as their willingness or ability to be assimilated into the dominant Anglo culture (as assessed by language acculturation). Moreover, the data show that it is important to examine differences in the immigration experiences of elderly people with different Hispanic origins because older adults from some Hispanic groups (i.e., Puerto Ricans and Mexican Americans) are more likely to experience financial problems than elderly people with different Hispanic roots (i.e., Cuban Americans). As the findings in the following section will show, these factors may play an important role in shaping the social ties of elderly Hispanic immigrants. Constructs associated with social isolation. — Returning to Table 3, the data indicate that older Puerto Ricans (b = .070; p < .05), but not elderly Mexican Americans (b = .029; not significant), are more socially isolated than older Cuban Americans. It would appear, therefore, that the hypothesis that elderly Cuban Americans are less isolated than other Hispanics is only partially supported by the data. The findings in Table 3 further reveal that, as hypothesized, older Hispanics with lower levels of language acculturation tend to experience more social isolation (Beta = - . 1 5 7 ; p < .05). Similarly, increased financial strain is associated with greater isolation from others (Beta = .174;/? < .05). Taken together, the results reviewed in this section suggest that social isolation among elderly Hispanic immigrants is affected at least in part by the interplay between ethnic identity, language acculturation, and financial difficulties. The indirect effects presented in Table 4 further clarify this complex process. The results in Table 4 indicate that the indirect effect of Mexican ancestry (b = .063; p < .05), but not Puerto Rican heritage (b = .027; not significant), on social isolation is statistically significant. Moreover, the resulting total effects for both groups are also statistically significant (Mexican American: b = .092;/? < .05; Puerto Rican: b = .097;/? < .05). These findings suggest that elderly Mexican Americans as well as older Puerto Ricans appear to be more socially isolated than elderly people who immigrated from Cuba. However, these results further indicate that while

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older Mexican Americans tend to be more acculturated than elderly Cuban Americans, the indirect and total effects indicate that the relationship between Hispanic ancestry and acculturation may be more complex. In particular, the indirect effect of Mexican ancestry on language acculturation is negative (b = - . 5 3 1 ; p < .05), suggesting that older Mexican Americans have less education than elderly Cubans and that people with less education tend to have lower levels of language acculturation. Moreover, this negative indirect effect tends to offset the positive direct effect of Mexican ancestry on language acculturation (b = .470), so that the resulting total effect ( - .531 + .470 = - .061) is minimal and not statistically significant. Taken as a whole, these findings suggest that there are no differences in language acculturation between older Cuban Americans and elderly Mexican Americans. In addition, any proclivity on the part of Mexican-origin respondents to use the English language is counterbalanced by the fact that Mexican American people also tend to be less well-educated and that individuals with lower levels of educational attainment are less likely to be fluent in English. Returning to Table 4, the data reveal that in contrast to the findings reviewed above, the level of language acculturation among older Puerto Ricans may differ significantly from that of elderly Cuban Americans even after the indirect effects are taken into consideration. More specifically, the findings indicate that the indirect effect of Puerto Rican ancestry on language acculturation is negative (b = — .356; p < .05), suggesting that lower levels of educational attainment tend to inhibit the use of the English language among elderly people from Puerto Rico. However, in this instance, the indirect effect only partially offsets the direct effect of Puerto Rican heritage on language acculturation (b = .705). Consequently, the total effect of Puerto Rican ancestry on language acculturation is still positive and statistically significant (b = .349; p < .05). Taken as a whole, these findings indicate that, even though Puerto Rican elders may be inhibited from using English because of their relatively disadvantaged educational background, they still tend to have a better command of the English language than older adults who came from Cuba.

