Types and Predictors of Acculturative Stress Among Multicultural Adolescents in Middle School

Objectives: This study examines how acculturative stress in multicultural adolescents changes during their middle school years and categorizes groups with similar patterns of change. Additionally, the study explores predictive variables influencing these distinct acculturative stress trajectories and verifies how depression and life satisfaction vary according to different patterns of change.Methods: Leveraging data from the Multicultural Adolescent Panel (MAPS 1) conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs across the fourth to sixth waves, the researchers analyzed a cohort of 1,316 participants, including multicultural adolescents and their parents. Logistic regression analysis and ANOVA were employed to investigate potential disparities in growth mixture modeling and acculturative stress latent classes based on predictive factors.Results: Three latent groups of multicultural adolescents’ acculturative stress were identified: low-retention group, persistent increasing group, persistent decrease group. The logistic regression analysis revealed that gender, bicultural acceptance attitude, Korean-language proficiency, foreign parent’s native-language proficiency, parental acculturative stress, and peer support were significantly associated with latent groups. Additionally, significant differences in depression and life satisfaction during the third grade of middle school were observed according to the types of acculturative stress changes.Conclusion: Our study results indicate the need for various support programs aimed at promoting the psychosocial adaptation of multicultural adolescents. These programs should take into account the characteristics and individual differences in acculturative stress and should be implemented at the family level to facilitate social adaptation.