A Longitudinal Investigation of Discrimination and Mental Health in Chinese International Students: The Role of Social Connectedness

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-77
Author(s):  
Xiaoning Sun ◽  
Gordon C. Nagayama Hall ◽  
David S. DeGarmo ◽  
Jennifer Chain ◽  
Michelle C. Fong
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
International Students ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Social Connectedness ◽  
Perceived Discrimination ◽  
Chinese International Students ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Longitudinal Investigation ◽  
American Students

Race-based discrimination is associated with negative mental health outcomes for Chinese international students. Host and ethnic social connectedness have been demonstrated to buffer the effects of discrimination on mental health. However, most studies thus far have utilized cross-sectional designs. The current study was a longitudinal investigation of the effects of race- and language-based discrimination on anxiety and depression symptoms among 210 Chinese international students studying in the U.S. Participants were assessed during their first academic term at a U.S. university (T1) and 3 months later during their second term (T2). Measures included the Brief Perceived Discrimination Scale, the Perceived Language Discrimination Scale, the Social Connectedness Scale, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and the Beck Depression Inventory-II. Results from a cross-lag model showed that T1 perceived discrimination was significantly predictive of T2 negative mental health symptoms, whereas T1 mental health symptoms did not predict T2 perceived discrimination. Subsequent moderation models revealed that this association between discrimination and mental health symptoms was buffered by host social connectedness (i.e., social connectedness with American students) but not ethnic social connectedness (i.e., social connectedness with Chinese students). This longitudinal analysis implies that efforts to reduce experiences of discrimination and to facilitate social connections between international and American students may help prevent negative mental health outcomes among international students.

Combat Deployment Experiences and Soldier Mental Health: Examining the Factor Structure of a Combat Experiences Scale

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haley Sherman ◽  
Nicky Frye-Cox ◽  
Mallory Lucier-Greer
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Principal Component Analysis ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Factor Structure ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Mental Health Outcomes ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Coping With Stress ◽  
Health Symptoms

ABSTRACT Introduction Researchers and practitioners are invested in understanding how deployment experiences impact the nearly 193,000 U.S. service members who deploy in a given year. Yet, there remains a need to adequately identify salient deployment experiences through survey measurement tools and understand how differential experiences are uniquely related to mental health outcomes. Therefore, this study examined the factor structure of an established combat experiences measure from the Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Service members (Army STARRS) dataset to identify underlying survey constructs that reflect nuanced deployment experiences. Then, we examined the association between diverse combat experiences and current mental health symptoms (i.e., anxiety and depressive symptoms) and the mediating role of coping. Materials and Methods Data were drawn from the Army STARRS data (N = 14,860 soldiers), specifically the All Army Study component. A principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted to examine the dimensionality of the combat experiences scale, and then a path model was conducted to examine the relationships between combat experiences, coping with stress following a deployment, and mental health symptoms while controlling for relevant individual and interpersonal factors. Results Results from the principal component analysis suggested that the Army STARRS combat experiences scale encompasses two components, specifically: “Expected combat experiences” and “Responsible for non-enemy deaths.” Both “Expected combat experiences” and “Responsible for non-enemy deaths” were associated with higher levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms, respectively, and “Responsible for non-enemy deaths” was also indirectly linked to these mental health outcomes through coping with stress after deployment. Conclusions These findings provide insight into the dimensionality of combat experiences and offer practitioners a more nuanced understanding of how to process unique combat experiences that differentially relate to mental health symptoms.

scholarly journals Relationships between Parent-Reported Parenting, Child-Perceived Parenting, and Children’s Mental Health in Taiwanese Children

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 1049 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ching-Yu Huang ◽  
Yi-Ping Hsieh ◽  
April Shen ◽  
Hsi-Sheng Wei ◽  
Jui-Ying Feng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Chinese Culture ◽  
Children’S Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Outcomes ◽  
Children's Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Perceived Parenting ◽  
Chinese Parenting

The current study examines the relationship between parents’ and children’s reports of parenting and their effects on children’s mental health symptoms. Six hundred and sixty-six parent-child dyads in Taiwan participated in this study. The parents and the children filled out the parenting questionnaires, and the children also reported their general mental health. The results demonstrated that parental-reported and child-perceived parenting were positively correlated, but parents tended to report lower scores on authoritarian parenting and higher scores on Chinese parenting than did their children. There were also significant gender differences: The mothers reported higher authoritative parenting than did the fathers; and the boys perceived higher authoritarian and Chinese-culture specific parenting than did the girls. Moreover, the Chinese parenting had a negative effect on children’s mental health outcomes. Finally, our results showed that children’s perception of parenting had a stronger effect on children’s mental health symptoms than did parental reports on parenting, urging future research to include the children’s report when investigating the effects of parenting on children’s mental health outcomes.

scholarly journals Impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle habits and mental health symptoms in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in Canada

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rose Swansburg ◽  
Tasmia Hai ◽  
Frank P MacMaster ◽  
Jean-François Lemay
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Attention Deficit ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Lifestyle Habits ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Children With Adhd ◽  
Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Screen Use

