Latinos comprise one of the fastest growing racial/ethnic populations in the United States, currently constituting 14% of the total U.S. population. The increasing rate of Latinos will undoubtedly increase the number of people at risk for mental health disorders. Latina women will be at heightened risk since previous studies have found greater lifetime prevalence of mental health disorders, especially depression, in comparison to men. Social capital is a promising construct with which investigators may examine a community's capacity to respond to challenges and promote individual-level health. However, the relation between social capital and mental health in ethnic minority populations remains unclear. Obtaining or expanding social capital, especially for marginalized communities, may therefore improve mental health outcomes. The proposed study will investigate the construct of social capital among Latina women of Mexican descent. Specifically, the qualitative phase will provide a description of the construct of social capital and how it operates among this population, while the quantitative phase will investigate the mental health and access to care outcomes of social capital and test a hypothesized model.
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| Valencia-Garcia, Dellanira; Simoni, Jane M; AlegrÃa, Margarita et al. (2012) Social capital, acculturation, mental health, and perceived access to services among Mexican American women. J Consult Clin Psychol 80:177-85 |
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