Does Japanese Identity Buffer Stress or Intensify Symptoms of Depression Associated with Discrimination in Hawai'i?

Racism is a public health crisis-yet our knowledge remains limited about how different racial and ethnic groups cope with the stress of discrimination across the United States. Research suggests that ethnic identity plays a role in the relationship between perceived discrimination and mental health problems. The purpose of this study is to focus on whether a strong Japanese identity in Hawai'i can buffer the stress of discrimination to protect mental health.

Sad Eyes, Crooked Crosses: Religious Struggles, Psychological Distress and the Mediating Role of Psychosocial Resources.

In this paper, we employed data from the 2011 Miami-Dade Health Survey (n = 444) to formally test whether the association between religious struggles and psychological distress is mediated by psychosocial resources. We found that religious struggles were associated with lower levels of social support, self-esteem, the sense of control, and self-control. We also observed that religious struggles were associated with higher levels of non-specific emotional distress, depression, and anxiety, but not somatization.

Are There Gender Differences in the Psychological Effects of Ethnic Identity and Discrimination in Hawai'i?

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether there are gender differences in the psychological effects of ethnic identity and discrimination in Hawai'i. Using data from an anonymous survey of undergraduate students (N = 1,033) at a university in Hawai'i, regression results revealed that higher levels of ethnic identification were associated with significantly lower levels of depressive symptoms. This association was statistically significant (P < .

Depression in Later Life: The Role of Adult Children's College Education for Older Parents' Mental Health in the United States.

Objectives: Research on the socioeconomic gradient in mental health links disadvantaged family background with subsequent symptoms of depression, demonstrating the "downstream" effect of parental resources on children's mental health. This study takes a different approach by evaluating the "upstream" influence of adult children's educational attainment on parents' depressive symptoms.

Methods: Using longitudinal data from the U.

Does ethnic identity buffer or intensify the stress of discrimination among the foreign born and U.S. born? Evidence from the Miami-Dade Health Survey.

This study examines the extent to which ethnic identity is a protective factor and buffers the stress of discrimination among the foreign born compared to the U.S. born in Miami-Dade County.

Does the Health of Adult Child Caregivers Vary by Employment Status in the United States?

This study investigates whether the health effects of informal caregiving for aging parents vary by employment status in the United States. Two opposing hypotheses are tested: dual role strain and role enhancement. Using national longitudinal data from the U.

It is not Black and White: Discrimination and distress in Hawai'i.

Objective: This study investigates whether the strength of the relationship between perceived discrimination and psychological distress varies by race/ethnicity, gender, and the number of years of residence in Hawai'i.

Method: Our sample consisted of 1,036 undergraduate students at a university in Hawai'i and the survey was conducted in 2012-2013. The sample was composed of 55% women and the average age was 21.

The Paradox of Discrimination, the "Aloha Spirit," and Symptoms of Depression in Hawai'i.

It remains to be determined whether the "aloha spirit" is a cultural resource that influences psychological well-being in Hawai'i. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate whether the aloha spirit is associated with levels of psychological distress and the risk of depression, while taking into account various risk factors. Data for this study were drawn from an anonymous survey of undergraduate students (N = 1,028) at the University of Hawai'i.

Religious Involvement and Perceptions of Control: Evidence from the Miami-Dade Health Survey.

This study uses data collected through the 2011 Miami-Dade Health Survey (n = 444) to test whether religious involvement is associated with three distinct control beliefs. Regression results suggest that people who exhibit high levels of religious involvement tend to report higher levels of the sense of control, self-control, and the health locus of control than respondents who exhibit low levels of religious involvement. Although this study suggests that religious involvement can promote perceptions of control over one's own life, this pattern is apparently concentrated at the high end of the distribution for religious involvement, indicating a threshold effect.

Disadvantaged family background and depression among young adults in the United States: the roles of chronic stress and self-esteem.

