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. 2024 Nov;52(7):884-892.
doi: 10.1177/14034948231199534. Epub 2023 Sep 18.

Is duration of residence a proxy for acculturation? The case of health risk behaviors among international immigrants

Sol P Juárez  1   2 , Helena Honkaniemi  1   2 , Nina-Katri Gustafsson  1   2 , Lisa Berg  1   2
Affiliations

Is duration of residence a proxy for acculturation? The case of health risk behaviors among international immigrants

Sol P Juárez et al. Scand J Public Health. 2024 Nov.

Abstract

Aims: Among international immigrants, health changes by duration of residence are commonly interpreted as an expression of acculturation to the receiving country context. This study compares changes in immigrants' health risk behaviors by duration of residence to changes by acculturation levels, in order to assess whether duration of residence can be regarded as a proxy for acculturation.

Methods: Using data from a previous systematic review, we identified 17 quantitative studies examining changes in alcohol, tobacco and drug use, physical inactivity, and diet by both duration of residence and acculturation level in the same population. We compared the directionality and consistency of these associations through tabulation and vote counting.

Results: The majority of studies reported no or inconsistent changes in health risk behaviors by duration of residence versus by acculturation, including with opposite directionality. Four studies reported significant estimates with consistent directionality, while five reported consistent, non-significant estimates.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that duration of residence should not be used as a proxy for acculturation when studying health risk behaviors among immigrants. Researchers should consider additional time-dependent factors to explain behavioral changes by duration of residence.

Keywords: Emigrants and immigrants; acculturation; health risk behaviors; socioeconomic factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

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