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Factors related to psychological distress. — The findings in Table 3 provide only partial support for the hypothesis that social isolation is related to psychological distress among Hispanic elders. The data indicate that while greater isolation is associated with fewer positive self-feelings (i.e., lower positive affect scores: Beta = - . 2 6 1 ; p < .01), significant effects fail to emerge with respect to the depressed affect factor (Beta = .007). The results further reveal that, as hypothesized, financial strain is an important correlate of well-being among Hispanic immigrants. More specifically, the data suggest that while greater financial problems are associated with lower positive affect scores (Beta = - . 1 5 1 ; p < .01), financial difficulties exert an especially deleterious effect on depressed affect symptoms (Beta = .620;/? < .001). Earlier, it was hypothesized that less acculturated Hispanics would experience more psychological distress than those who were more assimilated into Anglo society. It would appear that the data in Table 3 fail to support this hypothesis: Language acculturation does not exert a significant direct effect on either depressed affect (Beta = .047) or positive affect (Beta = -.041) scores. Once again, however, an examination of the indirect effects leads us to a different conclusion. More specifically, the indirect effects suggest that more acculturated Hispanics tend to have significantly lower depressed affect scores (Beta = - . 124; p < .05) and significantly higher positive affect scores (Beta = .080; p < .05) than elderly Hispanics who are less assimilated into the dominant Anglo culture. Taken together, these findings suggest that acculturation has a beneficial effect on well-being primarily because more acculturated Hispanics tend to experience fewer financial problems and less social isolation. Returning to Table 3, the data suggest that educational attainment is not related to depressive affect symptoms in the hypothesized manner (Beta = —.056; not significant). Moreover, the findings appear to indicate that higher levels of educational attainment are associated with fewer positive self-feelings (Beta = - .107;/? < .05). Although these data would appear to be at odds with a substantial body of research findings, this dilemma can be resolved by examining the indirect and total effects.

The data in Table 4 indicate that once the direct (Beta = — .056) and indirect effects (Beta = — .084) of education on depressive affect scores are combined, the resulting total effect is significant and in the predicted direction (Beta = — . 140; p < .05). This coefficient suggests that contrary to the initial impression created by the direct effect, as the level of education increases, older Hispanics experience fewer depressed affect symptoms. Returning to Table 4, the findings indicate that education exerts beneficial as well as detrimental effects on positive self-feelings. The beneficial effects are captured by the indirect effect, which suggests that as the level of education rises, older Hispanics tend to experience more positive selffeelings (Beta = .086; p < .05). Further examination of these data (not shown in Tables 3 or 4) indicates that this is due primarily to the linkage through language acculturation and financial strain. In contrast, the detrimental impact of education on positive affect scores is evident in the direct effect discussed above (Beta = — . 107). Earlier, it was predicted that older Puerto Ricans as well as elderly Mexican Americans would experience more psychological distress than older Cuban Americans. The data in Table 3 do not appear to support these hypotheses. The findings indicate that, compared to older Cubans, elderly Mexican Americans may actually experience fewer depressive affect symptoms {b — — .072; p < .05) and more positive self-feelings (b = .083; p < .05). Moreover, the data further suggest that levels of psychological distress do not seem to be significantly different for elderly Puerto Ricans and older Cuban Americans (depressed affect b = .019; positive affect b = .028). Once again, the data in Table 4 reveal why it is important to take the indirect and total effects into consideration. In particular, the indirect effects reveal that, compared to elderly Cuban Americans, older Mexican Americans tend to report higher depressed affect scores {b = .109; p < .05) and that this relationship may be attributed to the effects of ethnic identity that operate through education, acculturation, and financial strain. However, once these indirect effects (b = .109) are added to the direct effects reported earlier (b = — .072), the resulting total effect suggests that there are no overall differences in depressed affect scores between older Mexican Americans and elderly Cuban Americans (total effect b = .037). In contrast, the data in Table 4 indicate that the indirect effects of Mexican American identity on positive affect scores are not statistically significant (b = - .018). Nevertheless, due primarily to the size of the direct effects reviewed above {b = .083), the resulting total effect is statistically significant (b = .065), suggesting that older immigrants from Mexico tend to have more positive selffeelings than elderly people from Cuba. Taken together, this complex series of findings suggests that there are certain factors associated with immigrating from Mexico (i.e., education, acculturation, and financial strain) that make elderly Mexican Americans more likely than older Cuban Americans to experience depressive affect symptoms. However, the direct effect of Mexican ancestry on depressive symptoms as well as the total effect on positive affect scores further indicate that these negative

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greater isolation among Mexican Americans can be attributed to financial problems and language barriers, the same is not the case for Puerto Ricans: Greater isolation among members of this ethnic group is due entirely to the direct effect, suggesting that factors not contained explicitly in the model are responsible for these results. Regardless of the underlying factors that are at work, the data reviewed up to this point suggest that Hispanic groups differ in the resources they possess (i.e., education) as well as the extent to which they have been assimilated into the dominant Anglo culture. These factors, in turn, have been shown to contribute to social as well as financial problems (i.e., social isolation and financial strain). The task in the next section is to extend the scope of these analyses to encompass psychological wellbeing, thereby linking the psychological problems of older Hispanics with the dynamics involved in the acculturation process.

