Multicultural Psychology Commons^™

The Effects Of Acknowledging Cultural Differences On Therapeutic Alliance In Cross-Cultural Therapy, Jean-Pierre Assouad

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Therapeutic alliance has been documented to have a significant impact on therapy. This study examined the impact that acknowledging visible cultural differences in the first session of treatment has on therapeutic alliance, perceived clinician cross-cultural competency, and potential attrition. A vignette study design was utilized with 26 subjects who were patients at the PCOM Center for Brief Therapy. The patients were randomly assigned one of four vignettes that consisted of a cross-cultural therapy situation, in which visible cultural differences were either addressed or not by a clinician. Following the reading of the vignette, the subjects were asked to complete the …

Assessing Transgender Attitudes Toward Health Care: Can These Attitudes Help Predict Health Outcomes?, Sara M. Shane

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Research has identified the fact that race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, education level, geographic location, help seeking behaviors, and experiences of discrimination are associated with health outcomes. In addition, attitudes towards providers can also help determine health outcomes. The transgender community experiences barriers to health care services and therefore their overall health is affected. There is not a sufficient amount of literature that assesses, using standardized measure, the attitudes of the transgender community and their health. The present study will assess the attitudes of the transgender community toward health care (mental and medical health) and, using standardized measures, …

Applying The Biopsychosocial Model: Factors Associated With Depression In Mexican-American Adults, Alison B. Ross

Scripps Senior Theses

Although professionals in psychiatry, psychology and medicine claim to endorse the biopsychosocial model as proposed by George L. Engel (1977), clinicians in all three fields still tend to underutilize it. Some academics have also criticized the model for its inadequate emphasis on cultural contextualization. To improve upon the model, I sought to empirically establish the relationship between culturally-specific social factors and psychological disorder, in this case depressive symptoms in Mexican-American adults. Eighty-six Mexican-American participants living on the US-Mexico border completed scales measuring depressive symptoms, bidirectional acculturation, living situation, diabetes, and health beliefs regarding the origins of diabetes. The results revealed …

A Look Into The Latino Experience: The Process Of Identity Formation For Latinos In The United States, Angelica M. Ferreira

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the educational acculturation experience of Latinos in the United States (U.S.) and the processes of identity formation. Through the historical Latino experience in the early 20th century, we can see the remaining influences of historical inequality (e.g. exploitation of labor, de jure segregation) through negative perceptions of Latinos. Negative stereotypes and incorrect assumptions presented in society (e.g. media, educational system, and justice system) perpetuate inferiority in comparison to White Americans. In the context of a school environment, Latino children begin to realize they are different. When non-native English speakers enter the classroom, immediate differences in language, cultural …

An Analysis Of Racial Identity, Internalized Racial Oppression, Self-Esteem, And Media Consumption In African American Students, Latoya Higginbottom

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The goal of this investigation was to gain greater insight into the racial attitudes and media usage behaviors of African American college students. Racial identity, internalized racial oppression, self-esteem, and media consumption were measured in a sample of African American college students (n = 59). Racial identity was measured with The Multidimensional Model of Black Identity, internalized racial oppression was measured using The Internalized Racial Oppression Scale, self-esteem was measured using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and media consumption was measured via a researcher-designed survey. The results revealed significant correlations between constructs. Self-esteem was correlated to the racial identity subscales of …

Rural Latino Adolescent Health: Preliminary Examination Of Health Risks And Cultural Correlates, Timothy D. Nelson, Katherine M. Kidwell, Brian E. Armenta, Lisa J. Crockett, Gustavo Carlo, Les B. Whitbeck

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Latino adolescents living in rural settings may be at increased risk of health problems; however, data describing the health status of this population are limited. This study examined 60 rural Latino adolescents and found high rates of health risk, including at-risk/clinical results for hemoglobin A1C (23.3%), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (55%), systolic blood pressure (21.7%), and overweight/obesity (55%). Time in sedentary behaviors was high and physical activity was limited. Adolescent language use was associated with health risk status, with greater use of English associated with lower risk. Health psychologists could promote improved health by providing health behavior interventions to this underserved …

