Multicultural Psychology Commons^™

Variants Of Emotional Expressivity & Complexity Across Cultural Groups, Nazaret C. Suazo

Senior Honors Projects

Emotions are largely considered to be universal, suggesting that their expression should be similar across cultural groups (Ekman, 1972; Ekman et al., 1987). However, some studies indicate that variability exists in the way emotions are expressed, perceived, and rated across differing racial and ethnic groups (Matsumoto & Ekman, 1989). These differences may occur as a result of differing customs and beliefs regarding culture and group identity. While previous research has compared differences in emotional experiences between White and Asian samples, few studies have looked at these differences by comparing other racial and ethnic groups. The current study extends previous work …

Emotion Regulation And The Experience Of Racial Microaggressions., Broderick Sawyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Racial microaggressions are defined as subtle racial insults or slights that racial minorities may encounter daily, communicating negative messages to victims. Perceiving discrimination has been associated with negative outcomes in racial minorities such as symptoms of depression, anxiety, trauma, and low self-esteem. Previous research has suggested emotion regulation and psychological symptoms as playing significant roles in the experience of discrimination. Research has yet to identify specific emotion regulation tactics that might offset the harm of racial microaggressions. Mindfulness and self-compassion have been found to buffer the negative emotional impact of chronic stressors that are similar to racial microaggressions. The current …

The Job Interview Self-Presentation Tendencies And Experiences Of Latina Undergraduate Students, Nichole Shada

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In the United States, self-promotion during a job interview is not just common, it is expected (Paulhus, Westlake, Calvez, & Harms, 2013). Job applicants are encouraged to inform potential employers about the qualifications, strengths, and professional accomplishments that make them the best fit for the job, which requires applicants to engage in self-promotion during the job interview. Literature has begun to suggest that sociocultural factors such as gender or culture may influence an individual’s propensity to engage in modesty as opposed to self-promotion in career-related contexts like the job interview. However, few studies have explored how these sociocultural factors interact …

Poetic Representation Of Immigrant Bengali Women From Queens, New York: A Qualitative Exploration Of Narrative In Relation To Physical And Cultural Migration, Tabashshum J. Islam

Publications and Research

Poetic Representation of Immigrant Bengali Women from Queens, New York: A Qualitative Exploration of Narrative in Relation to Physical and Cultural Migration is a qualitative poetic inquiry and collaborative creative writing project. Five participants were interviewed and invited to engage in a collaborative writing process with the themes of immigration, cultural negotiation, and oral family history. All participants identified as college-educated Bengali women with a connection to Queens, New York, as well as being an immigrant or relative of an immigrant in the United States. From transcriptions of one-on-one interviews and personal notes, research-poetry was created to center on the …

The Measure Of A Man: A Critical Methodology For Investigating Essentialist Beliefs About Sexual Orientation Categories In Japan And The United States, Brian R. Davis

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Methods for studying laypeople’s beliefs about sexual orientation categories have evolved in step with larger theoretical and epistemological shifts in the interdisciplinary study of sexuality. The dominant approach to measuring laypeople’s sexual orientation beliefs over the past decade was made possible through an epistemological shift from a nature vs. nurture paradigm to a social constructionist theoretical model of psychological essentialism (Medin, 1989; Medin & Ortony, 1989; Rothbart & Taylor, 1992). Despite this shift, I argue that the forced-response scale-based survey methodologies typically used to operationally define essentialist beliefs about sexual orientation at best only partially realize the social constructionist potential …

Perspectives Of Indian Internationals On Mental Illness And Christian Missions, Morgan Margerison

Senior Honors Theses

When psychology is integrated with Christianity as a form of missions, it is vital that the destination country’s cultural perspectives be considered in the practice of these fields. This phenomenology obtained Indian cultural perceptions and experiences of mental health, as well as their perspectives and experiences regarding the integration of psychology and Christianity. The participants framed mental and emotional health in the context of relationship, addressed it with faith practices and values, and evaluated it based on cognitive functioning and lack of positive emotions. They expressed cultural concerns with victim mentality, stigma, and shifts in moral values. Regarding the integration …

G.I. Jane Fem Etran Goes Corporate: An Exploration Of Post-9/11 Female Combat Veterans Transitioning To A Civilian Career, Tumona Austin

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this multiple-case study was to explore the experiences of post- 9/11 female combat veterans transitioning from military service to civilian careers, using the Schlossberg transition model factors of situation, self, social support, and strategies.

Methodology: This multiple-case study identified and interviewed post-9/11 female combat veterans transitioning from active-duty to civilian career. Respondents were purposively chosen based on specific criteria and expert panel recommendations.

