Subjective experiences of language brokering among adolescents: Resilience, relationships, risky behaviors, and mental health outcomes.

Objectives: Adolescents from immigrant families often translate or interpret communication on behalf of their parents, a process known as language brokering (LB). From a poststress growth framework, these LB experiences may yield opportunities for personal development and resilience or may contribute to risky behaviors and poor mental health. In this study, frequency of LB and subjective feelings of LB are tested as they relate to family relationships, resilience, risky behaviors, and mental health outcomes.

Method: In this study, 188 adolescents who language broker (female = 128, male = 60; M_age = 16.19 years, SD = 1.01; 5% African American/Black, 24% Asian American/Pacific Islander, 8.5% White, 52% Latino/Hispanic, and 11% mixed/multiracial) completed an online questionnaire about their frequency of LB (i.e., weekly and in general), extent of LB, feelings about LB (i.e., efficacy, burden, and intrusiveness), positive and negative attitudes toward LB, relationships with parents, engagement in risky behavior, and anxiety and depression symptoms.

Results: Findings indicated that feelings of efficacy and positive attitudes toward LB associated with resilience. Positive attitudes and a lack of negative attitudes associated with better family relationships. Risky behaviors were associated with age, extent and intrusiveness of LB, and a lack of positive attitudes. Female, extent of LB, and positive attitudes were related to anxiety.

Conclusions: Building efficacy and fostering positive attitudes toward LB may foster positive outcomes and prevent deleterious outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).