Solving Latino Psychosocial and Health Problems : Theory, Research, and Practice

This book responds to the increasing need to understand Latino positionality in the U.S. in order to effectively serve Latinos in ways responsive to the cultural and social realities of diverse Latino populations. Author Kurt C. Organista responds to the needs of social and human service providers to be more effective in their increasing practice with Latino clients, as well as to professional mandates to teach multicultural theory and practice throughout the social sciences.

How do we understand the tendency for Latinos to underutilize certain social services and what types of outreach and intervention strategies are beginning to remedy this longstanding problem? How are Latino psychosocial and health problems shaped by historical and current conditions of acculturation and adjustment, social stratification, ethnic/racial identity development, diversity within Latinos, and politics and social policy? And what are the best and most promising practices for addressing Latino psychosocial and health problems and how could they be improved? The book responds to the increasing need to understand Latino positionality in the U.S. in order to effectively serve Latinos in ways responsive to the cultural and social realities of diverse Latino populations. Author Kurt C. Organista responds to the needs of social and human service providers to be more effective in their increasing practice with Latino clients, as well as to professional mandates to teach multicultural theory and practice throughout the social sciences. Organista provides a comprehensive and up to date review and analysis of psychosocial and health problems over-affecting Latino populations in the United States, as well as their mitigation through evidence-based, culturally adapted, and community-based interventions, programs, and institutions. One of the first of its kind, this book integrates, critiques, and expands upon state of the art Latino-relevant social science theory, psychosocial and health research, practice intervention methods, and also applies a social justice lens to Latino-relevant social problems, including their political context, impacting Latino health and wellbeing.