Important questions for immigrant clients

Today, I am summarizing two recent studies related to immigrants. The first study deals with language. Huang, Weinert & Volodina (2023) published “Relations Between Early Majority Language and Socioemotional Development in Children with Different Language Backgrounds” in Child Development. Here are key points from the study:

This study explored whether the directionality of the relation between majority language and various facets of socioemotional development (three to 5 years old) differs between children with different language backgrounds. 12,951 children (49% girls; 85% White, 6% Pakistani and Bangladeshi, 3% Black, 3% Mix, 2% Indian) from the British Millennium Cohort Study (2001–2006) were included in two-time-point cross-lagged analyses. Models controlling for important covariates found a bidirectional association for monolinguals, a unidirectional effect of majority language on socioemotional difficulties for dual language learners (DLLs) speaking English and minority language(s) at home, and a unidirectional effect of socioemotional strength on majority language for DLLs speaking only minority language(s) at home. Fostering children's socioemotional development might help them get access to the majority language. At the same time, fostering majority language skills might help children better integrate into peer groups (speaking the majority language), which in turn might further support majority language progress. For example, establishing conversations about prosocial behaviors and inner states could not only enhance the development of prosocial behaviors directly, but also increase the verbal interactions (in the majority language). For DLLs who have acquired basic majority language skills, the majority language skills play an important role in their socioemotional development. Conversely, for DLLs who have limited majority language skills, their socioemotional development seems to be essential for majority language development. Programs which increase opportunities to access the majority language addressing children's socioemotional development could be particularly beneficial for DLLs.

Here the questions to be asked are about language use at home and about socioemotional development. This study is most helpful for those working with younger clients, but it may also inform work with older students struggles with socioemotional skills. The next study deals with older immigrant children.

Elizarov et al. (2023) published “Family Functioning, Well-being, and Mental Health among New Immigrant Families” in Journal of Family Psychology. Here’s the abstract:

The present study was conducted to identify latent profiles of adolescent-reported and parent-reported family functioning, as well as their links with adolescent and parent well-being and mental health, among recent immigrants from the Former Soviet Union to Israel. A sample of 160 parent–adolescent dyads completed measures of parent–adolescent communication, parental involvement, positive parenting, family conflict, self-esteem, optimism, depressive symptoms, and anxiety. Results indicated four latent profiles—Low Family Functioning, Moderate Family Functioning, High Family Functioning, and High Parent/Low Adolescent Family Functioning (i.e., discrepant reports of family functioning). Adolescent depressive symptoms and anxiety were highest in the discrepant profile and lowest in the High Family Function profile; adolescent self-esteem and optimism were highest in the High Family Function profile and lowest in the Low Family Function profile; and parent depressive symptoms and anxiety were highest in the Low Family Function profile and lowest in the High Family Function profile. Parent self-esteem and optimism did not differ significantly across profiles. These results are discussed in terms of cultural and developmental contexts of adolescence and parenting within immigrant families, in terms of family systems theory, and in terms of the need for clinical services among families with discrepant reports of family functioning between parents and adolescents. 

We shouldn’t be surprised that asking questions about family functioning is important, but what is most notable here is the finding about discrepant profiles. It makes clear that listening only to a parent or a teen may be insufficient in capturing important dynamics.