Essay On Ethnic Identity And Acculturative Stress

Improved Essays
Current Educational Issue Paper: “Ethnic Identity and Acculturative Stress as Mediators of Depression in Students of Asian Descent”

In the article, “Ethnic Identity and Acculturative Stress as Mediators of Depression in Students of Asian Descent,” the matter of the well-being of college students of Asian descent--because these students had higher rates of depression is addressed (Lantrip, Mazzetti, Grasso, Gill, Miller, Haner, Rude & Awad, 2012). In my current college education, I can say that, like most other college students, I’ve experienced stress in both physically, mentally and emotionally. However, the research shown in this article is specific to those of Asian descent, including me, and how our culture affects our emotional state.
…show more content…
2012). According to Roysircai -Sodowsky, the definition of acculturative stress is “the reaction to intercultural contact or the cultural adaptation process” (Torres, Driscoll, & Voell, 2012). The main article goes on to state that acculturative stress is a risk factor for mental health, which in turn may affect the Asian students’ depressive symptomatology. It is interesting to read this because I feel as though this is the case with all foreign-exchange students of all races. I will be attending the Korean Adventist university next semester; somehow, I feel like my situation will be similar to the foreign exchange students who come to America to study. My thoughts are that I will most likely experience, at least, a little acculturative stress, due to the “culture shock” experience--where a person of one culture immerses into another and is overwhelmed by the cultural differences. Though I am considered a Korean-American, I was raised speaking English, practicing the American culture and studying in American school systems. Even when I go to visit Korea with my family, it is difficult because of the contrasting cultural traditions and practices. Most foreign students come to America aware of the cultural divergence; yet, it is different from actually going through the …show more content…
2012). The findings showed that their hypothesis was true, but also went further: “relatively negative perceptions of one’s ethnic group accounted for the higher depression symptoms in students of Asian descent compared with students of European descent” (Lantrip, et al. 2012). Basically, the more negative the perception (from the student) of the student’s ethnic group was, the greater the student’s depression was. The results prove to be crucial for mental health professionals who wish to devise appropriate aid for struggling students of Asian

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Today?s immigrant youth is experiencing problems of understanding what acculturation is, and how it impacts them. Huq, Stein and Gonzalez on the article ? Acculturation Conflict Among Latino Youth: Discrimination, Ethnic Identity, and Depressive Symptoms? clarify that acculturation is part of multiple stressors including adaptation stress, discrimination, parent-adolescent conflict and economic stress. Many teens faced parent-adolescent conflict that is ?…

    • 396 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Asian Americans have done well in achieving a high degree of success than the average population. The term model minority was created to describe Asian Americans who despite demeaned have achieved success in the United States. In his article “Why Asian-Americans Are Not a Model Minority” Simon Hedlin (2016) explains why the model minority image of Asian American exist for all American of Asian descent. Last year the Census Bureau reported that Asian-Americans “earned less than whites;” in addition they have less wealth than whites and are more likely to live in poverty” (Hedlin, 2016, p. 1). Hedlin goes on to say that, the young generation of Asian-Americans have a greater suicide percentage than African-Americans and Hispanics and gambling…

    • 282 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    People become clarified about what race is when the lines that allegedly are supposed to differentiate one from another are made unclear. Boundaries between race and ethnicity are becoming blurred with one big group when in reality they are so different from one another. The report made by the Pew Research Center on the racial term “Asian American” imposes the impression that Asian Americans in the United States have the highest income, higher educational attainment/career success, are more satisfied with their lives that other Americans. In response to this, Scot Nakagawa points out the dilemma regarding this allegation.…

    • 580 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In “Do Spouses Matter? Discrimination, Social Support, and Psychological Distress Among Asian Americans,” David Rollock…

    • 2282 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Literature Review My current practicum placement is at ReDiscover Common Ground in Grandview, Missouri. The members (clients) of ReDiscover come from many diverse backgrounds and circumstances. Each member shares at least one common ground, the fact that they all are working towards healthy living with mental illness. Due to the impact that mental health disorders have on each individual many members of ReDiscover are unable to obtain jobs or maintain healthy relationships with others.…

    • 877 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “A key in addressing primary prevention of mental health in [immigrant youth] is to shift the paradigm to focus on resiliency and on strength-based approaches rather than on risks and deficits” (Cohen, Chavez, & Chehimi, 2010, p. 389). This approach can actually work with any culture or ethnic background because when exploring the needs of the patient a full analysis of their background will take place. Culturally rich backgrounds do not just apply to immigrants or people of color; each individual’s upbringing may convey preferences based on their religion, spiritualty, personal values and cultural mores. According to Cohen, Chavez, and Chehimi (2010), focusing on preventative measures that encompass mental wellbeing needs to encompass an…

