Acculturation theories and research find that both new culture acquisition and heritage culture attachment are associated with positive outcomes. However, gender-related analyses are rare. In this mixed-method study of 73 Asian Indian American women who were first- or second-generation immigrants from Kerala, India, those classified as behaviorally bicultural, assimilated, separated, or marginalized did not differ significantly in well-being. Being older and married was related to higher self-esteem; unmarried women reported more Kerala attitudinal marginalization. With age, marital status, immigrant generation, and both cultural behavioral orientations controlled, Kerala attitudinal marginalization (but not Anglo attitudinal marginalization) correlated moderately with both lower self-esteem and more severe depressive symptoms. Content analysis of open-ended question data suggested associations among more intricate and multifaceted acculturation processes and psychological well-being via the rewards and challenges the women described. Attaining the “best of both worlds” that some mentioned meant selective adoption and rejection of facets of each culture: family connectedness and control, freedom and moral decline, opportunity, and discrimination. For these women, status-related characteristics (being younger and single representing lower status), discrimination experiences, and attitudinal rejection of their heritage culture (although it accords women lower status than men) had negative psychological outcomes.
This study examined the role of college self-efficacy in the relationship between university belongingness and exercise motivation among a group of college students (N = 311). Multiple social factors have been identified as playing an important role in students’ physical health and wellness (Leslie et al., 1999; Wallace et al., 2000); however, the mechanisms by which university belongingness influences various exercise motives are unexplored. In the current study, college self-efficacy was examined as a mediator between university belongingness and six types of exercise motivation: stress management, appearance, enjoyment, revitalization, weight management, and positive health (Markland & Ingledew, 1997). Results showed that college self-efficacy mediated the relationship between belongingness and exercise motivation for stress management, enjoyment, revitalization, and positive health. These findings highlight how college self-efficacy helps explain the relationship between university belongingness and motivation to exercise, providing insight into prevention research and implications for university personnel to help foster greater health promotion on campus.
This study utilized a phenomenological approach to explore how women of color (N = 7) engage in mindfulness practices to improve their psychosocial well‐being, specifically as it relates to identity development and belongingness. Five themes emerged: awareness of mind–body connection, resilience in the face of discrimination, empathic perspective‐taking, awareness of internalized biases, and global sense of belonging. Implications for counselors and future research are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.