Multicultural Psychology Commons^™

Boundaries And Belonging: Asian America, Psychology, And Psychoanalysis, Natalie C. Hung

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation addresses a vexing problem. In psychology and psychoanalysis, Asian Americans are more often understood as a collective Other than as individual Selves, more frequently an object of study than a subject. Through two overarching aims, my dissertation sheds light on neglected aspects of Asian American selves, the meanings of the invisibility surrounding them, and implications for clinical practice.

First, the project challenges extant psychological perspectives on Asian Americans, which often implicitly assume a wide gulf of difference between Asian American cultural values and the Western epistemologies of psychology and psychoanalysis. Through the examination of academic research, clinical literature, …

United In Political Solidarity: How Multicultural Endorsement And Group Identity Inspire Intergroup Political Solidarity Among Members Of Lower Status Groups, Justine Calcagno

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation tests a new theoretical model that describes when low status group members will work with members of higher status groups for social change, known as intergroup political solidarity. Research on intergroup political solidarity has focused on either the high status group’s orientation toward solidarity or when members of separate groups work together on behalf of a common low status group. There is thus a lack of research on intergroup political solidarity from the perspective of lower status groups.

It is proposed that recognition of group differences by the high status group influences orientations toward intergroup political solidarity. Specifically: …

African American Young People's Views Of Youth Participation And Its Implications For Addressing Community Problems, Isabelle M. Elisha

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Youth participation has been brought to the forefront of scholarly concerns by a growing interest in the positive effects of youth participation on developmental outcomes. However, few studies have investigated within group variations in African American young people’s views of civic participation. The present study examined African American early adolescents’ perceptions of youth participation in resolving community problems. Using a written protocol instrument with open-ended questions, the present study elicited diverse narratives from thirty-one 11-14 year old African American adolescents in order to address within-group variations in their experiences with youth participation and their understanding of racial discrimination. Participants described …

Exploring The Uses Of Cultural Funds Of Knowledge Among Ethnic Minority Immigrant College Students In Their Constructions Of Learning Identities Within A Collaborative Photovoice Project, Stacey Jennell Cooper

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Today’s college classrooms are distinguished by an increase in ethnic minority and immigrant student populations, yet there is little reflection of such diversity in the curriculum and teacher preparation and practice. Ethnic minority immigrant students bring with them into learning spaces much valuable cultural knowledge. If validated, this knowledge can become an essential resource from which these students can draw in creating their learning identities and goals.

This study explored how a group of ethnic minority immigrant community college students created potential identities in relation to learning by drawing on their culturally and historically informed funds of knowledge, including values, …

"Language Preference And Cognitive Availability Of Sexual Identity In Gay Japanese Bilinguals: An Analysis Of Habitual Use Of Linguistic Categories", Sebastian Cordoba

Dissertations and Theses

Sexuality is a very private matter in Japan. Japan’s cultural mores and concepts of family unity have led to very conservative attitudes toward homosexuality. For instance, gay people generally fear disgracing their families, and this fear might prevent them from revealing their sexual identity to others, and so keeping it secret. Thus, homosexuality in Japan is a highly controversial topic. Being gay in Japan is not as tolerated as it is in some Western cultures (McLelland, 2000). Homosexuality is an issue that is not acknowledged by mainstream Japanese society – it is taboo and not spoken about publicly. The present …

Health, Wellbeing, And Academic Achievement Among Urban College Students, Elise Tanzini

Dissertations and Theses

The post-secondary educational environment is full of demands—both academically and outside of the direct college setting—and as a result, stress is a prevailing concern for college students. Chronic, high levels of stress have been linked to a number of negative health outcomes, such as anxiety and depression, and academic outcomes, such as lower academic achievement. Using a diverse sample of undergraduate and masters students [n=84; mean (SD) age = 22.89 (5.99) years] from an urban, public college, the current study measured students’ experiences of stress (Perceived Stress Scale) and the adaptive and maladaptive strategies they utilized to cope with stress, …

Cultural Identity And Attenuated Psychotic Experiences, Aleksandr Tikhonov

Dissertations and Theses

Empirical research has shown an increased prevalence of psychosis among immigrant groups living in Westernized contexts. Cultural identity has been researched as a risk/protective factor for psychosis; however no consistent result has emerged. Cultural identity captures an individuals’ sense of belonging in a particular cultural group (s), including one’s ethnic group (i.e. ethnic identity), and/or mainstream society (i.e. national identity). While previous research has considered both immigrants’ ethnic and national identity in relationship to psychosis, current research has not looked at whether the relationship of one identity to the other impacts psychosis. Bicultural identity integration (BII) describes the degree to …

