Self-Esteem and U.

S born children of Latino immigrants 1

Self-Esteem and U.S born children of Latinos

Alejandra Sanchez

Pacific Oaks College & Childrens School

Self-Esteem and U.S born children of Latino immigrants 2

The purpose of this paper is to look at the combined effect of self-identity and self-

efficacy in relationship to self-esteem and demonstrate the connection on how self-efficacy can

help develop a strong sense of self-worth. This subject is very personal to me because I was

raised as the child of an immigrant and born in the in the United States. It is also relevant

because, our current president, Donald Trumps tough stance on immigrants has brought more

attention to the intersection of immigration enforcement policies and the impact it has on

childrens mental health.

Despite the growing population of Latinos in the United States, there is little research that

explores how discrimination affects the self-esteem of Latino youth and the impact that it may

have on the psychological well-being of Latinos. I will examine the relationship between

identity and self-esteem to best understand how discrimination and belonging to a minority

group can impact ones self-worth before discussing self-efficacy.

Because developing a strong sense of identity leads to a sense of self-worth and this

process begins early on in our childhood. Both internal and external messages can affect young

childrens self-concept. For children who grow up with negative external messages about

themselves or the group they belong to this can impact the judgement of their self-worth

negatively.

Group self-esteem refers to how the individual feels about racial or ethnic group

membership. Personal self-esteem refers to how the individual feels about the self in a

comprehensive manner. An ethnic group is a subgroup whose members are perceived by

Self-Esteem and U.S born children of Latino immigrants 3

themselves and others to have a common origin and culture, and shared activities in which the

common origin or culture is an essential ingredient (Yinger 1985).

Erikson (1968) emphasized the importance of a coherent identity that integrates multiple

identity domains for psychosocial outcomes. How we develop self-esteem and our sense of

identity can contribute and affect our mental health, behavior and how we relate to other people.

The research on ethnic identity and self-esteem support the idea that there is a positive

relationship between these two constructs. Children are also influenced, however, by messages

received from the family and community (Knight, Bernal, Garza, Cota, & Ocampa, 1993).

Social identity is similarly associated with psychosocial well-being. Tajfel and Turner

(1986) noted that because membership in marginalized social groups is salient to members of

these groups, individuals may be motivated to establish a positive group identity as a means of

preserving their self-esteem. Research has indeed found that ethnic identity is associated with

positive adjustmentsuch as self-esteem (Bracey, Bmaca, & Umaa-Taylor, 2004).

For immigrant children who will belong in part to American culture and the culture of

origin, both U.S and ethnic collective self-esteem will play a role in the overall identity

(Okazaki, Ryce, Sirin, 2014). Collective self-esteem is a concept originating in the field of

psychology that describes the aspect of an individuals self-image that stems from how the

individual interacts with others and the groups that the individual is a part of (Crocker, Jennifer),

making the connection between a persons self-esteem and their attitude towards or about the

group that the person is part of.

Self-Esteem and U.S born children of Latino immigrants 4

Self-image is a mental picture of one self that is developed through personal experience,

because there has been insufficient research done on immigrants sense of U.S collective self-

esteem attitudes toward immigration post-9/11 era, it is difficult to the immigration issue began

to be framed in a threat context and the promoted the fear and anti-Latino sentiment that

impacted the immigration attitude of Americans.

Children who are exposed to negative stereotypes about their own groups, may hold

conflicting or negative feelings about their ethnicity (Phinny, 1989). On February 28, 2017

Romulo Avelica-Gonzalez, 48 was taken into custody after driving away from dropping his

children off at school. His daughter Fatima Avelica, 13, recorded a video while sobbing from the

back seat of the vehicle.

In an article titled The Toxic Health Effects of Deportation Threat, the fear of

immigration raids can harm childrens brains and health, potentially for life, they interview a

pediatrician who argues that her young patients are suffering psychologically, she states that It

comes down to two points: Parents are scared, Linton said, and children might not understand

why their lives are in turmoil, but knowing their parents are scared makes them scared, too.

While this is true, there is has been considerable research done on how people strive to

have and maintain a positive social identity and in the event of an unsatisfactory identity,

people may seek to leave their group or find ways of reaching more positive distinctiveness

(Brown, 2000).

Berry (1990, 1997) proposed that the acculturation strategies adopted by individuals was

central to adaptational outcomes of acculturation, perhaps this supports the idea that the sense of

mastery relationship to self-esteem. A sense of self mastery is defined as the extent to which

people see themselves as having control over the forces that affect their lives (Pearlin,
Self-Esteem and U.S born children of Latino immigrants 5

Menaghan, Lieberman, & Mullan, 1981) and is related to the construct of self-efficacy (Bandura,

1977; Gecas, 1989). There has been a long debate on the relation between self-esteem and self-

efficacy (e.g., Chen, Gully, & Eden, 2004; Judge, Erez, Bono, & Thoresen, 2002).

In the study by Ruth Yesemin Erol and Ulrich Orth make the connection between self-

efficacy and sense of mastery as a predictor of self-esteem and development. According to Ruth

Erol and Orth self-Esteem in adolescence for Hispanics was lower when compared to Whites

and Blacks however in this study it showed that self-esteem increased for both Hispanics and

Blacks at age 30. The result in this study suggested that the increase is self-esteem was

determined by an increase in sense of mastery which is defined by individuals having control or

seeing themselves in control over the areas that affect their lives. Furthermore, they make a

connection between this sense of control and self-efficacy and supporting the idea that self-

efficacy leads to self-esteem.

It is clear that the external and internal messages we have as young children can impact

our self-worth, self-identity and self-esteem. If those messages are negative they may cause the

mental health issues and cause psychological suffering however this is a complex issue because

given the opportunity to shift the self-perception can result in one having a positive self-esteem

regardless of the messages, we might have received. I feel hopeful in knowing this because we

are in a time of history where many people who are labeled as immigrants are receiving

negative messages that can dehumanize them. Hopefully through self-efficacy they may be able

to construct a positive self-identity.

Self-Esteem and U.S born children of Latino immigrants 6

References

Burgos, Giovani; Rivera, Fernando.2009.The (In)Significance of Race and

Discrimination among Latino Youth: The Case of Depressive Symptoms

Erol, Ruth Y. & Orth, Ulrich. (2011). Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 101, No. 3,
607-619

Gupta, Tavishi; Okasaki, Sumi; Rogers-Sirin, Lauren.2014. The role of collective self-esteem on
anxious-depressed symptoms for Asian and Latino children of immigrants

Khazan, Olga. The Toxic Health Effects of Deportation Threat; The fear of immigration raids can
harm childrens brains and health, potentially for life.

Berry, J.,& Sam, D. (1997). Acculturation and adaptation. In J. Berry, M. Segall, & C. Kagitcibasi
(Eds.), Handbook of cross-cultural psychology: Vol. 3. Social behavior and application (pp.291-
326). Boston:Allyn & Bacon.