The characteristics of the study sample which include youth (n = 39) and mothers (n = 20) are shown in Table 1. Youth in the study were primarily second generation (64%) with eighty percent having lived in the US their entire life. Approximately, 30% were children of an agriculture worker, with 48% having a mother with less than a high school education. All mothers in the sample are first-generation primarily Spanish-speaking; eighty percent have less than a high school education. The average age of mothers’ immigration was 19.9 years (range: 13–29 years). The average number of children per mother was 3 (range: 1–5).
Table 1
Characteristics of youth and mother participants
| Children (N = 39) | | Mothers (N = 20) |
| N | % | | N | % | Mean (range) |
Self-identified gender | | | | | | |
Boy | 19 | 48.7 | | | | |
Girl | 20 | 51.3 | | 20 | 100 | |
Immigrant generation | | | | | | |
1st gen | 8 | 20.5 | | 20 | 100 | |
2nd gen | 25 | 64.1 | | | | |
3rd gen + | 5 | 12.8 | | | | |
Unknown | 1 | 2.6 | | | | |
Years lived in the US | | | | | | |
Entire life | 30 | 76.9 | | | | |
More than 5 | 7 | 17.9 | | 20 | 100 | 21.1 (14,34) |
5 or fewer | 2 | 5.1 | | | | |
Age at Immigration | | | | | | |
Less than 18 years old | | | | 5 | 25 | |
18 years or older | | | | 15 | 75 | |
Average age (range) | | | | | | 19.9 (13,29) |
Mother’s education | | | | | | |
Less than high school | 19 | 48.7 | | 16 | 80 | |
High school only | 11 | 28.2 | | 1 | 5 | |
Post-High school | 9 | 23.1 | | 3 | 15 | |
At least one parent in Ag | | | | | | |
Mother works in ag | 15 | 38.5 | | 15 | 75 | |
Working, other | | | | 3 | 15 | |
Not working | | | | 2 | 10 | |
Living situation | | | | | | |
Both parents | 22 | 56.4 | | | | |
Mother only | 14 | 35.9 | | | | |
Other | 3 | 7.7 | | | | |
Number of children | | | | | | 3.4 (1,5) |
The research team identified dichotomous labels of “good kids” and “bad kids” de novo in the youth interview data (appendix 1). Both youth and mothers identified a variety of people who impose these labels on adolescents in the community, including teachers, school staff members, school administrators, peers, people living outside of Salinas, family members, and other parents. Both youth and mothers identified that labels imposed in school can follow a young person over many years.
Youth and mothers also noted that labels can be based on a variety of sources. In some cases, an adult or peer witnesses a specific behavior which is labeled as “good” or “bad”. In many cases labels are passed on through word of mouth from trusted sources or via rumors from wider social networks. Labels also arise by association. Youth reported being labeled based on their neighborhood as well as the school they attend. One youth described an alternative school as,
A school for … not dumb kids but like kids that are like not going to meet up to their credits so they’re going to have to have like more help... It’s like high school but it’s, yeah, kind of where the bad kids go.
(13-year-old, US-born girl-identified youth)
“Bad kids” or kids with negative labels might have parents who are perceived to be gang affiliated, on probation, or previously incarcerated. One mother reported,
“I didn’t know what they were up to...they wore red pants...and they dyed their hair red...and they wore a lot of red clothes...because they identified with the Norteños from around here. And...they lack manners. So initially, when they were very little, they played together and visited here. But now that they’ve grown...even their mom dyes her hair red...and red clothing. So, to avoid problems, they stay in their house and we stay in ours. And [my daughter] doesn’t hang out with them or anything.” (53-year-old mother of 4, living in the US for 34 years)
Given this, it was important for mothers to know the parents of their child’s friend. When discussing another friend of her child, this same mother noted,
I also know the parents. I’ve been there and have talked to them, and that’s how you get to know people, right? So, I’m certain these are good parents and the girls are good girls.
In most cases situational labels such as these are largely outside of the youth’s control.
