Knowledge of the Stress-Health Link as a Source of Resilience Among Mexicans in the Arizona Borderlands

Bibliographic Data

ID4643759
AuthorsR M Crocker (0000-0002-5281-2831, University of Arizona, corresponding author), Karina R Duenas (0000-0001-6916-1441, University of Arizona), Idolina Castro (Campesinos Sin Fronteras, Somerton, AZ, USA), Maia Ingram (0000-0002-6517-7697, University of Arizona), Emma Torres (0000-0002-6040-562X, Campesinos Sin Fronteras, Somerton, AZ, USA), Scott C Carvajal (University of Arizona)
Year2025
Volume35
Issue2
Pages201-215
Publication date2025-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueQualitative Health Research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1049-7323 • E-ISSN: 1552-7557
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/10497323241251776
PMID39110939
OpenAlexW4401383406
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited69

Mexicans who migrate to the United States endure significant stressors related to the migration process and social and environmental conditions of life in the United States. Given that chronic stress exposure has been linked to the onset of health conditions, these ecological factors may expose them to increased risk for poor health. However, Mexicans have many positive health outcomes compared to those monitored nationally, making it crucial to understand possible sources of resilience in this population. Here, we investigate Mexicans' lay health knowledge in response to stress as a possible source of health-related resilience. Health knowledge is considered a central facet of practical and traditional knowledge as well as adaptive modes of intelligence and has a tangible impact on health. Using an ethnographically grounded community-based participatory research design informed by the theory of embodiment, our hybrid team of bilingual university and community-based researchers interviewed Mexican-origin residents ( N = 30) living in rural southwestern Arizona about how they experienced and responded to stress and incorporated it into their etiological frameworks. Thematic analysis revealed that participants paid close attention to how stress presented itself in their bodies, which informed their understanding of its potentially harmful health impacts and motivated them to employ multiple stress reduction strategies. Our results highlight the breadth of Mexicans' lay health knowledge, thereby challenging dominant narratives about low rates of health literacy in this population. Findings can be harnessed to optimize potential health protective effects in home and community settings as well as to inform preventive and clinical interventions

Environmental health · Health care · Health literacy · Political science · Population · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Psychological resilience · Qualitative research · Sociology · Stressor · Thematic analysis · Clinical Psychology · Community Health and Development · Health, psychology, and well-being · Medicine · Psychology · Resilience and Mental Health · Social Psychology · Gerontology

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