Asian and Caucasian Client Perceptions of the Effectiveness of Counseling

Questionnaire responses from 73 Asian and 255 Caucasian clients at a university counseling center compared ratings of counseling helpfulness, counselor characteristics, and other reactions to counseling. The Asians (a) rated counseling as less helpful for personal-emotional concerns and (b) rated their counselors as less competent than did the Caucasians.     

Ethnic Differences in Children’s Entry into Public Mental Health Care via Emergency Mental Health Services

For children and youth making a mental health crisis visit, we investigated ethnic disparities in whether the children and youth were currently in treatment or whether this crisis visit was an entry or reentry point into mental health treatment. We gathered Medicaid claims for mental health services provided to 20,110 public-sector clients ages 17 and younger and divided them into foster care and non-foster care subsamples. We then employed logistic regression to analyze our data with sociodemographic and clinical controls. Among children and youth who were not placed in foster care, African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans were significantly less likely than Caucasians to have received mental health care during the three months preceding a crisis visit. Disparities among children and youth in foster care were not statistically significant. Ethnic minority children and youth were more likely than Caucasians to use emergency care as an entry or reentry point into the mental health treatment, thereby exhibiting a crisis-oriented pattern of care.     

Exploring possible ethnic differences and bias in the Rorschach Comprehensive System

In this study I conducted a series of analyses to explore potential ethnic bias in Rorschach Comprehensive System variables using a consecutive series of 432 patients evaluated in 1 setting. The simple association between 188 scores and ethnicity revealed no significant findings after matching on several salient demographic variables. Next, 17 analyses of convergent validity found no evidence for differential validity and no evidence for slope bias. For 13 analyses, there was also no evidence for intercept bias. However, with 4 variables predicting psychotic disorders, regression lines favored minorities and worked against European Americans. These findings are the opposite of what should be seen if the Rorschach was biased against minorities and most likely emerged for statistical reasons related to unmeasured confounds. Finally, principal components analyses revealed no evidence of ethnic bias in the Rorschach's internal structure. Although these findings need to be replicated, the available data support using the Comprehensive System across ethnic groups.     

Boundaries of American Identity: Relations Between Ethnic Group Prototypicality and Policy Attitudes

We sought to document that the extent to which different ethnic groups are perceived as embodying the American identity is more strongly linked to antiminority policy attitudes and acculturation ideologies among majority‐group members (European Americans) than among minority‐group members (Asian Americans or Latino/as). Participants rated 13 attributes of the American identity as they pertain to different ethnic groups and reported their endorsement of policy attitudes and acculturation ideologies. We found a relative consensus across ethnic groups regarding defining components of the American identity. However, European Americans were perceived as more prototypical of this American identity than ethnic minorities, especially by European American raters. Moreover, for European Americans but not for ethnic minorities, relative ingroup prototypicality was related to antiminority policy attitudes and acculturation ideologies. These findings suggest that for European Americans, perceptions of ethnic group prototypicality fulfill an instrumental function linked to preserving their group interests and limiting the rights afforded to ethnic minorities.     

9 Suicide in San Francisco,CA: A Comparison of Caucasian and Asian Groups, 1987–1994

Completed suicides in the city of San Francisco, California, were examined across all ages in the racial groups of Caucasians (n = 798) and Asians (n = 124) from 1987 to 1994. A comparison of Caucasians and Asians showed that there were differences between them in their rates across all age groups. The major findings are: (1) Caucasians predominately used gunshot to complete suicide whereas Asians predominately used hanging to complete suicide, (2) Asian women over the age of 85 have the highest rates across both groups and genders, (3) Asians, as compared to Caucasians, used fewer drugs and alcohol at time of death. Theoretical connections between differences in suicide and definition of the self, as influenced by culture, are discussed.     

Revisiting relationships between sex-related variables and continuation in counseling

This study examined the relationships between three sex-related variables (client sex, therapist sex, and dyad matching on sex) and continuation in counseling. 245 college students who were clients at three university counseling centers participated. Consistent with previous studies, women comprised 68.2% of the clients seeking services at these counseling centers. Clients' sex was significantly related to counseling duration, explaining 2.2% of the common variance. Female clients, on the average, attended 1.8 more sessions than male clients. However, neither the therapists' sex nor dyad matching on sex was significantly related to the duration of counseling. None of the sex-related variables correlated with premature termination of counseling. The results have implications for providing counseling and outreach services to male students. Despite relatively equivalent rates in the incidence of mental health problems, female students continue to comprise the majority of clients. Therefore, university counseling centers need to communicate their services better to male students in need of mental health services.     

