Browsing by Subject "Mexican Americans -- Ethnic identity"
Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Changes in personal characteristics of Mexican-American high school graduates and dropouts during the transition from junior high to high school(Texas Tech University, 2002-08) Pursley, Martha BlansittThe high school dropout problem continues to result in adverse individual and social consequences. Dropping out of high school is an even greater problem among minority groups; in particular the Hispanic population. Hispanic youths drop out of school at more than twice the rate of non-Hispanic youth (U.S. Census Bureau, 1999). Among the Hispanic population, Mexican-American is the largest subgroup and they have the highest dropout rate (U.S. General Accounting Office, 1994). This disturbing phenomenon can lead to the unintentional perpetuation of discrimination for this ethnic group. This dissertation is the first study of dropout students that will look specifically at the Mexican-American students' personal characteristics, developmentally, that lead to the decision to drop out. The study controlled for dropout related family and school variables and explored longitudinal pattern differences in theoretically selected personal characteristics that could lead to the decision to drop out between Mexican-American dropouts and persisters as well as differences among dropouts between the base year (BY) measured when the students were in the eighth grade, the first follow-up (Fl) measured when the students were in the tenth grade. The expectations for the study were to: (1) explore the development of the personal characteristics of Mexican-American dropouts during the transition to high school, (2) discover which personal characteristics differed between dropouts and persisters, and (3) explore differences in the development of the personal characteristics of dropouts and persisters during the transition to high school. This sample for the study included 310 students that were selected from 1952 subjects in the existing database of NELS:88 that reported being Mexican-American. Half of the students in the study (n = 155) were high school dropouts. The other 155 subjects were matched to the dropouts by socioeconomic status, school urbanicity, school enrollment size and gender. To answer the research questions and test the hypotheses, effects of the two independent variables. Time and Status, on each of the dependent variables were examined by a 2x2 mixed design ANOVA. Results showed main effects of time and status and an interaction effect for educational aspiration, main effect of status for academic achievement, relationship with teachers, self-esteem, and locus of control, and a main effect of time for Spanish language proficiency, relationship with peers and locus of control. The results suggest important theoretical and educational implications. The transitional period between junior high and high school has detrimental effects on the development of personal characteristics of Mexican-American students. Educational aspiration as well as relationships related to the school environment deteriorate during this transitional period. The study discusses the need for changes in the training of teachers in order to reduce the number of dropout Mexican-American students. Future research endeavors can be surmised from this study. This study reveals that much more research is needed to discover the effect of ethnic identity and acculturation on the personal characteristics related to the persistence behavior of Mexican- American students.Item Ethnic identity, acculturation, perceived discrimination, and college adjustment in Mexican Americans(Texas Tech University, 1999-08) Shibazaki, KozueAdjusting to coUege can be a difficult task for many college students. Variables that have been examined for their relationship to college adjustment include locus of control, social support, past academic achievement, goal stability, optimism, and self-esteem. For Mexican American college students, there may be unique problems that must be addressed in adjusting to college. In addition to the variables that have been examined among the general college populat�on, research has specifically investigated college adjustment among Mexican American students. This research has included variables such as ethnic identity and acculturation and has yielded inconsistent findings. Studies have found that the availability of family support is positively associated with college adjustment among Mexican American students. This dissertation extended the existing literature by examining perceived discrimination in addit�on to ethnic ident�ty, acculturation, and family support and the relationships among these variables among a sample of Mexican American students. Also, the manner in which individuals deal with discrimination along different levels of ethnic identity and acculturation was assessed. CoUege self-efficacy, which has been examined by only a limited number of studies, was also addressed. The results indicated that higher levels of acculturation, socioeconomic status, and family support and being male were associated with lower levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms, and higher levels of mental health, academic adjustment, social adjustment, course efflcacy, social eff�cacy, personal-emotional adjustment, and institutional attachment. Having lower levels of acculturation and higher levels of generat�on status were associated with increased levels of perceived discrimination. When coping with discrimination, higher levels of ethnic identity were associated with increased usage of reflective coping style.Item Mexican American elites: measuring ethnic political commitment(Texas Tech University, 1987-12) Sermino, ZeldaNot availableItem The Mexican-American value system in an urban environment(Texas Tech University, 1970-08) Ewing, KernNot available