Self-rated health,gender, and acculturative stress among immigrants in the U.S.: New roles for social support

BackgroundBased on different outcomes, immigrants to the U.S. may experience a decline in health with length of time or acculturation. Acculturative stress is often applied as an explanation for these changes and may be impacted by social supports and social networks, but more information is needed on the specific role of each. Thus far little research has examined acculturative stress and health by both ethnicity and gender.MethodsDrawing on the 2002–2003 National Latino and Asian American Study (NLAAS), we examine data on a nationally-representative sample of foreign-born Latino (N = 1,627) and Asian (N = 1,638) adults living in the United States. We examine relationships between acculturative stress and self-rated physical and mental health, as well as the potential role of social support factors, with a primary focus on gender.ResultsAs a group Latinos report more acculturative stress than Asians. However, among Latino immigrants acculturative stress has no association with health, and for Asian immigrants there is an association with physical health among women and mental health among men – but only the latter persisted after adjusting for controls. We do find that among Latino men and women, acculturative stress is health damaging when specific types of social support are low but can even be health promoting at higher support levels.DiscussionWhile self-rated health differs among immigrant groups, we find that acculturative stress may not be the primary driving force behind these differences, but interacts with specific elements of social support to produce unique impacts on health by gender and ethnicity.     

Gender and ethnic differences in perceptions of equal opportunity climate and job outcomes of US Army Reserve component personnel

We examined equal opportunity climate (EOC) perceptions of reserve component personnel in the US Army (n = 949). We expected that gender and ethnic group membership would influence perceptions of the equal opportunity climate; and that gender and ethnic group membership would moderate the relationship between equal opportunity climate perceptions and ratings of job satisfaction, organizational commitment and workgroup effectiveness. Consistent with our hypothesis, we found the women and minorities perceptions regarding the equal opportunity climate were less favorable than White men. We also found that both gender and ethnicity moderated the relationship between equal opportunity climate perceptions and job outcomes of these groups. Our findings suggest that different groups are sensitive to particular aspects of EOC (e.g., harassment or discrimination) and that these sensitivities affect job-related outcomes.     

Desire: A History of European Sexuality. By Anna Clark/Sexuality in World History. By Peter N. Stearns

ABSTRACT

The present article uses Nell Dunn's Up the Junction (1963) to explore class, gender and the city in the 1960s. It focuses on three elements: the book's representation of post-war, urban working-class identity; the place of gender and sexuality within that representation; and, finally, Nell Dunn's own position as a middle-class observer. It argues for the continuing relevance and dynamism of class as a social referent in post-war, ‘affluent’ Britain. The article also explores the meaning of ‘slumming’ in the context of the mid-twentiethcentury city, against the background of ‘affluence’ and the emergence of the ‘permissive society’. What becomes particularly apparent in both contexts is the importance of femininity and female sexuality in the representation of mid-twentieth-century London, whether in terms of the portrayal of working-class women or the position of the middle-class author.     

Korean military brides in New York

ABSTRACT

This article tells the stories of five Korean military brides in the predominantly middle‐class neighborhood of Newburgh, New York, focusing on their association with the American military bases in South Korea and their daily struggles in cross‐cultural marriages in the United States. It examines the particular contexts in which personal and sexual relations developed between American soldiers and Korean women in the ‘camp‐towns’ or ‘GI towns’ (kijich’on). It also looks at the ways in which some Korean women employed fraternization as a survival strategy in a war‐torn society, and in which they struggled to come to terms with the American mainstream society after their migration to the United States. These life histories provide us with a unique lens through which to explore the unequal power relations between the United States and South Korea within the dialectical framework of militarism, gender and migration.     

Can interethnic contact between majority (Han) and minority (Uyghur) people in China influence sense of Chinese national Community? The role of positive and negative direct,extended and vicarious intergroup contact

ObjectivesIn multiethnic countries, enhancing the sense of community and preventing ethnic segregation represents a major challenge. In this study we aimed to test the effects of different forms of intergroup contact in fostering sense of community among majority and minority ethnic groups in China, by focusing on the sense of the community at the national level.MethodsParticipants were Han (N = 355, ethnic majority group) and Uyghur (N = 546, ethnic minority group) people at a multiethnic university in the Xinjiang province in China.ResultsResults from path analysis revealed that positive direct contact for the minority, and positive extended and vicarious contact for both majority and minority group were indirectly associated with higher sense of Chinese national community via greater focus on positive characteristics of the outgroup. In addition, negative contact (extended contact for the majority; direct contact for the minority) were indirectly associated with lower sense of Chinese national community via reduced focus on positive outgroup characteristics. No evidence was found for negative focus (focus on negative outgroup characteristics) and intergroup threat as mediators. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings for improving intergroup relations in multiethnic and conflictual settings by using multiple forms of intergroup contact are discussed.     

