Publication Date

Summer 2023

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Child and Adolescent Development

Advisor

Kim Tsai; Danielle Mead; Ellen Middaugh

Abstract

Across California State Universities, Latinx young adults represent a portion of all undergraduate students, but not all these students graduate. The study investigated the impact of Latinx college students’ familismo values and weekly family assistance behaviors for promoting and challenging school engagement and well-being. The sample included N = 167 (89.2% females) Latinx college students and their average age was 22.76 years (SD = 5.39, range of 18.00–50.00). Participants responded to an online survey, which included questions assessing parental education and gender, strength of beliefs in familismo values, whether they had assisted the family in any of nine behaviors in a week, the total time estimate they spent in each behavior, the extent to which their parents supported them, school engagement, and psychological well-being. Results show Latinx college students endorse familismo values at moderate levels and assist their families at high levels. Familism support was associated with ganas and academic motivation. Although familismo values were not associated with depressive symptoms or perceived stress, findings show that among students who received high parental support, assisting their families at high levels was associated with greater perceived stress. These results suggest that family assistance serves as a meaningful behavior in Latinx college students’ lives without having a substantial impact on school engagement.

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