<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>

<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.

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.

<p> The social behavior and stigma of epilepsy in Korean nationals and Korean Americans throughout California are studied. This study seeks to explore the cultural differences in the social behavior of participants, their thoughts about epilepsy, their familiarity, social order, stigma, and educational knowledge about epilepsy between the Korean national and Korean American society. It argues that Americanization has influenced a positive change in the portrayal of neurological disorder and disease. The method of data collections and analysis were done through convenience sampling with the use of mixed methods. 56 face to face semi-structured audio recorded interviews were done to collect data. The findings of my study came to be of little difference between the two cultures. My hypothesis of the more Americanized a person is the more understanding, less stigmatic with fair social behavior towards epilepsy was correct but only at a baseline level. The key findings that education, cultural outlook and time gap were the main reasons of these results. Link and Phelan&rsquo;s model of stigmatization holds strongly toward the outlook of stigmatism and Americanization in the Korean national and Korean American cultures. In this research paper my created hypothesis will be backed up by theories and history of epilepsy, the methods of how I approached the interviews, the questions asked, how the results came to be, and the conclusion of if my hypothesis was correct or incorrect.</p><p>

<p> My dissertation examines the depression prevalence, symptom patterns and dimension, and mental health service use among Chinese Americans. The purpose of this research is to, 1) provide epidemiological data on the prevalence of depression among Chinese Americans, 2) examine sociocultural impacts on the prevalence and specific symptoms patterns of depression, and 3) generate implications for more culturally-sensitive approaches in psychiatric diagnosis and treatment. I use secondary data from the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiology Studies (CPES). The CPES consists of three nationally representative surveys conducted between 2001 and 2003. Each of three substantive chapters attempts to a set of issues, and together they contribute to the literature on generational differences in mental health status and help-seeking behaviors among Chinese Americans. </p><p> The first substantive chapter examines depression prevalence and correlates among different generations of Chinese Americans, using non-Hispanic whites as a comparison group, using weighted multinomial logistic regression. Results of the study indicate that Chinese Americans in general have a lower risk of depression than do non-Hispanic whites. Moreover, the prevalence and correlates of depression do not show a linear trend of difference from first to second to third-or-higher generation Chinese Americans, and then to non-Hispanic whites; rather, the risk of depression and its associated with social relational factors present distinct patterns for first and second generation Chinese Americans, compared to third-or-higher generation Chinese Americans and non-Hispanic whites. Specifically, friend network and extended family network play different roles in their influence on depression risk for different generations of Chinese Americans. </p><p> In Chapter Four, I conduct exploratory factor analysis to examine two subgroups of Chinese Americans, the foreign-born and the US-born, and compare them to the non-Hispanic whites. I also conduct weighted binary logistic regression to examine the patterns of depressive symptoms for Chinese Americans (separate by nativity status) and compare the two groups to non-Hispanic whites. I also examine how demographic characteristics and social factors are related to different dimensions of depressive symptoms for each group. I also find very similar factors structures of DSM-IV depressive symptoms among foreign-born Chinese Americans, US-born Chinese Americans, and non-Hispanic whites. For all three groups, suicidal ideation or attempt is a construct that is distinct from the rest of the symptoms items. The three groups have different social correlates, yet there are only minor differences in the social correlates for each one of the four depression dimensions within each group. Chronic physical condition is the most consistently significant predictor, for the negative affect, somatic symptoms, and cognitive symptoms among the two Chinese groups, and for all four dimensions of depression among non-Hispanic whites. </p><p> Finally, in Chapter Five, I find significant heterogeneity of exclusive complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use by race/ethnicity and generational status, as well as English proficiency, gender, age, marital status, education, employment status, having insurance, and having any probably psychiatric disorder. Specifically, first generation Chinese immigrants lag behind second, third-or-higher generation Chinese Americans, and non-Hispanic whites in the likelihood of using exclusive CAM services, as well as any services in general. In addition, this chapter finds that exclusive CAM service use was more popular than the use of only conventional Western medicine or a combination of both, among all Chinese Americans except for the second generations. The findings provide a more nuanced understanding of the pattern of mental health service use among Chinese Americans.</p>

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<p> Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) disproportionately affects Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. They account for more than half of infected individuals with HBV. Untreated HBV may ultimately lead to liver failure. Asian Americans have the lowest HBV screening rates; yet, they have the highest incidence of liver disease. A better understanding of HBV among Asian Americans is needed. This study explored factors associated with knowledge of HBV and perceived risks of HBV. A convenience sample was recruited at a faith-based organization and through the Asian Pacific Islander Network in Long Beach, California. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire. Bivariate correlation coefficients were computed. Results indicated that knowledge of HBV was moderately low, even amongst the sample with a high level of education. Programs are needed to increase HBV screening for Asian Americans from all levels of education. Public health social workers can lead the charge. </p>

<p> With the many challenges that Chinese American churches are facing, together with the ever-changing needs of their members, Chinese American churches need to look for ways to nurture their members and to develop them into mature leaders. This thesis project is designed to explore the leadership development strategies of selected Chinese churches in North America that have demonstrated certain effectiveness and success in developing leaders, in hopes of discovering some common effective leadership development strategies. This author has interviewed eleven large Chinese American churches, with Sunday attendance ranging from 500 to 2600, regarding the strategies they use and the challenges they face in developing leaders. Using qualitative analysis, this author has discovered some common principles that have been used by these churches to develop leaders and has formulated some practical pointers that may be applicable to other Chinese American churches and beyond. </p><p> The findings reveal that faith and character development precedes skill training. Likewise, Christ-like character, spiritual maturity, and a willingness to serve are more important than a person's natural abilities and talents. In addition, the pastoral staff should be highly involved in designing and executing the leadership development programs. Moreover, the church should create a learning atmosphere by publicizing and offering life-relevant and need-based trainings through classrooms, small groups, or other venues. Outside resources such as guest speakers, seminars and conferences should also be utilized. Furthermore, opportunities should be provided for lay people to participate in service with the help of on-the-job training and ongoing support.</p>

<p> Bruce Lee is a martial arts action star whose enduring screen image has lasted many decades beyond his death, and this is partially due to the numerous clones that came out after the star's premature death in 1973. These clones and various spin-offs of Lee's life's works resulted in the phenomenon dubbed "Bruceploitation." As time passed, the Bruceploitation phenomenon slowed down, but more recently there has been an interest in Bruce Lee's life with various films and television series that attempt to tell the life story of the actor, especially with his family's involvement. While earlier forms of Bruceploitation films strove to exploit Lee's image for financial profits, these more recent works do not seem to exploit Lee in the same way. In particular, Bruceploitation in more recent works aims to exploit the martial arts star's narrative to associate his persona with specific ideologies. I argue, however, that the more recent television series by China Central Television, <i>The Legend of Bruce Lee,</i> is in fact following in the legacy of Bruceploitation in that this category of texts is not only about making money without the consent of the star, but it is rooted in the act of exploitation, which redefined the image of Bruce Lee in a national Chinese context. Although the CCTV series may not look for financial profits as its main goal through the perpetuation of Lee's narrative, it is exploiting his image for ideological purposes. In particular, the series exploits Lee's image to assert national Chinese power in a global context, which can be seen through the production practices, circulation of the series, and the construction of specific scenes throughout the series. </p>