Defining “Good” and “Bad” Kids
Good Kids
Youth and mothers reported that “good kids”, or kids who are “on the right path” avoid delinquent behaviors such as truancy, consumption of drugs or alcohol, and physical fights. They also abstain from sex according to youth and mothers. Some mothers described that “good kids” spend most of their time at home with their families. Mothers also noted that “good kids” are obedient and respectful. One mother reported,
“He helps wash dishes. Ever since he was little, I’ve encouraged him to do something: to clean up, to put his things away. “Help me do the laundry.” He helps me with the soap when I’m washing. He’s always very nice, and he’s always been that way ever since he was little.” (41-year-old mother of 3, living in the US for 20 years)
Participants also described “good” as the absence of “bad”. A mother said,
“But the thing is that the kid doesn’t give me any kind of trouble. He’s a good kid, and his only problem is school performance.” (48-year-old mother of 5, living in the US for 20 years)
“Good kids” communicate frequently with their parents and prefer to spend time with family rather than out with friends. Youth were particularly likely to identify “good kids” as those who participate in sports and in a college prep program in high school. When describing his friends, one youth participant said,
“Right now everything’s going good, I don’t see no signs of their future being harmed...Like I don’t see them starting to think drugs are funny or stuff like that.” (13-year-old boy-identified youth, US born)
Mothers and youth shared similar visions of the trajectories of “good kids.” Mothers focused on the fact that kids “on the right path” would have more choice in their employment in the long run, avoiding the manual labor in the fields that many of these mothers experienced. They also envisioned that “good kids” would have financial stability and may have more opportunities for education. Youth were more likely to specifically mention that “kids on the right path” were college bound and more likely to have a “good job” such as one in which they worked indoors. One youth participant said,
“If you’re good you have a lot more like… I don’t know how to say it, you have a lot more opportunities to do things, but when you’re bad, you know, not doing good you really have like less opportunities to do things, you know, less opportunity to go to college, less opportunity to do school activities, and events, and stuff like that.” (13-year-old, girl-identified youth, US born)
Bad Kids
Participants described that “Bad kids” or kids on the wrong path are sexually active and engage in delinquent behavior such as skipping classes, drug and alcohol use, and physical fights. Mothers add that “bad kids” spend a lot of time outside of the home. One mother explained,
“A bad friend is... going [out] with them and... my kid doesn’t go out. His friends are the same way.” (48-year-old mother of 5, living in the US for 20 years)
Mothers and youth both noted that youth are labeled as “bad” through affiliation with friends or family who are in gangs or engage in delinquent behavior. One youth explained,
“If you’re not a gang member but you hang out with them, you’re going to look like one, guilty like by association.” (13-year-old girl-identified youth, US born)
A mother recalled,
“What affected my kids most was when one of their uncles said, “I don’t want to see you with my kids, because your brother was killed for being a gang member.... I don’t want to see you with my kids.” That’s what they said to my son who’s an engineer.” (46-year-old mother of 4, living in the US for 25 years)
Mothers ascribed “bad kid” labels to friends they did not approve of. In some cases, this manifests as encouraging youth to socially isolate from. One mother noted,
“Well, as I said, the [friends that] I know haven’t been negative for her. The ones I don’t know were negative. There was one girl I did meet who I didn’t like at all; I really didn’t want my daughter near her. Because they took her out a lot without my permission. And I told her that I didn’t want that girl near her.” (36-year-old mother of 3, living in the US for 18 years)
Both youth and mothers described the tragedy of making one wrong choice, fearing severe outcomes such as ending up homeless, shot, dead, or in jail; they reported difficulty in relinquishing this label and “turning things around.” One mother said,
“Because there are two paths you can choose, and if you choose drugs, you’ll be on the wrong path...you’ll end up in jail...or you’ll get killed...and I don’t want that. You can be better than that.” (37-year-old mother of 4, living in the for 18 years)
Likewise, one youth said,
“Why do you want to be a gangster? You’re just dying for a color, and you shouldn’t – just – just do good in school and then you could be even more rich, and you could travel a lot. And you could have a big house and everything. And the other people, they end up being homeless or dead in the streets or getting shot.” (13-year-old, boy-identified youth, US born)
To protect their children from “being on the wrong track,” mothers adopt a no-margin-for-error philosophy. One mother recalled giving the following advice to her child,
“You have to picture yourself like you’re going up a ladder...and this ladder doesn’t have any railings for you to hang on to. So, if you lose your balance...you’ll fall!” (36-year-old mother of 3, living in the US for 18 years)
Another mother articulated the fear and motivation underlying this idea, stating,
“If we don’t do it that way, then our kids are going to become gang members, get into drugs…Because they’re going to feel like they’re not important to us or like they don’t matter to us… And if we don’t help them, no one else is going to come along with good intentions and tell them, ‘What you’re doing is wrong.’ Quite the opposite: they’re going to be approached by bad people who say, ‘They don’t love you. Let’s go hang out on the street.’” (33-year-old mother of 4, living in the US for 19 years)