ACCULTURATION AND DISTRESS

DISCUSSION

Researchers are just beginning to pay attention to the tremendous diversity among the different Hispanic groups. The findings from the present study serve to encourage further research on these differences. The overall goal of the study was to show that Hispanic group identity is related to a number of factors that affect the psychological well-being of older immigrants from Mexico, Cuba, and Puerto Rico. The data suggest that key resources (i.e., education) are not distributed randomly across these groups and that this provides certain advantages to elderly Cuban Americans that are not enjoyed by other Hispanics. The findings further reveal that levels of language acculturation differ significantly for the older immigrants in these groups. Finally, the data suggest that the interrelationships among Hispanic identity, education, and acculturation affect exposure to certain secondary stressors (i.e., financial strain) as well as increased social isolation. These factors in turn are linked to distress in later life. It should be emphasized that the findings from this study are only preliminary and that the conceptual model is in need of further revision. In particular, there are at least three limitations in this research: the data are cross-sectional; other stressors associated with the acculturation process need to be examined; and there are limitations in the measures of psychological well-being. The fact that the data used in this study are cross-sectional means that the temporal ordering among the constructs contained in Figure 1 is based solely on theoretical considerations. Therefore, it is entirely possible to specify alternative causal sequences among the study constructs. For example, current symptoms of psychological distress may affect how older Hispanics perceive their present financial situation. Longitudinal studies are needed to evaluate this as well as other causal assumptions embedded within the conceptual model developed for the present study. The findings from this study suggest that financial strain is an important secondary stressor that may be influenced by the level of acculturation. This is obviously not the only stressor that older Hispanics experience as they adjust to life

in the United States. For example, it is likely that older Hispanic immigrants have experienced considerable prejudice and discrimination during their residence in America. Although measures of prejudice and discrimination are not available in the present study, the conceptual model should be expanded to include the effects of this as well as other stressful experiences. The measures of psychological distress that are used in this study are limited in two ways. First, they do not assess all of the important dimensions of well-being in later life. In addition, these indicators may not be sensitive to crosscultural variations in the way symptoms of distress are expressed. Only two dimensions of psychological well-being are assessed in this study: positive and negative (i.e., depressed) affect. However, a number of studies suggest that older adults are especially likely to express psychological distress in somatic terms (e.g., Brody, 1985). Clearly this as well as other dimensions of distress need to be included in the conceptual model. Finally, in order to evaluate the impact of acculturation on psychological disorder accurately, a measure of distress must be used that is sensitive to variations in how symptoms are expressed in different Hispanic groups. This means that the impact of acculturation on distress will be underestimated if the unique ways of expressing psychological symptoms are not reflected in the indices used by researchers. Because there is some evidence that such differences in symptom expression exist (see Guarnaccia, Angel, and Worobey, 1989, for reviews of this research), a priority in future studies should be the development and utilization of culturally sensitive measures.. As Markides and Mindel (1987) point out, the wide majority of studies on older Hispanics focus exclusively on Mexican Americans. Little is known about elderly people whose ancestry can be traced to Cuba, Latin America, or Puerto Rico. Although there are clear limitations in the present study, other investigators may wish to use the model developed here as a point of departure for further research on the needs of our burgeoning population of elderly Hispanics. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The analyses presented were supported by a grant from the National Institute on Aging, AG-08491. The data used in this study were made available by the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. The data for the National Survey of Hispanic Elderly People were originally collected by Karen Davis and the Commonwealth Fund. Neither the collector nor the Consortium bears any responsibility for the analyses or interpretations presented here. Address correspondence to Dr. Neal Krause, Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, 1420 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029. REFERENCES

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Received August 2, 1991 Accepted March 5, 1992

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