Disentangling the ‘Native’ Guide

ABSTRACT

This article explores the experiences of nineteenth and early twentieth century Indigenous and Euroamerican men who worked as guides in the Adirondacks for urban, upper-class sportsmen. It also examines entanglements between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Adirondackers in work and family contexts. The results create a complex understanding of the term ‘Native’ there as outsiders combined the two inhabitants to describe their wilderness vacation. This article argues that scholars who study the history of Indigenous societies should consider rural and urban culture alongside ethnicity, class and gender as important categories of analysis, especially in the nineteenth century and later.     

Communicated Stereotypes,Attitudes, and Intended Accommodation of Appalachians

ABSTRACT

The study illuminates intergroup cognitions and intended communication towards Appalachians. American MTurk workers’ (N = 252) open-ended responses illuminated stereotype content of “backwards,” “uneducated,” “poor,” “mountain dwelling,” “self-reliant,” “kind,” and “prejudiced,” corroborating non-Appalachians’ closed-ended responses that Appalachians are deemed moderately competent and warm. The previous contact with an Appalachian yielded no significant differences in “attitudes towards Appalachians” scores. Intended (non)accommodations towards Appalachians commonly included “no adjustments,” with a variant array of overaccommodations (e.g. talking slower) and avoidance that either invoked or enforced stereotypes. Results may inform future testing and enhancement of intergroup and interpersonal communication with and about Appalachians.     

Forging an identity as a linguistic minority: Intra- and intergroup aspects of language,communication and identity in Western Canada

Language has often been understood as the carrier of culture [Chiu, C. H., & Chen, J. (2004). Symbols and interactions: Application of the CCC model to culture, language, and social identity. In S. H. Ng, C. N. Candlin, & C. H. Chui (Eds.), Language matters: Communication, culture, and identity (pp. 155–182). Hong Kong: City University of Hong Kong Press; Fishman, J. A. (1977). Language and ethnicity. In H. Giles (Ed.), Language, ethnicity and intergroup relations (pp. 15–57). London: Academic Press]. Contact with other cultural groups, however, effects many changes to the social context and linguistic répertoire of minority group members (e.g. [Phinney, J. S. (2003). Ethnic identity and acculturation. In K. M. Chun, P. B. Organista, & G. Marín (Eds.), Acculturation: Advances in theory, measurement, and applied research (pp. 63–81). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association]). While there is a link between language and culture, there is still a lack of firm understanding regarding the dynamics that surround the relationship between language, group interactions, and acculturative outcomes. The goal of this study is, therefore, to further delve into the components of social interactions and communication to map out these processes. A total of 218 Francophone students enrolled in French schools in Saskatchewan completed a questionnaire assessing their psychological adjustment, ethnic identity, social support, communication networks, intergroup contact, and linguistic confidence. The results indicated that social interactions with both the in- and outgroup were important for identity maintenance, adoption, and adjustment. The relevance of communication networks and social support in acculturative situations is discussed.     

Space and the City

ABSTRACT

Influenced by interdisciplinary studies and the ‘spatial turn’ in social history, this article explores the relationship between space and the construction of gender identity amongst the poor to middling sorts of seventeenth-century Norwich. To this end I have considered gendered interaction in different ‘types' of space: domestic, private space, ‘borderline’ space – such as the alehouse or threshold – and, finally, the public space of streets and markets. Each section explores the relevance of recent spatial historiography in the Norwich context, and evaluates whether men and women inhabited different ‘worlds' in the city, not only in terms of their physical movement or access to certain places but also, more importantly, in terms of how their presence was perceived, and thus their identity shaped by others. The empirical basis is primarily defamation depositions of the Norwich Diocese Court, largely used by the middling sorts, contextualized where appropriate with secular court records.     

Discordance of Acculturation Attitudes of the Host Population and their Dealing with Immigrants

ABSTRACT

We set out to quantitatively evaluate the discordance between perceived and desired acculturation attitudes by immigrants in Russia in the eyes of host group members and consider relationships between this discordance and other intergroup attitudes. We used the coefficient of intrarater agreement as a measure of discordance between acculturation attitudes of the host population. The host population in Russia mostly preferred an assimilation-type of adjustment of immigrants but believed that immigrants prefer separation. Discordance between acculturation attitudes can have consequences for intergroup relations. Further investigation of the discordance can help to better understand the process of mutual accommodation and the evaluation of discordance can help to enhance this accommodation.     

