Psychological Distress Behavioral Patterns Among Latinos: We Don't See Ourselves as Worthless.

A cross-sectional study of 4921 Latinos from the National Health Interview Survey was conducted to examine behavioral patterns of psychological distress among Latinos. Latent class analysis was used to ascertain psychological distress behavioral profiles among Latinos. Analysis revealed four latent classes of distress, which included moderate psychological distress (13.6%); mild sadness, nervousness, and restlessness (13.0%); high psychological distress (2.8%); and no psychological distress (70.7%). Worthlessness, a widely-accepted dimension of distress, was not a significant behavioral trait. Results from the present study suggest that underlying cultural elements affect the subjective interpretations of symptoms reported by Latinos. These findings highlight distress profiles among Latinos and the possibility of overlooking behaviors that are uniquely indicative of distress, potentially leading to the underreporting of serious psychological distress in this population. Furthermore, these findings shed light on other paradoxical issues impacting the mental health of Latinos.