Vocational Rehabilitation of the Socially Disadvantaged: Demographic and Intellectual Correlates of Outcome

Data are reported relating various demographic and intelligence attributes of socially disadvantaged clients to successful or unsuccessful outcome of a comprehensive vocational assessment and guidance program. Mothers of illegitimate children tended to complete the assessment program but to remain unemployed. Age was positively related to success, whereas education was unrelated. Verbal and performance IQ were positively related to outcome for females. Successful Caucasian males were higher in verbal IQ than successful male Caucasians, but no difference was found for Negro males. Performance IQ was nonpredictive of outcome for both white and Negro males. Higher verbal than performance IQ was positively correlated with success for male Caucasians.     

Social Work with Asian Americans

This paper is based upon an extensive review of the literature on Asian Americans, the practice experience of the senior author, and the research work of the junior author with one of the Asian American groups. An attempt is made to describe the socio-economic conditions of the major Asian American groups and the antecedents of those conditions, as well as the major problems experienced by most Asian Americans. The common features of the cultural values held by most Asian Americans are discussed and the reasons for their difficulty in using the available human services are analyzed. Social work approaches likely to work with Asian American clients are suggested.     

Body dysmorphic symptoms: phenomenology and ethnicity

Differences in the presentation of clinical features of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) across ethnic groups have received little investigation. The current study assessed BDD symptoms in an ethnically diverse sample of adults (n=401) using an online survey. Participants completed self-report measures assessing BDD symptoms, body parts of concern and BDD behaviors. Compared to Caucasian participants, no significant differences were found in body parts or behaviors reported by Latino or African American participants. Significant group differences did emerge between Asian and Caucasian participants. Specifically, Asians reported more concern with straight hair and dark skin and fewer body shape concerns than Caucasians. Asians also endorsed lower rates of grooming, touching body parts, and camouflaging and higher rates of exercise compared to Caucasians. Although most clinical features of BDD appear similar across ethnic groups, results showed some differences in body parts and behaviors between Caucasians and Asian Americans with BDD symptoms.     

The Self-Concept of Welfare Recipients

Do persons receiving welfare feel differently about themselves and others than persons who are not welfare recipients? Does duration of time on welfare have any bearing on these feelings? To answer these questions the writer compared 2 groups of clients who were receiving services from the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, using a number of scales that reflected attitudes regarding self and others. One group consisted of clients who were on welfare at the time of application for rehabilitation services and the other group consisted of those who were not. The welfare group was further broken down into 3 groups on the basis of the duration of time that they had been on welfare. No differences were found between any of the groups on self-concept, self-acceptance, ideal-self or concept of others. Some variables that might be masking the hypothesized differences, thus accounting for the present findings, are discussed.     

Perfectionism and ethnicity: implications for depressive symptoms and self-reported academic achievement

Ethnic differences in perfectionism were examined among Asian American, African American, and Caucasian American college students. Analyses revealed that Asian American students scored significantly higher than the other groups on 3 of 6 perfectionism subscales. Minority students reported significantly higher parental expectations than Caucasian students. Significant correlations emerged for all 3 groups between depressive symptoms and concerns about making mistakes, perceived criticism from parents, and self-doubt. In regression analyses, perfectionism explained significant variance in depressive symptoms for Asian Americans and Caucasians and explained significant variance in cumulative grade point average for Asian Americans and African Americans. Self-doubt emerged as a robust individual predictor in these analyses.     

Counseling utilization by ethnic minority college students

Although multicultural awareness in counseling has risen substantially in the last decade, little research has examined counseling utilization and outcomes for ethnic minorities on university campuses. A sample of 1,166 African American, Asian American, Caucasian, and Latino help-seeking university students from over 40 universities nationwide filled out the Outcome Questionnaire 45 (OQ45) at the first and last therapy sessions. Caucasian students attended significantly more sessions than all other groups. Greatest distress was found at intake in Asian American students, followed by Latino, African American, and Caucasian students. All groups appeared to benefit from therapy, as noted by a decrease in symptomatology, but none of the groups met the criteria for clinically significant change for the OQ45. Implications for therapists working with minority clients are discussed.     

The Dimensional Structure of Asian American Acculturation: An Examination of Prototypes

This study investigated the dimensional structure of acculturation for three prototypic groups of Asian Americans: those who were more Asian identified, those who were more American identified, and those who were jointly Asian and American identified. Three-way multidimensional scaling revealed a two-dimensional structure in which the first dimension consisted of language and culture domains and the second dimension contained cultural identity and values domains. These findings are consistent with the theoretical literature that distinguishes between external and internal aspects of acculturation (e.g., Kwan & Sodowsky, 1997). The first dimension was salient for the American identified prototype group, the second dimension was salient for the Asian identified group, and both dimensions were salient for the Asian and American identified group. Implications of the dimensional structure are discussed with respect to the predominant models of acculturation and identity for Asian Americans (e.g., Berry, 1989; Sue & Sue, 2003; Suinn, Rickard-Figueroa, Lew, & Vigil, 1987), the role of sociocultural context, and Linville's (1987) theory of cognitive complexity. Recommendations are made for the assessment of acculturation among Asian Americans.     