Rethinking social movements through retranslating the economy

Abstract

This paper not only gives an overview of the transgender word in contemporary Japan but also attempts to illustrate the male to female cross‐dressing (MTFCD) community in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which plays an important role in the overall transgender world and how people in the community think and live, by conducting comprehensive fieldwork. The MTFCD community consists of amateur cross‐dressers and their patrons, and it is formed around about ten bars/clubs in Shinjuku. This community differentiates itself from the gay community in their customs and consciousness; they tend to recognize gender based on gender performance rather than biological sex, which is usually accepted for distinguishing sex. Therefore, a MTF cross‐dresser with feminine performance is considered as a ‘woman,’ regardless of one’s physical and biological conditions. Because of this recognition of gender based on gender performance, people in the community are able to develop the ‘quasi‐heterosexual’ relationships as men and ‘women.’     

Reciprocity of inter-ethnic attitudes in a multicultural society

A national survey of multicultural and ethnic attitudes in Canada was conducted in 1974 (n = 1849). Data were analysed for the 1244 respondents whose ethnicity could be determined as Angloceltic, French, German, Italian or Ukrainian Canadian, A five group by five group intergroup attitude matrix was created, with each group acting both as attitude object and as holder of attitudes. Analysis indicated the existence of reciprocity or balance in the matrix: groups tended to reflect the attitude held toward them back onto the group holding the attitude. However this structural balance was moderated by the existence of shared attitudes about the position of a group in the national ethnic hierarchy. Further analysis indicated the existence of ethnocentrism in the matrix: attitudes toward ingroup and positive reference groups were more positive than toward out-groups. Perceived intergroup similarity and familiarity were positively correlated with each other and with intergroup acceptance. Results were discussed in relation to attitude balance theory and ethnocentrism theory, and in their implication for intergroup research in multicultural societies.     

Measuring the preconditions for a successful multicultural society: A barometer test of New Zealand

The study examined the preconditions for multiculturalism in the New Zealand context as enumerated by Berry, Kalin, and Taylor (1977) and Berry and Kalin (1995). Using data from a New Zealand national probability sample (n = 5862), we assessed ethnic group differences in: ethnic equality positioning as an indicator of support for diversity; race-based rejection as a measure of prejudice and intolerance; affective ratings of warmth as an indicator of positive ethnic attitudes; patriotism as an indicator of attachment to New Zealand society; and perceptions of realistic threat and expectations of economic security as indicators of a confident identity. Consistent with the preconditions for achieving a multicultural society, expectations of race-based rejection were uncommon, intergroup feelings were generally warm, perceived threat was moderately low, expectations for future security were moderate and fairly comparable across groups, and all groups expressed high levels of patriotism. However, New Zealanders resisted a resource-specific multicultural ideology that involves race-based interventions to reduce social inequality. There was also evidence that the level of warmth towards Asian New Zealanders, the most recent and rapidly growing immigrant group, was lower than that towards other ethnic groups. The findings are discussed in relation to socio-political issues, including tensions between biculturalism and multiculturalism, and the obstacles to reducing social inequality across ethnic groups.     

Mutual stereotypes and the facilitation of interaction across cultural lines

This study explored the structure of mutual stereotypes held by two interacting groups of undergraduates — local Hong Kong Chinese and American exchange students. Each group rated a typical in-group member (autostereotype), a typical out-group member (heterostereotype), and estimated the rating likely to be given to their typical group member by a typical member of the out-group (reflected stereotype). Differences between auto- and heterostereotypes were great and comprehensive. The factor groupings of the Chinese sample on the 30 trait-pairs were used to summarize the results. The “kernel of truth” in the data was that both groups saw the Chinese as more emotionally controlled, but less open to others and less extroverted than the Americans. Each group, however, saw the other as more prosocial or beneficent than themselves, a reversal of the “symmetry” pattern commonly found in such ratings. The Chinese believed themselves to be misperceived by the Americans on all factors but one, openness to others; the Americans, on the factors of beneficence and emotional control. It was argued that the structure of these three types of mutual stereotype functions to facilitate interactions across cultural lines by motivating the initial encounter, by guiding interactants' behavior effectively, and by promoting mutual accommodation.     

