Black Caribbeans’ Post Migration Wellbeing-Are Religiosity and Social Support Enough to Protect Against Acculturative Stress?

The relationship between well-being, religion, and/or social support has previously been observed in the African American community, both as a main effect and as moderator of predictors of well-being. Religion and social support are related to lower incidences of mental health dysfunction, tighter knit families and overall greater satisfaction with life (Hughes, Kiecolt, Keith & Demo, 2015; Jones, Cross & Defour, 2007; Pieterse, Todd, Neville & Carter, 2012). Concern of mental health (anxiety, depression) within the immigrant Black Caribbean population may require addressing the role of acculturative stress within the acculturation/immigration processes, and how this specific form of stress engenders either health or dysfunction. While (some of) these relationships have been studied, and validated in the African American community, little is known of how these relationships develop in the immigrant Black Caribbean community, and ways that they may be addressed. Given the close resemblance that Black Caribbeans share with the African American community phenotypically and culturally, the possibility of associations of negative mental health outcomes buffered by social support and religiosity existing in a Black Caribbean community would seem highly likely. Through an Ecological Systems viewpoint, this study sought to determine the existence of these relationships. It was hypothesized that social support, religiosity and the combination of the two factors would provide significant buffering, thereby minimizing acculturative stress towards healthier mental health outcomes and satisfaction with life. These hypotheses were not supported in the regression analysis in that there were statistically non-significant findings in correlations between the predictor and outcome variables, as well as the moderator/interaction variables. Additional interpretation was gleaned from 3 optional opened ended questions. Although social support was positively associated with satisfaction with life, it did not buffer the relationship between acculturative stress and depression. Results were further discussed with consideration to the responses to the open-ended questions.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Counseling Psychology (UMKC)

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Missouri -- Kansas City

Year dc:date.issued

2018

Author dc:creator

• Browne, Shavern Tracelyn

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Barber, Carolyn E.
• Langrehr, Kimberly J.

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10355/67026

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:mospace.umsystem.edu:10355/67026