Thesis (Ph.D.)--Lehigh University, 2008. / Adviser: Arpana G. Inman.

Thesis advisor: Usha Tummala-Narra / Immigrants in the United States experience a unique array of mental health stressors related to their experiences of migration and acculturation. For immigrants who are also persons of color, additional obstacles and stressors may compound their experiences. Previous research indicates that while psychologists who work with this population may endorse multicultural competence, they may not actually carry out culturally sensitive practices. Additionally, much of the present literature on therapy with minority clients focuses on aspirational goals. However, analyses of the ways in which these tenets are applied to clinical work are few and far between. What are the barriers to implementing these practices? What resources support clinicians who are working with diverse immigrant populations? The present qualitative study focused on the experience of clinicians who work with minority immigrant clients. Thirteen White psychologists responded to open-ended questions regarding their clinical experience with this population. Interview questions explored positive and negative clinical experiences, issues of power, and the ways in which the therapeutic relationship impacted clinicians' views of themselves. Results of the study indicate that internal and external systemic factors influenced clinicians' expectations for therapy as well as the manner in which they approached problematic relational outcomes. Analyses further highlighted the role of power and systemic influences on the therapeutic relationship. Participating psychologists painted a clear picture of the importance of collaborative, empathic relationships, which further highlights the consequences of neglecting to address underlying tensions. A clear and consistent theme of deeply personal commitment to their work transcended individual interviews. Implications for researchers, clinicians, and training institutions were addressed. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2012. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between multicultural educational (ME) practices, student self-efficacy, and student cultural identity in the high school English setting. Surveys were administered to first-semester college freshmen which assessed their perceptions of their high school English/literature ME experiences, self-efficacy, and current ethnic identity status, with predictions that ME would positively predict self-efficacy and identity.

This study included 114 Native adults and 6 Native/non-Native pairs of friends (age 18-25). Experiences and attitudes for close interethnic friendships were investigated. Friendship patterns and predictors were quantitatively assessed for the 114 Natives, with qualitative examination of the development and qualities of the six friend pairs. Results of quantitative analysis revealed that 80% of this sample reported friendship investment with Whites, and 55% reported friendship investment with same-tribe members. Over 90% of participants were open to engaging in friendships with member of any ethnicity or race. Approximately 98% of participants reported being targeted for racial discrimination, with most reporting some distress, often at a low level. Significant positive correlates of past and future friendships with Whites included: household income in childhood, identification with White culture, racial/ethnic composition of students in college, multicultural experiences, and past support from parents. Multiple regressions included as significant predictors of past friendships: past parental support (t = 6.488, p < .001), past multicultural experiences (t = 3.852, p < .001), racial composition in college (t = 3.083, p = .003), and diversity climate in high school (t = 2.468, p = .015). Multiple regressions for future friendships with Whites revealed as significant predictors: past friendships (t = 5.187, p < .001), and past parental support (t = 2.507, p = .014). Qualitative findings revealed authenticity/acceptance, communication, similarity, and trust as aspects of close friendships with non-Natives. Opportunities to share cultural teachings, and shared cultural interests helped friendships develop. Participants’ descriptions of their friendships largely coincided with contact/opportunity theories, with propinquity allowing homophily, reciprocation, and disclosure to develop within the friendship. All friendship pairs weathered periods of time during which contact between friends became infrequent, but all participants asserted that they were still close friends during those periods. Findings illuminate the prominence of interethnic friendships in the lives of Native youth, and positive intergroup attitudes expressed within those relationships.

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The proposed study will investigate the effects of animal companionship on the acculturative stress of international students at American universities and colleges. Language constraint will be examined as a possible moderator, and sense of belonging will be examined as a possible mediator in the effects of animal companionship on acculturative stress. Participants will be international students at the Claremont Colleges. They will first fill out demographic information, a sense of belonging scale, and an acculturative stress scale online. They will then come to the lab weekly, and be randomly assigned to either hang out with their peers, or engage in animal-assisted activities with dogs for one hour. The study will last four weeks, and at the end of the study, participants will fill out the sense of belonging scale and the acculturative stress scale again online. Participants in the animal condition are expected to report greater decreases in acculturative stress than participants in the game condition. Participants who are non-native English speakers will experience greater decreases in their acculturative stress than participants who are native English speakers in the animal group. Sense of belonging will mediate the effect of interaction with animals/people on acculturative stress. The results would then suggest that animal companionship helps alleviate international students’ acculturative stress, and future college counseling programs designed for international students should consider animal-assisted activities or therapy.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, 1995. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-04, Section: B, page: 2888. Chair: Frances Campbell-LaVoie.

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