Although several longitudinal studies have demonstrated that having a disadvantaged family background is a risk factor for subsequent symptoms of depression, few studies have examined the mediating mechanisms that explain this long-term relationship. Thus, this study uses US national longitudinal data and integrates social stress theory with the life course perspective by focusing on two mediating mechanisms-the chronic stress of poverty and self-esteem during the transition to adulthood. Results reveal that self-esteem largely mediates the inverse relationship between parental education and levels of depressive symptoms in young adulthood.

Limited English proficiency and psychological distress among Latinos and Asian Americans.

English proficiency is increasingly recognized as an important factor that is related to the mental health of immigrants and ethnic minorities. However, few studies have examined how the association between English proficiency and mental health operates and whether the pattern of association is similar or different among various ethnic minority groups. This paper investigates how limited English proficiency directly and indirectly affects psychological distress through pathways of discrimination for both Latinos and Asian Americans in the United States.

Unfulfilled expectations and symptoms of depression among young adults.

This study uses the life course perspective and data from 16 waves of the US National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1979-1994) to examine whether unfulfilled expectations about educational attainment, employment, marriage, and parenthood are risk factors for subsequent symptoms of depression among young adults in the United States. Results from ordinary least squares regression analyses indicate that achieving a lower level of education than expected, becoming a parent unexpectedly, and being out of the labor force unexpectedly at ages 19-27 predict higher levels of depressive symptoms at ages 29-37, adjusting for demographics, family background, and earlier mental health. These effects do not significantly vary by gender, age, race/ethnicity, or family background, and are not explained by being selected out of the labor force for long durations because of mental or physical illness, attending school, keeping house, or other reasons.

The influence of past unemployment duration on symptoms of depression among young women and men in the United States.

Objectives: I examined whether unemployment while looking for a job and being out of the labor force while not seeking work have distinct effects on symptoms of depression among young women and men in the United States. I also investigated whether past unemployment duration predicts depressive symptoms.

Methods: I used ordinary least squares regression to analyze data from the 1979-1994 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth.

Is the duration of poverty and unemployment a risk factor for heavy drinking?

Research on the influence of socioeconomic status (SES) on heavy drinking of alcohol has provided contradictory findings. A limitation of the literature is that studies have primarily measured SES at one point in time. Inspired by the life course perspective and sociological research on chronic stress, this study uses data from the US National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1979-1992 wave) to examine whether the duration of poverty and unemployment is a risk factor for heavy drinking.

Relationship violence and psychological distress among low-income urban women.

In this paper, we examined the association between relationship violence and psychological distress among low-income urban women. Extending prior research, we considered the effects of relationship violence within the context of other chronic stressors that are common in the lives of these women. Using data from the Welfare, Children, and Families project (1999), a probability sample of 2,402 low-income women with children living in low-income neighborhoods in Boston, Chicago, and San Antonio, we predicted psychological distress with multiple measures of relationship violence, a wide range of sociodemographic variables, and several chronic stressors.

Coping with perceived discrimination: does ethnic identity protect mental health?

Using data (N = 2,109) from a large-scale epidemiological study of Filipino Americans, this study examines whether ethnic identity is linked to mental health and reduces the stress of discrimination. The strength of identification with an ethnic group is found to be directly associated with fewer depressive symptoms. In other words, having a sense of ethnic pride, involvement in ethinic practices, and cultural commitment to one's racial/ethnic group may protect mental health.

Does perceived discrimination affect health? Longitudinal relationships between work discrimination and women's physical and emotional health.

This study uses longitudinal data to examine the causal relationships between perceived work discrimination and women's physical and emotional health. Using data on 1,778 employed women in the National Longitudinal Survey of Mature Women, we investigate the structural and individual characteristics that predict later perceptions of discrimination and the effects of those perceptions on subsequent health. We find that perceptions of discrimination are influenced by job attitudes, prior experiences of discrimination, and work contexts, but prior health is not related to later perceptions.