Acculturation, Discrimination, and Substance Use Disorders Among Hispanics: A Latent Profile Analysis

Background and Purpose: Links between acculturation and substance use outcomes have been well-established among Hispanics in the United States. In general, evidence suggests that various acculturative factors, including greater linguistic acculturation, increased mainstream social integration, and decreased identification with Hispanic culture, are all associated with the increased likelihood of substance use (Almeida et al., 2010; Marsiglia et al., 2010, 2012; Schwartz et al., 2013). Recent research, however, suggests that acculturation is best understood to be a multifaceted and multidimensional construct (Schwartz & Zamboanga, 2008; Schwartz et al., 2010). Indeed, while unidimensional and bidimensional models of acculturation have profoundly shaped the manner in which we understand acculturation (Berry, 1997; Gordon, 1964), recent research and theory suggest that acculturation may be far more complex than suggested by these original models. However, few, if any, studies examining acculturation profiles have been conducted using national samples. Moreover, no cluster-based studies have examined the links between acculturation profiles, discrimination, and substance use disorders among Hispanics in the United States. In this study, we aim to address these important gaps.

Method: The present study employs data on Hispanics (n = 6359) from a population-based longitudinal study (i.e. the National Epidemiologic Survey of Alcohol and Related Conditions [NESARC]), to address the aforementioned gaps. This data source is well-suited to address the shortcomings of previous studies due to its far-reaching scope and extensive assessment of acculturation, discrimination, and substance use disorders. We use latent profile analysis to identify profiles of acculturation among Hispanics in the United States and, in turn, examine the relationships between membership in these profiles and experiences of discrimination and the prevalence of substance use disorders.

Results: A five class solution was the optimal modeling of the data. Classes were identified as bilingual/bicultural (33%), Spanish dominant/separated (18%), Spanish dominant/strongly separated (17%), English dominant/assimilated (16%), and English dominant/bicultural (16%). The highest prevalence of discrimination was experienced by bilingual/bicultural Hispanics as nearly one in three (31%) Hispanics in this class reported experiencing one or more experiences of discrimination in the previous year. The two Spanish-language dominant classes reported markedly lower prevalence of substance use disorders. Large effects were observed between the bilingual/bicultural and English dominant/assimilated classes for all substance use disorders examined, but no differences were noted between the two English dominant classes.

Conclusions and Implications: The present study findings indicate that acculturation is heterogeneous in its expression among Hispanics in the United States. Hispanic Americans who are bicultural—be they bilingual English/Spanish speakers or monolingual English speakers—are at greatest risk for experiencing various manifestations of interpersonal, public, and institutional discrimination. However, a strong contrast can be drawn between these two bicultural groups in terms of substance use disorders as study findings suggest that Hispanics who maintain their Spanish-language capacity are at a substantially lower risk for a variety of substance use disorders.  Findings relating to acculturation, discrimination, and substance use have important implications for health-disparities research and the promotion of wellbeing among the diversity of Hispanics in the United States.