Revisiting the Kuen Cheng High School dispute: contestation between gender equality and ethnic nationalism discourses

Abstract

By contextualizing the birth of modern Chinese women’s education as well as Kuen Cheng Girls’ High School (KCGHS) in the ethno nationalistic movement in pre‐independence years, and revisiting the dispute over changing KCGHS into a co‐education establishment in the Chinese education movement background in the post‐independence era, this paper illustrates the paradox of Chinese ethno nationalism, that took expression in modernization since its inception. The dispute over converting Kuen Cheng also shows how women’s education, a product of Chinese ethno nationalism as expressed in modernization and an appeal for equal treatment, has unexpectedly become a drive for democratization, equal treatment and pluralization from within the Chinese education movement in the post‐independence era, and thus makes the idea of gender equality not incompatible with ethno nationalism and Chinese education.     

Heroes of Their Own Life Stories: Narrating the Female Self in the Feminist Age

ABSTRACT

This article proposes a triple legacy of the expressive culture of the 1960s and 70s. Late twentieth century feminism, discourses of gender equality and the advent of modern confessional culture liberated women’s women’s voices, producing self-realising narratives and a shift in women’s facility to produce authentic ‘reflexive projects of the self’. Drawing on oral history interviews with women born in the 1940s in the United Kingdom, Australia and North America, a new concept for a distinct genre of women’s oral history narrative is advanced– the feminography – in which we hear women owning their voices and the stories those voices tell.     

The political socialization of youth in a post-conflict community

Political socialization affects the development of young people's attitudes in post-conflict societies. Political socialization may support a movement toward positive intergroup relations, or it may influence the perpetuation of intergroup tensions and divisions. In the context of Vukovar, Croatia, political socialization, for youth growing up in a post-conflict community, involves learning about social relations, including relational power and group status within a multi-ethnic community. The current study examines experiences of political socialization in this context. Qualitative data from ten focus groups, conducted among 11-, 13-, and 15-year-olds, mothers, and fathers of Serb and Croat ethnicity, are analyzed using the constant comparative method. Results indicate a belief in the importance of parents, peers, schools, and the media in the development of youth's political orientations, specifically related to intergroup relations. These attitudes are reflected in the lived realities of youth as political actors through their opinions toward intergroup interactions, their experiences of intergroup contact and conflict, and their beliefs about and recommendations for integrated education. Although some avoided any discussion of war, focus group participants’ predominant perspective reflected beliefs that the political socialization of youth operated to preserve intergroup tensions and division in Vukovar. The paper concludes with a number of policy and intervention implications.     

Not an outgroup, not yet an ingroup: Immigrants in the Stereotype Content Model

Stereotype research depicts the generic immigrant as incompetent and untrustworthy. The current research expands this image, specifying key information dimensions (e.g. nationality, socioeconomic status) about immigrants. To see how perceivers differentiate among particular immigrant groups, we extend a model of intergroup perception, the Stereotype Content Model (SCM; Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu, 2002. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82, 878–902), to immigrant subgroups. The SCM predicts that perception centers on competence and warmth, and relates to targets’ perceived status and competition within society. Specified by nationality, race, ethnicity, and class, images of immigrants differ by both competence and warmth, with most groups receiving ambivalent (low–high or high–low) stereotypes rather than the uniform low–low for the generic immigrant. As predicted, ambivalent stereotypes reflect target nationality combined with socioeconomic status, supporting the SCM's ambivalent stereotypes and social structural hypotheses, as well as better defining immigrant stereotypes and their contingencies.     

Gendered nationalism and otherization: transnational prostitutes in South Korea

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to understand how masculine ideologies become (re)produced in the trope around transnational prostitution, by examining a lawsuit case concerning Filipina prostitutes in Korea. While several actors, including nation‐states, journalists, and activists engaged in constructing the images of Filipina prostitutes as ‘sex slaves,’ as ‘deceived or exploited victims’, or as ‘abused poor women,’ the actual economic, political and cultural processes that contribute to the complex process of women crossing borders are elided. Such homogeneous images of transnational prostitutes function to symbolically demarcate and maintain the boundaries of the nation, gender, and sexuality, and to neglect actual women’s agency and experiences as workers. This paper demonstrates how, complicit in the representations of the transnational prostitutes as victims, are ideologies of traditional gender norms, nationalism, and colonialism. Ultimately, I argue that this case will enable us to re‐examine contemporary discourses on trafficking and transnational prostitution in a more critical and subversive feminist perspective.