John Henryism, Gender and Self-reported Health Among Roma/Gypsies in Serbia

Abstract

We describe how self-reported health (SRH) varies with gender and John Henryism (a strong behavioral predisposition to engage in high-effort coping to overcome adversity) in a low income sample of Serbian Roma. Data were collected in 2016 in several Roma settlements around Belgrade, Serbia. The sample consisted of 90 men and 112 women. In addition to John Henryism (JH), measured by a Serbian version of the John Henryism Scale, demographic data and data on SRH and family relationships dynamics were collected. SRH was positively correlated with age and JH, and negatively correlated with a history of chronic disease. Roma males and females differed significantly on JH and a number of other variables. For Roma women, multiple regression analyses revealed that a history of chronic disease, unemployment, age and daily stress level were negatively associated with SRH, while JH, SES and harmonious relationships with one's family/children were positively associated with SRH. For Roma men, there was no association between JH and SRH, but older age, being on welfare, a diagnosis of hypertension and extended family disputes were associated with poorer SRH. Hence, despite economic disadvantage and social exclusion from mainstream society, some Roma report good health and the ability to cope actively with economic disadvantage and social exclusion. This study adds to the literature on the cross-cultural relevance of JH theory for understanding health variations within socially and economically marginalized populations.

The health of segregated Roma: first-line views and practices: a case study in Slovakia using ethnographic methods

“…Stressors and stress patterns of segregated Roma have thus far not been studied elsewhere in the CEE. However, our findings are congruent with previous findings of both significant psychosocial pressures and specific coping strategies regarding standard stressors for CEE segregated Roma, although some regional differences may exist (Bobakova et al 2015;Bobakova et al 2012;Čvorović et al 2018;Davidova et al 2010;Dimitrova et al 2014;Dimitrova et al 2018;Dimitrova et al 2017;Kamberi et al 2015;Kolarcik et al 2010;Kolarcik et al 2012). In line with common findings regarding ethnic health inequalities elsewhere (Bailey et al 2017;Dressler et al 2005), our findings thus suggest that the so far understudied psychosocial pathways likely belong to the most important and the most context-dependent mechanisms contributing to the poor health of CEE Roma.…”

Health inequalities between Roma and non-Roma populations in Europe: A study of 118,834 individuals combining the UNDP Roma and the EU-SILC surveys

“…Furthermore, Roma with secondary or tertiary education had SRH similar to the general population with primary education, and Roma women had worse SRH than similarly qualified Roma men (H5) and women in the general population (H6). These results point to important class and gender differences in SRH within and between ethnic groups, and demonstrate that class alone cannot account for ethnic differences [4], and among the ethnic minority, women fare worse men [20,23,24]. Moreover, there were also significant differences between Roma and their neighbours, suggesting the differences between Roma and the general population are not solely explained by class or segregation, but possibly by additional social mechanisms associated with Roma ethnicity, such as discrimination and stigma [25].…”

Self-Rated Health and Teenage Pregnancies in Roma Women: Increasing Height Is Associated With Better Health Outcomes

“…good health/absence of chronic disease]). This same measure has been used in previous studies on Roma health (Čvorović & James, 2017;. Anthropometric measures, i.e.…”