The Importance of Acculturation Orientation in Understanding the Impact of Pre- and Post-migration Stressors on Behavioral Health: Evidence from a Crisis Migrant Sample

Objective: We examine the interplay of acculturation orientation, cultural stress, and hurricane trauma exposure with behavioral health among Puerto Rican crisis migrants who relocated to the US mainland after Hurricane Maria.

Method: Participants were 319 adult (M  = 39 years; 71% female; 90% arriving in 2017-2018) Hurricane Maria survivors surveyed on the US mainland. Latent profile analysis was used to model acculturation subtypes. In turn, ordinary least squares regression was executed to examine the associations of cultural stress and hurricane trauma exposure with behavioral health while stratifying by acculturation subtype.

Results: Five acculturation orientation subtypes were modeled, three of which-Separated (24%), Marginalized (13%), and Full Bicultural (14%)-align closely with prior theorizing. We also identified Partially Bicultural (21%) and Moderate (28%) subtypes. Stratifying by acculturation subtype, with behavioral health (depression/anxiety symptoms) specified as the dependent variable, hurricane trauma and cultural stress accounted for only 4% of explained variance in the Moderate class, a somewhat greater percentage in the Partial Bicultural (12%) and Separated (15%) classes, and substantially greater amounts of variance in the Marginalized (25%) and Full Bicultural (56%) classes.

Conclusion: Findings underscore the importance of accounting for acculturation in understanding the relationship between stress and behavioral health among climate migrants.