Examining Depressive Symptoms and Academic Satisfaction among Latino Youth: Associations between Boundary Ambiguity of Family Relationships and Familism

Abstract

Guided by the theory of ambiguous loss, this study examined how youth options of potential change in family relationships (i.e., ambiguous loss) and their perceptions of this loss (i.e., boundary ambiguity) are associated with depressive symptoms and academic satisfaction. Further, I also examined how familism is associated with depressive symptoms and academic satisfaction. This was a cross-sectional self-report survey study of low-income Latino youth (N = 123, age 14-18 years). Results demonstrate that boundary ambiguity from the ambiguous loss of family relationships was positively associated with depressive symptoms; whereas familism behaviors were negatively associated with depressive symptoms. In comparison, only higher familism behaviors were associated with higher academic satisfaction. These findings illuminate how familism behaviors are a positive and protective factor for both depressive symptoms and academic satisfaction for Latino adolescents. However, when Latino youth report higher boundary ambiguity about ambiguous loss of family relationships, they report more depressive symptoms. These findings demonstrate that family relationships can have both positive and negative associations for well-being of Latino youth.