1. Effects of Family Networks on Mental Health among
Latino Immigrants in the United States
MENTAL HEALTHFAMILY NETWORK
INTRODUCTION
OTHER COVARIATES in MODEL 2— Odds of Major Depressive Symptoms
RESEARCH DESIGN
PRINCIPAL COMPONENT ANALYSES PRINCIPAL COMPONENT REGRESSION
* SunY. Jeon, MS Department of Sociology, SocialWork, and Anthropology, Utah State University
 Research has shown that foreign-born Latino immigrants have better health outcomes than
U.S. born Latinos, despite lower SES among foreign-born Latinos. This finding holds true for
mental health outcomes.
RELATIONSHIP
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Do foreign-born Latinos have stronger family networks than their U.S.-born
counterparts?
Will my study replicate previous findings that foreign-born Latino immigrants have
better mental health outcomes than their U.S.-born counterparts?
Do family networks play a significant role in reducing mental illnesses among
Latino Americans?
DATA
 National Latino Asian American Study 2004
 N=2,504. 36% (n=901) U.S.- Born Latino, 64% (n=1,603) Foreign-Born Latino
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
Principle Component Regression, SAS 9.4
 FAMILY NETWORK VARIABLES FAMILY COHESION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I wish to thank Drs. Eric N.
Reither, Erin T. Hofmann (Utah
State University), and Amy K.
Bailey (University of Illinois) for
their advice on this paper.
 SOCIAL NETWORK VARIABLES
 10 Social Network Indicators
 Principal Component 1: Social Cohesion
(Eigenvalue 1: 2.94, Proportion=0.29)
 Principal Component 3: Independence from
Social Networks (Eigenvalue 2: 1.94,
proportion=.19)
 Explaining Variance: 49.8%
 Foreign-born Latinos are more likely to have
cohesive networks with friends and relatives.
MODEL 1 MODEL 2
Gender ***
Marital Status **
US Born vs. Foreign Born**
Education
Work Status***
Household Income
Gender ***
Marital Status**
US Born vs. Foreign Born
Education
Work Status ***
Household Income
Family Cohesion***
Independence from Family*
Social Cohesion***
Indep. From Social Networks**
β= -0.30, std err=0.05
β= -0.11, std err=0.05
β= -0.22, std err=0.06
β= 0.16, std err=0.06
MALE
MARRIED
EMPLOYED
56% LESS ***
DIVORCED
UNEMPLOYED
OR=0.44, p<.001
OR=0.62, p=0.029
OR=0.70, p=0.0825
FEMALE
38% LESS **
30% LESS *
CONCLUSION
INDEPENDENCE
FROM FAMILY 14 Family Network Indicators
 Principal Component 1: Family Cohesion
(Eigenvalue1: 7.35, proportion=.49)
 Principal Component 2: Independence from
Family (Eigenvalue2: 1.70, proportion=.11)
 Explaining Variance: 60.3%
 Foreign-born Latinos are more likely to have
cohesive families.
0.14
-0.03
0.06
***
(p<.001)
-0.23
*
(p=0.03)
SOCIAL COHESION INDEPENDENCE
FROM NETWORKS
0.09
-0.12
-0.15
0.21
***
(p<.001)
***
(p<.001)
 OUTCOME VARIABLE- MAJOR DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS
 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) IV
Criteria, published by the American Psychiatric Association
 U.S.-born Latinos have 21% higher odds of having major de-
pressive symptoms than foreign-born Latinos (p <.05).
 Family cohesion and social cohesion significantly decrease the odds of
experiencing major depressive symptoms.
 After controlling for the network variables in Model 2, significance differ-
ences between U.S. and foreign-born Latinos disappear.
Do Foreign-born Latinos have stronger family networks than their U.S.-born counterparts?
 Yes. They tend to have more cohesive families. They also tend to have more cohesive social networks with friends and neighbors.
Do foreign-born Latino immigrants actually have better mental health outcomes than their U.S.-born counterparts?
 Yes. U.S.-born Latinos had 20% higher odds of major depressive symptoms than their foreign-born counterparts.
Do family networks significantly reduce mental illnesses among Latino Americans?
 Yes. Having a cohesive family significantly decreases the odds of major depressive symptoms. Cohesive social networks with
friends and neighbors also significantly decreases the odds of depressive symptoms.
Scores standardized
 Foreign-born Latinos have significantly less
household income, educational attainment,
and employment opportunities than their
U.S.-born counterparts (Figure 1). Neverthe-
less, foreign-born Latinos are 19% less likely
than U.S. born Latinos to suffer from depres-
sive disorders.
 A central hypothesis emphasizes strong fam-
ily and social networks among foreign-born
Latinos, which relieves stress and leads to
better overall mental health status.
1.00
1.21
*
(p=.05)
100%
INCOME EDUCATIONEMPLOYMENT
STATUS
DEPRESSIVE
DISORDER
73%
79%
61%
81%
FIGURE 1. Socio-economic and Mental Health Status
among Foreign-born Latinos compared to U.S.-born Lati-
nos (National Latino & Asian American Study)
(*p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001)
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
***
**
***
**
(*p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001)