Abstract Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic created an environment of restricted access to health and recreation services. Lifestyle habits including sleep, eating, exercise, and screen use were modified, potentially exacerbating adverse mental health outcomes. This study investigates the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle habits and mental health symptoms in paediatric attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Canada. Methods An online survey was distributed across Canada to caregivers of children with ADHD (children aged 5 to 18 years) assessing depression (PHQ-9), anxiety (GAD-7), ADHD (SNAP-IV), and lifestyle behaviours. Data were analyzed by gender (male/female) and age category (5 to 8, 9 to 12, and 13 to 18 years). Spearman’s correlations between lifestyle habits and mental health outcomes were conducted. Results A total of 587 surveys were completed. Mean child age was 10.14 years (SD 3.06), including 166 females (28.3%). The PHQ-9 and GAD-7 indicated that 17.4% and 14.1% of children met criteria for moderately severe to severe depression and anxiety symptoms respectively. Children met SNAP-IV cut-off scores for inattention (73.7%), hyperactivity/impulsivity (66.8%), and oppositional defiant disorder (38.6%) behaviours. Caregivers reported changes in sleep (77.5%), eating (58.9%), exercise (83.7%), and screen use (92.9%) in their ADHD child, greatly impacting youth. Sleeping fewer hours/night, eating more processed foods, and watching TV/playing videogames >3.5 hours/day correlated with greater depression, anxiety and ADHD symptoms, and exercising <1 hour/day further correlated with depression symptoms (P<0.01). Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in less healthy lifestyle habits and increased mental health symptoms in Canadian children with ADHD. Longitudinal studies to better understand the relationship between these factors are recommended.

scholarly journals Personal, social and relational predictors of UK postgraduate researcher mental health problems

BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clio Berry ◽  
Jeremy E. Niven ◽  
Cassie M. Hazell
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Social Connectedness ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Supervisory Relationship ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
The Uk

Background Emerging evidence demonstrates that postgraduate researchers have high rates of mental health problems. These problems are distressing, affect PhD studies, and have longer-term potential effects beyond the duration of the PhD. Yet large-scale studies of multiple risk and protective factors are rare. Aims We aimed to test the predictive validity of a comprehensive set of potential determinants of mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety and suicidality) among postgraduate researchers in the UK, including personal, study-related, and supervision characteristics. Method We used regression models applied to data obtained from a national online survey of UK postgraduate researchers (Understanding DOCtoral researcher mental health; U-DOC, 2018–2019) to test predictors of mental health symptoms. Results These models show that postgraduate researchers' mental health symptoms are predicted by demographic, occupational, psychological, social and supervisory relationship factors. Greater perfectionism, more impostor thoughts and reduced supervisory communion most strongly and consistently predict mental health symptoms. Conclusions Institutions training postgraduate researchers should focus interventions intended to improve depression, anxiety, suicidality, on self-beliefs and social connectedness. Moreover, supervisors should be provided with training that improves the degree of agency, and especially communion, in the relationships they form with postgraduate researchers.

scholarly journals Perceived discrimination and mental health symptoms among Black men with HIV.

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura M. Bogart ◽  
Glenn J. Wagner ◽  
Frank H. Galvan ◽  
Hope Landrine ◽  
David J. Klein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Black Men ◽  
Perceived Discrimination ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms

scholarly journals Childhood adversities and mental health outcomes: Does the perception or age of the event matter?

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Sonya Negriff
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Mental Health Outcomes ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Childhood Adversities ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Adverse Experiences ◽  
Sum Score ◽  
The Individual

Abstract The current study extends knowledge regarding the individual contribution of different adverse experiences to mental health symptoms in late adolescence by including the perception of how upsetting each experience was to the adolescent and the age at the first occurrence. We also sought to move beyond sum scores of adverse experiences by using a person-centered approach to classifying individuals with similar co-occurrence of adversities. The data came from a longitudinal study of maltreatment on adolescent development (N = 454). Self-reported childhood adversities were assessed at Wave 4 (average of 7 years postbaseline) and examined with respect to current mental health symptoms (depression, PTSD, anxiety, and externalizing). Although the adversity sum score was a potent predictor of all mental health outcomes, the results indicated that the use of a sum score obscures information about the importance of individual adversities. Additionally, the influence of age of occurrence varied based on the adversity and outcome, while the perception of the event did not add much unique variance. Finally, the latent class analyses provided unique information about the patterns of co-occurring adversity in this sample, and that membership in either of the multiple-adversity classes was associated with more mental health symptoms.

scholarly journals The association between discrimination and health: findings on Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin populations in Finland

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 898-903 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shadia Rask ◽  
Irma T Elo ◽  
Seppo Koskinen ◽  
Eero Lilja ◽  
Päivikki Koponen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Perceived Discrimination ◽  
Migrant Health ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Subtle Discrimination ◽  
Different Types ◽  
High Discrimination

Abstract Background The Second European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey recently demonstrated widespread discrimination across EU countries, with high discrimination rates observed in countries like Finland. Discrimination is known to negatively impact health, but fewer studies have examined how different types of perceived discrimination are related to health. Methods This study examines (i) the prevalence of different types of perceived discrimination among Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin populations in Finland, and (ii) the association between different types of perceived discrimination (no experiences; subtle discrimination only; overt or subtle and overt discrimination) and health (self-rated health; limiting long-term illness (LLTI) or disability; mental health symptoms). Data are from the Finnish Migrant Health and Wellbeing Study (n = 1795). Subtle discrimination implies reporting being treated with less courtesy and/or treated with less respect than others, and overt discrimination being called names or insulted and/or threatened or harassed. The prevalence of discrimination and the associations between discrimination and health were calculated with predicted margins and logistic regression. Results Experiences of subtle discrimination were more common than overt discrimination in all the studied groups. Subtle discrimination was reported by 29% of Somali origin persons and 35% Russian and Kurdish origin persons. The prevalence of overt discrimination ranged between 22% and 24%. Experiences of discrimination increased the odds for poor self-reported health, LLTI and mental health symptoms, particularly among those reporting subtle discrimination only. Conclusions To promote the health of diverse populations, actions against racism and discrimination are highly needed, including initiatives that promote shared belonging.

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