Impacts of Labeling
Exclusion from Peers
Youth talked about how peers who were labeled as “bad” could suddenly be ostracized from their friend groups. One youth said,
“I used to talk to them…they were like good girls, like they just started talking to new people and like they got influenced to skip class and all that. I’m like, ‘Bye,’ just like keep them out, like I don’t want to do that.” (13-year-old girl-identified youth, US born)
Limits to Educational Opportunities
Negative labeling of youth was also found to limit educational opportunities. One youth participant explained the tenacious nature of a “bad kid” label meant that she felt persistently in danger of losing her place in her school
“I was doing bad at [my middle school] so …they kicked me out of the school and they put me over there and it’s like independent study.... I used to be really bad, like getting into fights and stuff, so that all stays like on your school record. So, if anything happens, even if I confronted someone, they’re like, ‘Mm, she’s notorious for doing that, like we got to get her out of here.’” (13-year-old girl-identified youth, US born)
One mother described a vicious spiral of her son being impacted by poverty, labeled a “school failure”, and being denied participation in sports:
“They demand a lot from the kids, such as asking them to focus on school. But being poor, we can’t do that...My kid wanted to join basketball, but he couldn’t because he’s not doing well in school...But I really wish they gave him the opportunity to play basketball...Spending more time in school would make him care more about it, that would motivate him to do better. But instead, they’re just penalizing him for not doing well in school, and that makes everything worse. That lowers his self-esteem and makes him care less about school.” (48-year-old mother of 5, living in the US for 20 years)
Changes to Health-Modifying Behaviors
Youth participants explained that their health protective-behaviors were compromised at times to preserve their “good kid” labels. For example, youth participants reported that teens in the community were hesitant to use birth control or buy condoms for this reason. One youth said,
“Probably because they feel like, that they would get judged like if they like go to the store by themselves to get like condoms, then the people would be like, ‘Oh, you’re too young,’ and, or like they’ll feel judged. Or like if a girl goes to the doctor and gets like birth control they’ll be like, ‘Oh, you shouldn’t be doing that,” and stuff.” (13-year-old girl identified youth, US born)
Another participant saw the avoidance of sexual health conversations among his peers as an indicator of “good friend” group. When asked why the sexual conversations do not come up within his friend group he said,
“I don’t know, I guess we’re just all good kids, we just focus on sports.” (13-year-old boy-identified youth, US born)
Youth participants also associated some behaviors detrimental to health with “bad kids.” One youth states,
“And, yeah, and then, I don’t know, I just started running away, kept on selling drugs, doing all that. The experiences that I have with the law is horrible. I’ve been in handcuffs more than twice, more, Jesus, yeah, I was a mess.” (13-year-old girl-identified youth, US born)
Proximity Impact
All participants displayed less rigid labeling when the subject was themselves or someone in close social proximity such as their friend or child. Mothers were more likely to describe a “good” kid who did a “bad” thing when they were talking about their own child. When talking about her son, one mother mentioned,
“He’s an only child. But it’s gotten really complicated for me. To see all the changes in him, and to see how he’s doing step by step; it seems like he’s going down instead of up.” (32-year-old mother of 1, living in the US for 18 years)
Mothers and youth also described instances of wanting to challenge a label given to a young person in close social proximity to them. Some youth challenged negative labels within the school setting. One youth challenged the negative labels from school employees on her friends:
“Some staff, like, because I’ve been getting in trouble, they say that [my friends are] probably not good people… because people just see the bad of things on them but if they get to know them, like they’re, they’re amazing people.” (14-year-old girl-identified youth, US born)
Youth also challenged negative labels imposed on their city’s reputation through local and regional news sources or word of mouth, making a point to underscore the positive aspects of their community. Regarding Salinas, one youth said,
It’s a nice place to live but sometimes it’s a little dangerous. It’s a nice place to be at because it has many places you can go to. And it’s a really nice place, sometimes in the mornings, you can see the mountains and it’s really beautiful to just look at it… there’s some bad stuff but there’s too some good stuff it has.
(14-year-old girl-identified youth, born outside the US)
Youth discussed the shortcomings of negative labeling and injustices of reducing Salinas to single narrative, often imposed by an outsider viewpoint. One youth noted,
“I’ve never felt like bad being in a neighborhood, like it can be, like I said, [one neighborhood] where everyone says like, ‘Oh, it’s dangerous,’ but I’ve never really felt like I’m in danger or anything....I think it’s just because I grew up here and I feel like everyone outside of Salinas just like makes it like, just adds like more like than what it actually is.” (13-year-old boy-identified, US born)