Alcohol use severity and intragroup marginalization among Hispanic emerging adult college students: Examining the moderating roles of ethnic identity and nativity status

Introduction

Hispanic emerging adults represent a rapidly growing population in the U.S., especially in post-secondary institutions. They are a unique subgroup of individuals who experience cultural stressors that can impact their alcohol use behavior. In the present study, we focus on (a) intragroup marginalization – the perceived rejection and/or exclusion by members of one’s cultural group – as an understudied intracultural stressor and its association with alcohol use severity and (b) the moderating roles of ethnic identity and nativity status in these associations.

Methods

628 college students were recruited from Florida and Houston, and their data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression and moderation analyses.

Results

Findings indicate that higher levels of intragroup marginalization were associated with higher alcohol use severity. Ethnic identity was found to moderate this relationship, where stronger levels of ethnic identity exacerbated the association between intragroup marginalization and alcohol use severity, particularly among immigrant participants. Further analysis showed that in a three-way interaction, the moderating effect of nativity status was strongest among immigrants with moderate and high levels of ethnic identification.

Conclusions

Examination of intragroup marginalization suggests a complex interplay between cultural stressors like intragroup marginalization, ethnic identity, and nativity status. The findings underscore the importance of developing culturally adapted interventions to address alcohol misuse among Hispanic emerging adult college students through the incorporation of identity-based resilience strategies, family effectiveness training, and psychoeducational programs at the academic level to help address and minimize the effects of intragroup marginalization.