Findings: Examination of case-study interview data and artifacts from the 3 post-9/11 female combat veterans indicated nine major findings:

1. The factor of situation clearly outweighed the other Schlossberg factors in impact.

2. …

Professional Impressions And Experiences Of The Complex Needs Of Human Trafficking Survivors, Jackie Klock, Kelsey Haynes

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

Abstract Human trafficking is a monumental and pervasive human rights issue, and one that carries immense physical, psychological, and psychosocial repercussions to its survivors. This project explores the complex needs and service gaps that exist for survivors of human trafficking. Through a qualitative study, with six in-person interviews of professional providers in Maine, we gain access to important information regarding complex needs of human trafficking survivors. Using thematic analysis we analyze common themes throughout the interviews in relation to previous literature. Recommendations for practice are also presented.

Mind Over (What Doesn’T) Matter: De-Stigmatizing Mental Health From Senegalese Women’S Perspectives, Jenna Marks

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As a matrilocal and collectivist society, Dakar is an urban space where the woman is at the center. With this in mind, it is possible to understand all the pressures women in urban Senegalese society face. Women are the center of the household, thus being responsible for the family, finances, and the social aspect of welcoming visitors. In addition to these factors, women in Senegal also deal with community expectations and responsibilities since there is larger emphasis on the community, rather than the nuclear family in Senegalese society. This paper examines how these two aspects of Senegalese society (matrilocality and …

The Word Frequency Effect In English Second Language Students: An Eye Movement Monitoring Study, Chase Alexandria Rathfoot

Senior Theses

Reading has been the subject of hundreds of thousands of studies. Reading is fundamental skill not only to an individual’s education, but to their socialization and an understanding of the behavior is a rapidly expanding area of research. One of the least understood areas of reading behavior can be found is the growing English Second Language (ESL) population – or those who are learning English after demonstrating competence in their native language. As their native language has its own unique set of properties and is presented in its own unique written form, the influence this language has on their reading …

The Implications Of Trauma On Immigrant Children's Well-Being, Tomas Martinez, Emilyn Ahmed, Blaze Cosko, Anna Ujvary, Morgan Proffitt

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

This paper examines the psychological trauma immigrant children experience at the border and the ways in which their mental health is negatively affected, as a result. During the process of migration, children are forced to deal with a wide range of stressors. Psychological trauma, such as border trauma, can lead to mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and cognitive issues (Brabant et al., 2016; Santiago et al., 2018; DeJonckheere, Vaugh, & Jacquez, 2017; East et al., 2018; Fortuna et al., 2016; Ramos et al., 2017). Additionally, countless immigrant children face trauma, such as racism, discrimination, and social …

The Coach’S Journal: Experiences Of Black Female Assistant Coaches In Ncaa Division I Women’S Basketball, Leslie K. Larsen, Leslee Fisher, Lauren Moret

The Qualitative Report

In NCAA Division I women’s basketball, Black female coaches make up only a small percentage of the total number of coaches (i.e., 26%; NCAA, 2016) even though the majority of student-athletes are Black (i.e., 51%). Although these discrepancies have recently been recognized in sport studies literature (Borland & Bruening, 2010; LaVoi & Dutove, 2012), sport psychology researchers have yet to explore the underlying structural and psychological issues that lead to the underrepresentation of Black female coaches in NCAA Division I women’s basketball. To this end, we utilized narrative inquiry (Smith & Sparkes, 2009a) in the current study to explore the …

Parenting And Centrality: The Role Of Life Meaning As A Mediator For And Language Broker Role Identity, Lester Sim, Su Yeong Kim, Minyu Zhang, Yishan Shen

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Language brokering is a prevalent phenomenon in ethnic minority immigrant populations. Although accruing evidence points to the beneficial impacts of healthy role identity development, research investigating the formation of a language broker role identity in language brokering adolescents is lacking in the literature. In a sample of 604 Latinx adolescents (54.3% female; Mage at Time 1 = 12.41, SD = .97), structured equation modeling was conducted with maternal warmth and hostility examined as antecedents and adolescents’ life meaning as a mediator for language broker role identities. Results revealed that life meaning mediated the positive association from maternal warmth to language …

A Parade Of Identities: Negotiation Of Ethnic Identities In Three New York City Cultural Parades, Julia M. Herrera-Moreno

