1. ABSTRACT For adolescents, migration to a new country is a major life transition that is almost always involuntary and is often accompanied by disruptions in familial support networks. We assessed the degree of emotional distress (depression, lower self concept, psychological symptoms) experienced by 436 newly immigrant adolescents as a function of (a) the number of close family members (parents, siblings, and grandparents) left behind in the migration and (b) the amount of post-migration support provided by close family members. Family disruption was related to diminished adjustment across all of the criterion measures. Close family support in the context of family disruption bolstered self-esteem and reduced psychological symptoms, but did not alleviate depression. INTRODUCTION Migrating to a new country is a profound life transition that requires extensive adaptation. One of the most painful aspects of migration is the disruption of family relationships that almost always occurs when individuals leave their home countries to seek a better life in a new land. Adolescents may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of family disruption. Their migration is seldom voluntary, their friendship networks are lost in the process, and their need for support from family members increases as they attempt to adjust to their unfamiliar surroundings. The focus of this report is on the extent to which the emotional adjustment of newly immigrant adolescents is affected by separation from close family members and diminished familial support. METHOD Sample and Procedure Personal interviews were conducted with 436 newly immigrant adolescents (222 male; 214 female) enrolled in grades 6 through 9 of local area public schools. Participants had been in the U. S. for less than one year at the time of the interview. They originated in Argentina, Colombia, Cuba, Haiti, or the English-speaking Caribbean. Interviews were conducted at school in the participant’s home language. Measures Family disruption and support were measured with the social convoy mapping procedure (Antonucci, 1986; Levitt et al., 1993). Participants included in a social network map the names of persons most close and important to them. They then indicated which persons provided each of six support functions, representing the domains of affective support, self-affirmation, and instrumental assistance. They subsequently identified the specific relation (parent, sibling, etc.) and location of each network member. Measures used in the present analyses were the number of close family members (parents, siblings, and grandparents) remaining in the country of origin and the amount of support currently provided by close family members. Criterion measures included self-concept (Harter, 1985), depression (Kovacs, 1985), and a checklist of psychological symptoms (Suarez- Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, in progress). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION In total, 73% of the adolescents were separated from at least one close family member. Of these, 14% were separated from mothers, 19% from fathers, 5% from both parents, 24% from siblings and 51% from grandparents. Regression analyses were conducted to assess the relation of close family disruption and support to adjustment. Terms representing interactions between country of origin and family disruption and support were entered last in each regression. As Table 1 indicates, family disruption was related to diminished adjustment across all of the criterion measures. Close family support in the context of family disruption bolstered self-esteem and reduced psychological symptoms, but did not alleviate depression. A significant interaction indicated that the effect of close family disruption on depression was particularly acute for the English-speaking Caribbean group. The absence of additional interaction effects suggests that family disruption leads to emotional distress regardless of participants’ cultural backgrounds. These findings contribute to an emerging consensus that the growing numbers of immigrant adolescents in the U. S. merit the serious attention of researchers and interventionists. REFERENCES Antonucci, T. C. (1986). Hierarchical mapping technique. Generations, 10, 10-12. Harter, S. (1985). Manual for the Self- Perception Profile for Children. University of Denver. Kovacs, M. (1985). The children's depression inventory (CDI). Psychopharmacological Bulletin, 21(4), 995-998. Levitt, M. J., Guacci-Franco, N., & Levitt, J. L. (1993). Convoys of social support in childhood and early adolescence: Structure and function. Developmental Psychology, 29, 811-818. Suárez-Orozco, C. & Suárez-Orozco, M. (in progress). Psychological Symptom Checklist. Cambridge, MA: The Harvard Immigration Project. Project SOL Florida International University S tudents from O ther L ands Family Disruption and Adjustment in Newly Immigrant Adolescents Levitt, M. J., Levitt, J., Bustos, G. L., Crooks, N. A., Hodgetts, J., Martelly, M., Milevsky, A., Silver, M. E., Barrera, O., Berk, R., Brutus, L., Lane, J., Martinez, E., Nyitray, M., Ondar, A., Perez, E., Phillpotts, N., Pierre, F., Prosper, F., Sakuma, S., Sanchez, L., & Young, K. Florida International University – Miami-Dade County Public Schools