Predictors of English Health Literacy among U.S. Hispanic Immigrants: The importance of language, bilingualism and sociolinguistic environment.

Holly E Jacobson, Lauren Hund, Francisco Soto Mas
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引用次数: 45

Abstract

In the United States, data confirm that Spanish-speaking immigrants are particularly affected by the negative health outcomes associated with low health literacy. Although the literature points to variables such as age, educational background and language, only a few studies have investigated the factors that may influence health literacy in this group. Similarly, the role that bilingualism and/or multilingualism play in health literacy assessment continues to be an issue in need of further research. The purpose of this study was to examine the predictors of English health literacy among adult Hispanic immigrants whose self-reported primary language is Spanish, but who live and function in a bilingual community. It also explored issues related to the language of the instrument. An analysis of data collected through a randomized controlled study was conducted. Results identified English proficiency as the strongest predictor of health literacy (p < 0.001). The results further point to the importance of primary and secondary language in the assessment of heath literacy level. This study raises many questions in need of further investigation to clarify how language proficiency and sociolinguistic environment affect health literacy in language minority adults; proposes language approaches that may be more appropriate for measuring health literacy in these populations; and recommends further place-based research to determine whether the connection between language proficiency and health is generalizable to border communities.

Abstract Image

美国西班牙裔移民英语健康素养的预测因素:语言、双语和社会语言环境的重要性。
在美国,数据证实,说西班牙语的移民尤其受到与低卫生素养相关的负面健康结果的影响。虽然文献指出了年龄、教育背景和语言等变量,但只有少数研究调查了可能影响这一群体健康素养的因素。同样,双语和/或多语在卫生素养评估中的作用仍然是一个需要进一步研究的问题。本研究的目的是检验自称主要语言为西班牙语,但生活和工作在双语社区的成年西班牙裔移民的英语健康素养的预测因素。它还探讨了与文书语言有关的问题。对通过随机对照研究收集的数据进行分析。结果发现英语水平是健康素养的最强预测因子(p < 0.001)。研究结果进一步指出了小学和第二语言在健康素养水平评估中的重要性。本研究提出了许多需要进一步调查的问题,以阐明语言能力和社会语言环境如何影响语言少数民族成年人的健康素养;提出可能更适合衡量这些人群卫生素养的语言方法;并建议进一步开展基于地点的研究,以确定语言熟练程度与健康之间的联系是否可以推广到边境社区。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
Literacy and Numeracy Studies
Literacy and Numeracy Studies EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH-
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