Job Embeddedness in a Culturally Diverse Environment

The demographic composition of the workforce is changing, with an increase in the participation of minorities. Numerous studies center their attention on the inclusion of minorities, but variation in turnover of a culturally diverse workforce has not received much attention. Forecasts indicate that by 2020 Hispanic presence will increase 60% nationwide. Given these trends, it is critical that management scholars examine the impact of Hispanic cultural factors on important organizational outcomes such as voluntary turnover. This paper assesses whether there are significant differences between Hispanics and Caucasians with respect to job embeddedness and voluntary turnover. The findings suggest that job embeddedness is a robust predictor of employee retention across diverse populations. Portions of this research were submitted by Carlos M. Mallol in partial fulfillment of requirements for his doctoral degree. A preliminary version of this article was presented at the 2003 Academy of International Business Conference.     

Do substance abuse and mental health clients prefer automated assessments?

In both psychiatric and substance-abuse services, clinicians have been concerned with the introduction of automated assessments and with their clients’ reactions toward those assessments. The positive reactions of psychiatric clients have been well documented, but little has been known about substance-abusing clients’ impressions of automated assessments. The impact of automated assessment on clients seeking substance-abuse services was evaluated and compared with a previously analyzed sample of clients seeking mental health services. On the whole, both groups responded similarly and positively to automated assessments. Factor analyses revealed three underlying dimensions in client attitudes toward automated assessment,Completeness and satisfaction,Ease of use and enjoyment, andNegative attitudes. In addition, statistically, though not clinically, significant differences in attitudes were found between various demographic groups. Overall, the results support the use of automated assessments with individuals seeking either substance-abuse or mental-health services.     

The responsiveness and equality of mental health care to Chicanos and Native Americans

An examination was made of the services received by Chicano and Native American clients in 17 community mental health facilities. Although these minority clients differed from Anglos in demographic variables, there was no evidence that they were rendered inferior or discriminatory services. However, failure to return for therapy was much higher among minority clients. Possible reasons for this failure to return are discussed. It is suggested that for ethnic group clients, equality of services may not mean responsive services.     

The Role of Gender Role Attitudes and Immigrant Generation in Ethnic Minority Women’s Labor Force Participation in Britain

Although substantial research shows that in Britain some ethnic minority women have significantly lower labor force participation (LFP) rates than White British women, even after controlling for demographic characteristics and education levels, little is known about the reasons underlying the remaining ethnic differences. Using nationally representative data (2010–2011), I investigate the role of gender role attitudes in explaining the ethnic as well as generational differences in women’s LFP rates. The results show that after controlling for demographic characteristics and education levels, LFP rates of Pakistani and Bangladeshi women are significantly lower than that of White British women and about half of the ethnic gap can be explained by differences in gender role attitudes. Moreover, I show that the ethnic gap is less pronounced for second generation Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Indian women whose LFP rates are significantly higher than those of their first generation counterparts. Importantly, the higher LFP rates of second generation South Asian women can be largely explained by their relatively less traditional gender role attitudes. Drawing on my results, public policies could provide appropriate childcare services and flexible work arrangements to alter traditional gender role attitudes, thereby improving minority women’s labor market opportunities.

     

Characteristics of Clients Judged to Require Long-Term Counseling

This study examines one subgroup of clients seen at a university counseling center, namely, 72 clients who were expected by their counselor to remain in counseling for 10 or more interviews. Ratings were available on psychological characteristics for this sample and for the Counseling Center's total client population. In addition, the total university population could be compared with both of these groups on demographic characteristics. On the basis of pre- and post-counseling ratings of severity of problem, the sample being investigated was divided into Improved and Unimproved groups. Comparative data are examined with regard to class, college, sex, type of residence, type of problem, severity level at onset and termination, number of counseling interviews, motivation for counseling, defensiveness, and counselor's feelings toward client. Long-term counseling and improvement status are found to be a function of most of these variables.     

Targeting those in need: baseline data from the first English National Health Service (NHS) health trainer service

As part of a wider strategy to reduce health inequalities, England's National Health Service has introduced health trainers (HTs) to facilitate healthier behaviour among disadvantaged groups. This study reports baseline data from the first English HT service: assessing whether the HTs reached socially disadvantaged clients engaging in unhealthy behaviours and describing client belief characteristics relevant to the delivery of the service. Data from 864 clients show that the service reached disadvantaged groups and that those groups were engaging in risky health behaviours. Self-efficacy about changing behaviour was not strong and clients were unlikely to have made explicit behaviour-change plans prior to attending the service. Implications for HT services around targeting those most in need and supporting psychological triggers for change are discussed.