We are excited to report that BSW student, Eileen Guzman-Hernandez, has successfully defended her departmental honors thesis titled: When Systems Speak Only English: Barriers and Facilitators to Government Assistance Among Limited English Proficient Immigrants—A Systematic Literature Review.
Eileen did a truly outstanding job with her thesis on a very important yet understudied topic. The abstract is below:
"Limited English proficiency (LEP) affects approximately 38% of the immigrants living in the United States, creating significant barriers to accessing government assistance programs intended to support low-income populations. This systematic literature review examined barriers and facilitators to government assistance programs, including Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, and WIC, among LEP immigrant populations. Following 2020 PRISMA guidelines, a systematic literature search was conducted using four electronic platforms, including the Appalachian State University Library, which provides access to approximately 466 databases, as well as Google Scholar, ProQuest, and Social Services Abstracts, to identify peer-reviewed studies published between 2016 and 2026. Seven articles met the inclusion criteria, comprising qualitative (n = 3), quantitative (n = 2), and mixed-methods (n = 2) studies. Study quality assessment was conducted using the Mixed-Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT), resulting in an average quality score of 85.7%. Results revealed language barriers, limited program awareness, complex enrollment or redetermination processes, difficulties finding language assistance, administrative errors, and fear of immigration consequences consistently impeded program access and utilization. However, community-based organizations, informal support systems, language access laws, and streamlined enrollment processes facilitated program utilization. Notably, limited English proficiency functioned as a compounding factor that intensified existing systemic barriers rather than an isolated barrier. These findings highlighted the importance of disaggregating immigrant populations by ethnicity and language to identify unique patterns in program access, often masked by broader immigrant categories. Furthermore, the findings of this review carry significant implications for future research, policy, and practice."