Developing a Bicultural Model for Academic Achievement

This project analyzed multimodel student archival data to address the relationship between academic achievement, acculturative stress, and coping factors. Participants were 126 children between 8 and 11 years of age (59 White and 67 Latino). Measurements included demographics, SAFE-C, A-COPE, Self-Perception Profile for Children, and Harter Teacher's Rating Scale. Latinos used more social support and religious coping strategies than Whites ( p < .001). A general model of achievement for both groups accounted for 33% of the variance in academic achievement ( p < .001). Ethnically specific models accounted for a greater amount of the variance: 57% for a model for Whites and 64% for a model for Latinos ( p < .001). This study demonstrates the importance of investigating ethnic differences independently when conducting cross-ethnic research.