| dc.description.abstract | Existing studies suggest that the high rates of mental health problems among second
generation or UK born Asians are due to "culture conflict", that is, the idea that individuals are
stuck between two incompatible cultures. The aim of this study was to explore how the
experience of being raised in both Asian and native British culture impacts upon the mental
health of second generation Asian women. Thirty women participated in this study and were
categorised into two groups (clinical vs. non-clinical) according to 'caseness', which was
determined on the basis of a screening questionnaire, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-
12; Goldberg, 1972). A more detailed psychological profile of participants was provided
using the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI; Derogatis and Melisaratos, 1983). These groups
were compared on a range of identity parameters drawn from Identity Structure Analysis
(ISA; Weinreich, 1979,1980), which is a meta-theoretical framework designed to investigate
cultural identity and acculturation.
The results indicated that both the clinical and non-clinical groups identified closely with
Asian and native British culture, which suggests that both groups viewed themselves as being
bicultural. There were no differences between the groups in the extent to which they wished
to dissociate from the values of their parents and representatives of Asian culture. The clinical
group were significantly more likely to view fathers and first generation Asian females as
having some qualities which they identified with and some which they wished to dissociate
from, thereby creating a conflictual state (identification conflicts), than the non-clinical group.
When these identification conflicts were considered across a range of significant others
(identity diffusion), there was no difference between the groups. Identity diffusion was
positively correlated with some of the BSI symptom dimensions for the clinical group and
negatively correlated for the non-clinical group.
The results imply that even women who consider themselves to be bicultural experience
psychological distress, which is in contrast with much of the literature. The results also
suggest that potential psychological stressors include the experience of integrating the
conflicting demands of home and wider society. When identifications with a range of
significant others were highly conflictual in nature this was associated with a negative effect
on one's sense of well-being, however when this was experienced to a milder degree it
appeared to serve as a trigger for identity development. | en_US |
