Civic and political engagement is woven into the fabric of higher education and many higher education institutions have intentionally incorporated this in their mission statements. Civic engagement often refers to passive activities like community service, partnership, and reciprocity with others in society while political engagement refers to activities that influences inherent interaction with the government, most common is voting (Verba et al., 1995). Verba and Nie’s (1972) defined political engagement using four elements: voting, campaign activities like membership or working for political organizations or donating, contacting public officials, and engagement in local communities that tackles local issues. The problem is that no model or robust framework exists that explains the student experiences of civic and political engagement in higher education. Furthermore, there is an absence of greater empirical studies on civic and political engagement regarding ethnic/racial students like Southeast Asian Americans (SEAA).There is little known about the pathways of civic and political engagement among Asian American college students. Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) trace their roots from East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Despite attempts on the heterogenization of Asian Americans’ civic and political engagement trends in research, there is still limited understanding on civic and political behaviors and attitudes based on ethnicity. Southeast Asian Americans often experience challenges that remain invisible in higher education. A phenomenological approach is utilized to analyze the interviews of seven Southeast Asian American college students. Five themes emerged from the data collected: Civic engagement as more accessible, political engagement driven by key issues, intersectionality of Generation Z and political engagement, limited college influence, and ethnic identity as motivation for engagement. Overall, participants viewed civic activities as more accessible than political engagement. There was a lack of comprehensive knowledge to what political engagement entailed other than voting. The participants were driven by specific issues to political engagement. These activities other than voting used channels like Instagram to engage. They perceived institutional messaging or outreach regarding engagement as absent. The participants had a positive experience in student organizations they were a part of, and these networks increased their civic and political awareness. The study was guided by the Asian Critical Race Theory. The tenets of Asian Critical Race Theory were particularly present when discussing their experiences and motivations for engagement. Issues related to Asian hate crimes that led participants to speak out, attend rallies, promotion of Asian related stories via Instagram, voting out political leaders that they perceived propagated anti-immigrant and Asian discrimination were motivations for participation. These were reminiscent of Asian Critical Race Theory. Through disaggregation of data, the implication of this study hoped to refocus the attention of higher education on Southeast Asian Americans and address their unique needs to promote civic development among students. The implications from the findings included increase opportunity for higher education to refine definitions of engagement, removing barriers to college access for Asian Americans and Southeast Asian Americans, advancing the AAPI agenda in institutions and colleges, and connecting college students to Asian American leaders. / Policy, Organizational and Leadership Studies

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<p> Many Filipino Americans experience mental health disparities, yet they are the ethnic group least likely to seek mental health services. When left untreated, the severity of the original mental health needs may increase and lead to additional behavioral health concerns. The purpose of the proposed short-term mental health program is to provide culturally sensitive psycho-education to address the barriers many Filipino Americans face when seeking mental health services. The psycho-education topics will include general mental health education, mental health experience for Filipino Americans, the barriers faced by this population, how to communicate about mental health disparities and mental health resources. With potential funding support from the California Wellness Foundation, whose mission is to improve the health of underserved and low-income Californians, this program will be made available to bridge the gaps in access and quality mental health care at Filipino American Service Group, Inc. (FASGI) Wellness Center in Filipinotown of Los Angeles, California. The actual submission or funding of this grant was not required for the successful completion of this grant proposal.</p>

The Asian American population has increased almost ten percent in the past decade, marking the second highest growth rate of any racial group in the United States. Because of this increase, researchers need to be more informed about current issues that exist among this population, specifically within Asian American women and body satisfaction. This review seeks to explore the current research that exists on Asian American women and body satisfaction. Potential causes and explanations for why this population may deal with body satisfaction are then explored. These include historical causes, peer pressure, familial pressure, and media influence. The review then looks at methods counselors can use to effectively work with the Asian American women population. Finally, some recommendations for future studies are offered. Through this review, researchers and counselors can be better informed to work with the Asian American population. / text

<p> This study applies a depth symbolic approach with hermeneutic methodology to examine the psychological legacy of the historical Chinese Exclusion Act (1882-1943) and its impact on the psyche of the Chinese American. The Chinese Exclusion Act was the first and only American legislation that ever prohibited a group of immigrants from entering America solely on the basis of race. The voice of the Chinese American was silenced and the shadow cast on their psyche was long lasting. Through the analysis of two autobiographies and six poems written by the Chinese Americans that directly experienced and bore witness to the exclusion era, this study explores the identity formation, self-definition, self-expression, coping patterns, and models of functioning of the Chinese American. Hidden and forgotten themes and contents in the Chinese American psyche are also uncovered. This research employs an exploratory method of analysis by interweaving personal narratives, cultural symbolism, and mythical images with historical, political, and social events. The emic &ldquo;bottom up&rdquo; perspective taken in this study intends to obtain knowledge directly from the experience of a minority group to inform and broaden the theoretical foundation of depth psychology with a diverse and multicultural scope. The study concludes that the unique psychic representation of the Chinese American emerges at the interface of their inner and outer realities. The findings reflect on the pioneer and defiant characteristics of the Chinese American, and their repressed aggression and incomplete mourning over loss.</p>