A Heart-Based Sufi Mindfulness Spiritual Practice Employing Self-Journeying, Faruk Arslan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Spiritual Psychology is the study and practice of the art and science of the human evolution of consciousness. The heart occupies an important place in Sufism and is considered to contain the divine spark that leads to spiritual realization. Fethullah Gülen’s action-oriented Sufi methods described in his book series “The Emerald Hills of the Heart” provides the basis for a heart-based therapeutic intervention through self-journeying, which is the objective of this thesis. These self-purification and mindfulness-related transpersonal methods generate a form of treatment that is culturally sensitive. Through my reflections in this research, I transformed my personal experiences into …

Development And Preliminary Validation Of The Youth Therapist Observational Cultural Competence Scale, Carrie Tully

Theses and Dissertations

The increasing diversity of the United States creates a pressing public health need to investigate methods to increase the engagement, retention, and efficacy of mental health services for racial/ethnic minority (REM) youth. Evidence from the adult psychotherapy treatment literature suggests that enhancing therapist cultural competence leads to increases in client satisfaction, alliance, and retention (Constantine, 2002; Sodowsky, Kuo-Jackson, Richardson, & Corey, 1998; Worthington, Soth-McNett, & Moreno, 2007). However, this relationship has not been adequately explored in youth mental health services, due in part, to a lack of valid and reliable measurement. This research project included measure development and initial validation …

Risk Factors And Psychological Outcomes For Lgb Individuals Residing In Rural Areas, Amanda M. Rickard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Most research involving lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals residing in rural areas is either qualitative or restricted in geographic area. Consequently, the purpose of the current study was to determine if differences exist between rural and non-rural LGB individuals in risk factors and psychological outcomes. Seven hundred forty-seven LGB individuals completed self-report surveys examining risk factors and psychological outcomes. Results indicated that LGB individuals residing in rural areas reported higher levels of negative psychological outcomes as well as higher levels of some risk factors than their non-rural counterparts. Specifically, perceived social support, experiences of victimization/discrimination, and comfort disclosing sexual …

Remembering Together: The Relationships Of Historical Loss, Social Support, Depression, And Resilience, Matthew Croxton

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Colonization, genocide, boarding schools, and relocation programs have created complex psychological issues for Native American people. Although these events are rooted in the past, the resulting political, social, and economic situations continue to play a role in influencing the mental health of Native Americans. There are considerations to be given to social support as a protective factor that provides resiliency for Native Americans. Historical trauma (as measured by the Historical Loss Scale, HLS), social support (as measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, MSPSS), depression (as measured by the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, CES-D) and resilience …

Spiritual Practices Among Northern Plains Tribal Members As A Protective Factor In The Relationship Between Unexpected Deaths And Traumatic Grief, Ciara D. Hansen

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Background: Grief is an important and potentially misunderstood construct in Indian country. Past research has shown that the experience of unexpected deaths has been associated with intense and maladaptive grief responses. Active participation in religion or spirituality has been shown to buffer against the negative effects of bereavement. Given the well-documented premature mortality rates and generally lowered life expectancy in American Indian communities, this study examined the relationships between spirituality, unexpected deaths, and traumatic grief, as measured by the Inventory of Traumatic Grief – Revised (ITG-R). Method: A secondary multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypothesis that …

Building Cultural Competency In Therapy, Naveen Jonathan

Marriage and Family Therapy Faculty Presentations

Discusses how to build better cultural competency in order to help clients of diverse ethnic, racial, and cultural backgrounds.

Comparison Of Temperamental Rating Bilingually In Ukraine Using Child Behavioral Questionnaire (Cbq): Short Form, Nelly Ostrovsky

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The 2 goals of the present investigation were to 1) examine the reliability of the Children’s Behavior Questionnaire: Short Form (CBQ) in a sample of 4-7 year-old children from the Ukraine and 2) compare those children’s temperament profiles to a) one another when the form was administered in 2 different languages and b) their American counterparts from the CBQ standardization sample. Three waves of data were collected from the parents of 167 children residing in Kiev, Ukraine. Internal reliability analyses showed good internal consistency of the instrument. Comparative analyses conducted both within and between cultures showed similarities and differences across …

