Publication date: May 2019
Source: Children and Youth Services Review, Volume 100
Author(s): Zoe E. Taylor, Yumary Ruiz
Abstract
Children from Latinx migrant farmworker (LMFW) families are one of the most educationally disenfranchised and marginalized student populations in the United States. They experience significant contextual risks and stressors which are linked to poor adjustment as well as lower academic engagement and success. Given that LMFW children are understudied, especially likely to experience substantial adversity, and are a vulnerable student population, it is imperative for researchers to examine factors that contribute to their well-being and school success. In the present study, we assessed whether behavioral tasks of executive function contributed to resilience and academic mastery/efficacy in LMFW children (N = 66, mean age = 12.79, 55% male). Results found associations between executive function tasks and dispositional resilience; however, executive function was not directly associated with academic mastery/efficacy. Dispositional resilience was significantly positively associated with academic mastery/efficacy. These findings suggest that it may be critically important for organizations working with LMFW children to foster and boost children’s executive function skills. Additional research mitigating adversity and promoting the academic success and engagement of LMFW children is needed.