    • 451 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Arbona, C., & Jimenez, C. (2014). Minority stress, ethnic identity, and depression among Latino/a college students. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 61(1), 162-168. Arbona and Jimenez discuss findings on how minority stress, ethnic identity and depression affect a minority student’s retention.…

    • 198 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    According to the 2010 United States Census, approximately 17,320,856 Americans are of Asian descent, of which nearly 4% identify as Muslim. It is likely that the population of Asian American Muslims will increase in the future, as Asian Americans are the fastest growing racial group in the United States, while Islam is the fastest growing religious group in the country. The intersection of Asian Americans who also identify as Muslims face unique challenges, particularly in terms of mental health. They must deal with navigating between two identities that are sometimes seen as irreconcilable: their often-conservative religious and cultural heritages, as well as their increasingly liberal and secular American surroundings. This perceived clash of cultures can result in a cognitive dissonance that is difficult to manage.…

    • 582 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Immigrant Family Essay

    • 1101 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Foreign-born citizens are correlated with better academic achievement and mental health in comparison with native-born. The phenomena is widely recognized as immigrant advantage. Many factors influence the advantage foreign-born immigrants experience. Examples of influencing factors are: Family, SES, education, and career. This study will focus on the family aspect of immigrant advantage, specifically: family structure and relations, nativity characteristics, stressors, culture and cohesion, and early educational involvement.…

    • 1101 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Asian American Values

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Personally, I haven’t had the opportunity to have a more direct type of professional interaction with Asian American clients than just having my best friend being from the Philippines. Nevertheless, I found extremely interesting to see that even though I find myself to be very different from Asian American individuals, Dr. Sue provided a clear description of values and beliefs that are actually very similar to my owns. I have never thought of this before, until today! But my best friend and I have very similar core values. We are extremely different, and might disagree on many different things, but as I was reading this week’s video, I realized that we do share several cultural values.…

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Chinese-American Students: The Model Minority The United States is often regarded as a melting pot of culture and race, as the people who reside within the nation’s borders claim many different homelands around the world. Due to this mixture of ethnicities, events of prejudice and stereotype are inevitable. Citizens whose ancestry and heritage can be traced to Southern Asian countries are not excluded from such occurrences. Young people of this origin are often thought to be determined do well in school and to obtain a good education, while adults are regarded as being tough on their children and expect them to have a better life than they have. To understand why many Asian American youths feel this way, people need only to look to the…

    • 949 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In Western culture, comparisons are constructed in an almost natural manner as a way for people to form an understanding of foreign ideas and concepts. The diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses across the world vary from that of Western Culture; thus, it becomes difficult to define the nature of a disorder as it pertains to each individual culture. There is a tendency of miscommunication of the language as well as a variance in the causations of the disorders that create a cultural barrier. In order to compare mental illnesses and determine the most efficient psychiatric diagnosis and treatment, the relationship between the social environment and the genetic contributions must be analyzed.…

    • 1229 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Respect for diversity is related to people’s sense of belonging. When a child’s culture is valued and respected they are more likely to develop a sense of belonging to their community and social connections to others. Children who have supportive and positive relationships in their life (e.g., people to talk to, trust and depend on) are less likely to experience feelings of depression and anxiety compared to those who have fewer social connections. Feeling cared about and respected is a protective factor for mental health and wellbeing. A sense of belonging to a community and being socially connected to others acts as a buffer to stress when people are experiencing difficulties.…

    • 180 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Growing up in the United States is not the same every child. Some parents expect more out of their children than others. The Academic article “The duty to succeed: honor versus happiness in college and career choices of East Asian students in the United States” written by, Lauren Dundes, Eunice Cho and Spencer Kwak tests the hypothesis that parents from East Asian decent are harder on their kids and expect more out of them compared to white parents. The article was written for college counselors to help provide them information on Asian American students and their parents. The information is being used to help college counselors guide their students’ into majors that satisfy the wishes of both the parents and students.…

    • 1030 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Everyone has a unique identity and culture they align with. In particular, my cultural identity is that I am Korean American. I was born in America, but grew up in South Korea until I was six. The rest of my childhood was here in America but I would visit South Korea nearly every summer. So I identify as a Korean American.…

    • 1278 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays

Related Topics