Mexican American Cultural Values as Protective Factors Against Psychopathological Symptoms After Childhood Trauma

Previous research has addressed the association between childhood trauma and psychopathology, but few studies have assessed potential cultural protective factors in a Hispanic population regarding the development of psychopathological symptoms after experiencing childhood trauma. The current study’s primary aim is to identify Mexican American cultural values that serve as protective factors against psychopathological symptoms after experiencing childhood trauma in a sample of young-adult Hispanics. We hypothesize that Mexican American cultural values (MACV) will moderate the link between childhood trauma and psychopathological symptoms, such that as MACV increase, the association between childhood trauma and psychopathological symptoms will decrease. The second aim of this study is to explore levels of acculturation that could potentially serve as a buffer or a catalyst for developing psychopathological symptoms in the Hispanic community after experiencing childhood trauma. Assessing for this will provide important information about how acculturation impacts levels of psychopathology in young adults who experienced childhood trauma. Findings from this study may give us a better understanding of the impact cultural values can have on mental health, specifically in regard to childhood trauma and psychopathological symptoms. Embracing and promoting cultural values in the Mexican American community could potentially serve as a more effective and beneficial way of fostering resilience and coping skills against the development of psychopathological symptoms