<p> Darder (2012), in <i>Culture and Power in the Classroom,</i> argued that a system of educational inequality is promoted through the consistent production and reproduction of contradictions between the dominant culture and subordinate culture. More significantly, she noted that these dominant and subordinate culture contradictions create a necessity for bicultural individuals to navigate the dialectical tensions between dominant and subordinate cultures and the processes by which education perpetuates dynamics of unequal power and reproduces the dominant worldview. Hence, she urged educators to challenge prevalent power structures and re-imagine the process of schooling as a more inclusive form of pedagogy, geared towards establishing and sustaining cultural democracy in the classroom.</p><p> This study responded to the call to work with a Pilipino/a student organization in creating an inclusive space in the schooling experience. The learning process for many Pilipino/a students has historically been steeped in a colonialist mentality and directed toward assimilating these students into the practices of mainstream culture in order to survive. This qualitative research intended to address the unjust issues rooted in the dominant structure of schooling and the persistence of a form of colonizing education that fails to incorporate Pilipino/a sociohistorical knowledge and practices of knowing. More specifically, it addresses issues and tensions related to the process of biculturalism, which Pilipino/a students are required to manage in order to utilize their voice and lived experiences as a basis for action. The methodology of this study was influenced by Pagtatanung-tanong&mdash;a Pilipino/a equivalent to participatory action research. In utilizing this approach, the study was formulated through the voices of Pilipino/a students at a community college engaged in community building actions toward cultural affirmation.</p>

As a former UC Berkeley undergraduate and a University of Vermont graduate student, this is an educational autobiography of a self-identified Hapa, or mixed-race Asian American, through the lens of race and identity. Exploring what it means to be “white” and “privileged,” and realizing that these concepts--like identity--are fluid, this thesis adopts a dual methodology that includes personal narrative, as well as a meta-critical reflection. This thesis focuses on three memoirs: Bone Black and Wounds of Passion by bell hooks, and Hunger of Memory by Richard Rodriguez, each of which explore themes of reclaiming voice and reconstructing identity with regards to race, class, and culture.

<p>This thesis research examines changes in food culture as a means of adaptation for Cambodians, who migrated to Long Beach, California after the Cambodian genocide (1975- 1979). This research examines how ?place,? defined as experience and neighborhood, influences the ability or desire to maintain certain cultural food practices of the homeland such as passing down the knowledge to the Cambodian younger generation in order to sustain their cultural heritage. An array of qualitative methods was employed for this thesis research which included participant observation, structured interviews, and semi-structured interviews in both Cambodia and Long Beach. For the older Cambodian generation, adaptation of their food culture has occurred through home gardens, shopping at Asian markets in the Long Beach area, and importing certain dried ingredients from Cambodia. The translation of the Khmer food culture transpires when the Cambodian youth takes an interest and they watch their parent(s) prepare the meals. Overall, their place of residence and the willingness to travel a certain distance to shop were influencing factors for Cambodians in the Long Beach area in terms of what types of meals they prepared which included dishes from Asian influences in the surrounding area.

Thesis advisor: Cherie McGill / We often hear about the value of a diverse society, workplace, classrooms, and so on, but what exactly do diversity and inclusion involve, and why do we value them? In this thesis, I will explore philosophical concepts of diversity as it relates to race and gender in the workplace. First, what, exactly, do these terms mean? What is the difference between ‘diversity’ and ‘inclusion’, and how are we to understand these concepts as they apply to institutions like the workplace? Secondly, why should we want diverse or inclusive institutions? Mission statements, for most organizations indicate a commitment to diversity. But, what’s valuable about diversity? Put differently, what is problematic about a lack of diversity in our institutions? / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Philosophy.

Nearly 46 million Americans meet the criteria for a mental disorder. Anxiety impacts 30% of these individuals in the United States. A mounting focus on mental health has prompted a growing response in both research and clinical contexts. Despite this increased attention, Asian Americans still face significant mental health disparities. Furthermore, the broad use of the term Asian Americans makes it difficult for researchers and clinicians to encapsulate the needs in this diverse group. Asian American adolescents are an at risk population due to the significant developmental and cultural stressors they face. Consequently, knowledge pertaining to this population’s mental health resource utilization becomes an important tool in providing care. A socioecological approach was used to investigate determinants relevant to anxiety and mental health resource utilization in Asian American adolescents. Current public health models do not adequately represent the interactions between the analyzed determinants. As such, a socioecological model was proposed which depicts the dynamic relationships surrounding Asian American adolescent mental health resource utilization. A dearth in current research makes it difficult to generalize this model for the whole population. Nevertheless, this model provides an important first step to understanding the unique situation that Asian American adolescents face.