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

“A Parade of Identities” is a digital project that applies social theories of international migration, psychology and cultural anthropology to ethnographic visual data in order to analyze ethnic identity and urban space appropriation found in three of New York City’s cultural parades. The project traces and analyzes the historical meaning and emerging directions in terms of ethnic identity construction, of NYC immigrant parades through the use of the author’s photography and video collections (2012-2018) of St. Patrick’s Day, Columbus Day and Chinese New Year parades, in association with a website and blog via digital humanities’ platform. Additionally, by activating the …

Cultural Disposition Influences In Workgroups: A Motivational Systems Theory Of Group Involvement Perspective, Verlin B. Hinsz, Ernest Park, Angela K. Y. Leung, Jared Ladbury

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Modern organizations often involve workgroup members who have different cultural heritage. This article provides an examination of how different cultural dimensions (e.g., uncertainty avoidance, individualism–collectivism) influence the ways that workgroups and their members respond to situations that involve threats and rewards. The threats and rewards activate distinct response patterns that are associated with a motivational systems theory of group involvement. Based on this theoretical foundation, a cultural dispositions approach is applied to reveal how culture could impact the ways group members respond (cognitively, affectively, motivationally) to situations that involve varying degrees of threats or rewards. This focus on cultural dispositions …

Moral Identity In Cultural Context: Differences Between Canadian And Chinese University Students, Fanli Jia, Tobias Krettenauer, Lihong Li

Psychology Faculty Publications

Albeit the moral identity construct has gained a pivotal status in moral psychology, previous research largely neglected cultural differences. The present study investigated moral identity from a cross-cultural perspective by comparing Western (Canadian) and Eastern (Chinese) cultures in three different contexts: family, school, and community/society. The sample included 185 young adults from Canada and 148 from China. A modified version of the moral identity interview (Krettenauer, Murua, & Jia, 2016) was administrated in each culture. All participants were asked to select 12-15 moral attributes describing a high moral person from a culturally inclusive list. They were then asked to rate …

Cultural Tightness-Looseness: Its Nature And Missiological Applications, David R. Dunaetz

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

The focus of much missionary work concerns sharing the gospel with others so that they may put their faith in Jesus Christ. However, members of some cultures are much more resistant to this than are members of other cultures. The concept of cultural tightness-looseness helps explain why some cultures are more closed to the gospel than are others. Tight cultures, in contrast to loose cultures, have strong social norms, violations of which are met with intense sanctions. Numerous recent studies reveal the antecedents, consequences, and the geographical distribution of cultural tightness-looseness. There are important missiological implications at the societal level, …

A Brief Report: Interpersonal Violence Exposure And Violence Myth Acceptance In The Ohio Deaf Community, Stefanie J. Day, Kelsey A. Cappetta, Melissa L. Anderson

JADARA

Interpersonal violence is a leading cause of death and pervasive public health issue in the US. Although some research suggests that Deaf people experience disparities in interpersonal violence exposure compared to the general population, most prior research has been conducted using written English survey measures or in areas where exceptionally high levels of educational attainment failed to mirror the characteristics of the Deaf community at large. To address these limitations, the current secondary analysis leveraged data collected via an American Sign Language survey instrument to compare rates of interpersonal violence exposure and violence myth acceptance between Deaf (n = …

Conceptualization Of Body Image And Eating Disorders Among South Asian American Women: A Qualitative Investigation, Neha J. Goel

Theses and Dissertations

Though it is known that eating disorders (EDs) affect individuals of all racial/ethnic backgrounds (Cheng, Perko, Fuller-Marashi, Gau, & Stice, 2019), people of color tend to be overlooked in the ED literature. South Asian Americans, a specific subset of individuals traditionally categorized within the larger umbrella group of “Asians,” have been notoriously neglected in both the broader mental health literature, and in the ED literature (Inman, Devdas, Spektor, & Pendse, 2014; Iyer & Haslam, 2003, 2006). Currently, very little information exists on the etiology and presentation of EDs amongst South Asian communities. Even less is known about culturally-specific barriers to …

American Cultural Symbolism Of Rage And Resistance In Collective Trauma: Racially-Influenced Political Myths, Counter-Myths, Projective Identification, And The Evocation Of Transcendent Humanity, Nahanni Freeman

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

Sociopolitical conflicts in America reveal the latent microcosms of communities, linguistic forms, bodies, and shared cultural narratives, which are driven by polarities and aggression. Considerable political alterity has arisen, promoting dehumanization, prejudice, sexism, and collective trauma as factions war over counter myths that create opposing American stories, including the debate over the role of science, the fusion of religion with politics and material gain, and the nature of truth. Individual psychic and projective events are also represented in sociopolitical events, creating aliens of external communities, promoting objectifying language, and enlisting alienation and dissonance within the self. These darker forces represent …