A Critical Review And Analysis Of The State, Scope And Direction Of African-Centered Psychology From 2000-2010, Dereef F. Jamison, Karanja Keita Carroll

Publications and Research

This study focuses primarily upon the current state of African-centered psychology through the pages of the Journal of Black Psychology (JBP). Recent literature on African-centered psychology is reviewed and articles published in the JBP from 2000-2010 relative to African-centered psychology are examined. The results of the content analysis of empirical or theoretical articles within the JBP indicated that 90% (n = 221) of the articles were empirical and 10% (n = 25) were theoretical. The results of the content analysis of the schools of thought/ideological orientations within the JBP indicate the following: (1) 30%of the articles (n = 73) were …

\African-Centered Psychology, Education And The Liberation Of African Minds: Notes On The Psycho-Cultural Justification For Reparations, Karanja Keita Carroll, Dereef F. Jamison

Publications and Research

One means through which reparations can be provided to communities of African descent within America is through the creation and institutionalization of culturally enriching after-school programming, African-centered Saturday schools and independent Black educational institutions. Rather than looking to reparations as merely financial compensation for the descendants of the formerly enslaved, we can look to reparations as they relate to the building of educational infrastructures that will impact future generations of African descendants in America. This essay outlines the psychological and epistemological consequences of miseducation that many students of African descent experience within the Eurocentrically orientated education institutions they attend; The …

A Genealogical Review Of The Worldview Framework In African-Centered Psychology, Karanja Keita Carroll

Publications and Research

Of all the subject/content areas within Africana Studies, African-centered (African/Africana/Black) psychology has been instrumental in advancing culturally-specific theory and research. Central to the field of African-centered psychology is the usage of worldview as the conceptual and philosophical framework. This essay provides a genealogical review of the worldview framework as discussed within African-centered psychology. A focus is on understanding the developmental history and usage of worldview as it relates to producing culturally-specific theory and research consistent with the aims and goals of African-centered psychology and Africana Studies.

What Do Social Groups Have To Do With Culture? The Crucial Role Of Shared Experience, Bradley W. Bergey, Avi Kaplan

Publications and Research

In an eloquent article in American Psychologist, Cohen (2009) evoked a contentious question: What are the boundaries of culture? In this opinion piece, we argue that signifying “cultural” identities that have nominal labels as potential markers for culture may be interpreted to suggest that group membership is synonymous with cultural processes. The emphasis on nominal groupings such as religion and SES, raises the question: What do these social groups have to do with culture? We argue that a focus on shared meanings of experiences, rather than nominal social groupings, is a more appropriate and productive path toward achieving Cohen’s …

We Call Ourselves By Many Names: Storytelling And Inter-Minority Coalition-Building, Celina Su

Publications and Research

Scholars debate whether new immigrants will join minority native-born groups, especially African-Americans, in battling racial disparities, income inequalities, and discrimination in the United States. Although scholars have investigated inter-minority coalition-building in the context of electoral politics, a substantial share of newer immigrant social and political action has not been formalized. Social change organizations play an integral role in less formalized politics. The article draws upon ethnographic data on two case study organizations to investigate how they built coalitions between immigrants and non-immigrants. It pinpoints the ways in which they engaged in storytelling to emphasize multiple identity – namely, how any …

Science Fiction And Postmemory Han In Contemporary Korean American Literature, Seo-Young J. Chu

Publications and Research

In this essay, Seo-Young Chu explores representations of a specifically Korean American type of postmemory that she calls "postmemory han."

A Methodology For The Study Of Children's Environmental Knowledge In Other Cultures, Cindi Katz

Publications and Research

This paper presents a methodology which I used to study the content and acquisition of children's environmental knowledge as central to the social reproduction of a rural agricultural economy in the Sudan. My approach was forged drawing on methods of geography, linguistics and anthropology to provide information on (1) how children learn to interact productively with their environment, (2) the nature of their interactions and (3) their knowledge of environmental processes and resources. In this paper I will describe first the methodology adopted including participant observation, ethnosemantic interviews, child-led walks, environmental modeling and "geo-dramas". I will then discuss its use …