Mental Health of Older Latin-American Immigrants: an Integrative Review

This review examines the current literature on mental health in older Latin-American immigrants. This review was guided by Whittemore and Knafl's (2005) methodology and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). Nine electronic databases were systematically searched: Academic Search Alumni Edition, Academic Search Complete, APA PsycArticles, APA PsycINFO, CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, to identify original research published within a 50-year-period. The search was restricted to peer-reviewed, primary research published in Spanish, Portuguese, or English and focused on the mental health of older Latin-American immigrants aged 60 years or above. Twenty-four peer-reviewed studies, 23 from the USA and 1 from Australia, were included and analyzed. Content analysis revealed four essential themes in older Latin-American immigrants: depressive symptoms, different coping mechanisms, cognitive status, English proficiency, and mental health. In all studies, detrimental outcomes for the mental health of older Latin-American immigrants were reported. There are notable psychosocial factors that represent and outline the complexity of mental health in older Latin-American immigrants. High-quality research using different methodologies and conducted in countries with populations of Latin-American immigrants beyond the USA is strongly recommended.