The Relationships Between Internalized Heterosexism, Spirituality, And Mental Health In Lesbian, Gay, And Bisexual Young Adults, Jon Raymond Bourn

Masters Theses

Minority stressors like internalized heterosexism have been found to be related to suicidality among lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals (e.g., Savin-Williams & Ream, 2003). Additional research is needed, however, to better understand the factors that may serve as moderators (i.e., protective factors) in the relationships between minority stressors and negative mental health outcomes, such as depression and suicidality (e.g., Szymanski et al., 2008). The current study attempted to examine the relationships between internalized heterosexism and two negative mental health outcomes associated with suicide, psychache (defined as unbearable psychological pain) and depression, in a sample of LGB young adults. Given …

Does Bilingual Fluency Moderate The Disruption Effect Of Cultural Cues On Second-Language Processing?, Sujin Yang, Hwajin Yang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Zhang et al. (1) argue that cultural priming disrupts bilinguals’ second-language (L2) processing because of interference from first-language (L1) structures that are activated by heritage-culture images. Although these findings are compelling, we have some concerns about the study. First, Zhang et al. (1) measured English fluency by words spoken per minute after extraneous words (e.g., repetitions and self-corrections) were pruned. Despite the assumed effectiveness of this technique, speech-rate analysis that focuses solely on temporal qualities cannot adequately capture the multifaceted nature of fluency (2), which entails not only speed fluency (i.e., speech rate) but also breakdown fluency (e.g., mean length …

The Malleability Of Bicultural Identity Integration (Bii), Chi-Ying Cheng, Fiona Lee

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Bicultural Identity Integration (BII), or biculturals’ perceived compatibility between their two cultural identities, has been found to predict a variety of psychological processes and behavioral outcomes. However, it is not clear why biculturals differ in their levels of BII. We suggest that the valence of bicultural experiences influences BII. Furthermore, we predict that biculturals’ level of BII can be changed momentarily by recalling valenced bicultural experiences. An experimental study manipulating recall of positive or negative bicultural experiences found that recalling positive bicultural experiences increased BII, whereas recalling negative bicultural experiences decreased BII. However, recalling experiences irrelevant to bicultural experiences did …

An Invitation To Debate: Envisioning An Africa-Centered Perspective, Engaging Sociological Endeavor, Nikitah O. Imani

Black Studies Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

Presented at the 2013 James Madison University Africana Studies Conference October 18, 2013

Effects Of Racism And Discrimination On Personality Development Among African American Male Repeat Offenders, Tiffany Nicole Lockett

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Effects of Racism and Discrimination on Personality Development among

African American Male Repeat Offenders

Tiffany Nicole Lockett

Throughout history in the United States, the African American community has consistently been the victim of social policies put in place to disenfranchise this population (Mauer & Chesney-Lind, 2002; Painter, 2007; Parham, White & Ajamu, 1999). With a longstanding presence of systemic racism and discrimination, the criminal justice system and the dominant culture continues to pathologize this minority group and advocate for increased penalties which further stigmatize African Americans, particularly males in this group (Reiman, 1996; Russell, 1998). Though most criminology research …

Work Motivation, Personality, And Culture: Comparing Australia And India, Trishita Mathew, Richard Hicks, Mark Bahr

Mark Bahr

The influences of motivation and personality in relation to performance have been examined extensively in the research literature, but there has been only limited attention given to the influence of these facets on performance across cultures. There is an increasing use of international resources and alliances aimed at better economic management in many global companies, but more needs to be known about how cultural issues are related to individual motivation, personality and perceptions of performance. Moreover, there are several theories of motivation, but the transferability of these theories to different cultures has been questioned. Thus, a model of motivation, personality …

Research Brief: "Cultural And Ethical Considerations When Working With Military Personnel And Veterans: A Primer For Va Training Programs", Institute For Veterans And Military Families At Syracuse University

Institute for Veterans and Military Families

The study addresses the cultural differences when working with veteran populations compared to civilian populations, specifically regarding training people to work for VA programs. This is applicable to understanding military related cultural competence through mental health, history, terminology, and culture. Future research proposed includes exploring the benefits of cultural competence training.