What makes psychotherapy ‘Western’? Understanding help-seeking attitudes of Indians towards psychotherapy

Asian American college students' adherence to Asian and European American cultural values and their relations to collective self-esteem, acculturative stress, cognitive flexibility, and general self-efficacy were examined. On the basis of data from 156 respondents, the results supported the hypothesis that adherence to Asian and European American values are positive predictors of membership and private dimensions of collective self-esteem. However, contrary to the authors' hypotheses, no relations were observed between adherence to Asian and European American values and other criterion variables. It is interesting that post hoc examination of the results indicated that adherence to Asian values was a positive predictor of the importance to identity dimension of collective self-esteem. Also, adherence to European American values was a positive predictor of cognitive flexibility and general self-efficacy.

This exploratory study assessed the ability of six theory-derived variables representing possible signifiers for the Western cultural components of psychotherapy for predicting attitudes towards professional psychological help-seeking. Using data from 377 participants from India, regression analyses were conducted to test six hypotheses derived from Frank’s and Frank common factors model of psychotherapy. Results indicated a positive relationship between European American values and help-seeking attitudes, a negative relationship between Asian values and help-seeking attitudes, a positive relationship between westernization and help-seeking attitudes, and a negative relationship between cultural mistrust and help-seeking attitudes. Assessing a client’s cultural values, endorsement of a Western lifestyle, and level of cultural mistrust may be particularly predictive in determining suitability for and openness to psychotherapy with the single best predictor being European-American values. Those who do not adhere to Western values, who endorse more Asian values, who live a visibly non-Western lifestyle, and who have high mistrust of Western culture may be better suited for more culturally congruent healing methods.

Abstract: There remains considerable ambiguity in predicting which Indians seek professional psychological services during times of distress and which do not. This study expands past research on predicting professional psychological help-seeking attitudes of Indians to help-seeking intentions. Drawing on variables previously examined as predictors of help-seeking attitudes from a frame of psychotherapy as a manifestation of Western culture, this study aimed to investigate the predictive ability of six cultural variables (Asian values, European American values, importance of one’s ethnic group to their identity, commitment to one’s ethnic group, westernization, and cultural mistrust). Participants were 377 university students from India. The results can be taken to suggest that a highly westernized lifestyle and greater adherence to European American values are best predictive of professional psychological help-seeking intentions among Indians. Assessing these two variables will enable practitioners to direct prospective clients to culturally congruent treatment methods that they are most likely to attend and perhaps benefit more from. Overall, the findings of this study are in line with conceptualizing professional psychological treatment as a manifestation of Western culture.

ABSTRACT. Online shopping formats have gained popularity in recent years. This research examines (1) differences in online shopping attitudes among American and Indian college students and (2) the influence of collective self-esteem (CSE) on online shopping attitudes of American and Indian college students. Through structural equation modeling, we found that all CSE factors except importance to identity influence online shopping attitude factors such as ease of use, perceived risk, easy to understand, and perceived usefulness in both the cultures. American youths reported significantly higher levels of ease of use, readiness in understanding shopping websites, and perceived usefulness than Indian youth. Perceived risk of using shopping websites was found to worry both U.S. and Indian youth.

Existing instruments for measuring Asian American acculturation emphasize behavior acculturation to the exclusion of value acculturation. Most are based on the assumption that acquisition of European American behavior occurs simultaneously with the loss of Asian behavior. With the advent of the Asian Values Scale (AVS; B.S.K. Kim, D.R. Atkinson, & P.H. Yang, 1999), it is now possible to assess adherence to Asian cultural values. This article describes the development of a scale that can be used to measure Asian American adherence to European American values. The current scale, combined with the AVS, can be used to independently measure Asian American acculturation to European American values and enculturation in Asian values.

Cultural mistrust, ethnic identity, racial identity, and self‐esteem were examined among African (n = 26), African American (n = 110), and West Indian/Caribbean (n = 24) university students. African American students' scores were statistically different from those of African and West Indian/Caribbean students on cultural mistrust, racial identity, and ethnic identity measures. There were no statistically significant differences on self‐esteem among the 3 groups. Results did indicate that cultural mistrust, ethnic identity, and racial identity accounted for 37% of the variance in self‐esteem for African American students. Implications for practice and future research directions are discussed.

After assessing their expectation for counseling success, adherence to Asian cultural values, and adherence to European American cultural values, 88 Asian American volunteer clients with personal concerns engaged in single-session counseling with 1 of 11 female counselors who either matched or mismatched the client’s worldview. Clients in the worldview match condition perceived stronger client–counselor working alliance and counselor empathy than those in the mismatch condition. Client adherence to Asian cultural values was positively related to client–counselor working alliance. Client adherence to European American values was positively associated with client–counselor working alliance and session depth. In addition, an interaction effect was observed such that high expectation for counseling success and strong adherence to European American cultural values were associated with increased perception of counselor empathy.

Italian-Americans constitute 6% of the American population (Census, 2010). Although they are part of the White majority, they have a unique cultural experience, as they endorse ethnic values that differ from other White Americans. It has been noted that adherence to these values may impact the way Italian-Americans view mental health treatment. In an attempt to understand this dynamic, the present study investigated the impact of ethnic identity, acculturation, aspects of socioeconomic status, and collective self esteem on attitudes towards counseling for a sample of 242 self-identified Italian-Americans. It was hypothesized that acculturation would mediate the relationship between ethnic identity, collective self-esteem, and attitudes towards counseling. It was also hypothesized that aspects of socioeconomic status would moderate the relationship between ethnic identity and collective self-esteem and attitudes towards counseling. Hierarchical multiple regressions were conducted to test these hypothesized models; however, findings were not significant. Preliminary analysis revealed that age and gender were significantly predictive of attitudes towards counseling. Furthermore, exploratory analysis revealed a significant positive relationship between public collective self-esteem and aspects of socioeconomic status to attitudes towards counseling for this sample. These findings have implications for training, research, and practice for mental health professionals.

As low as the rate of mental health help-seeking is among Asian Americans, Filipino Americans seek mental health services at a much lower rate even compared with other Asian Americans. Despite the field’s progress in identifying and understanding factors that may influence mental health help-seeking attitudes among Asian Americans, despite research on other minority groups suggesting that cultural mistrust may influence attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, and despite the abundance of literature documenting the historical and contemporary experiences of oppression by Filipino Americans, the possibility that cultural mistrust may play a significant role in Filipino Americans’ mental health help-seeking attitudes have yet to be empirically investigated. Thus, using a sample of 118 Filipino Americans, the current study demonstrates that higher levels of cultural mistrust is related to lower likelihood of seeking professional psychological help. Furthermore, cultural mistrust predicted variance in mental health help-seeking attitudes that are not accounted for by income, generational status, loss of face, and adherence to Asian cultural values. Implications for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

Migration processes can often trigger negative interactions with the context, generating problems in both the physical and mental health of migrants, which have an impact on both their well-being and their quality of life. In this framework, the research aimed to assess the mediating effect of ethnic identity and collective self-esteem on the inverse relationship between mental health problems and quality of life. Data were collected from 908 first-generation Colombian migrants living in Chile, of whom 50.2% were women and with an average age of 35 years. They were assessed with The World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQoL)-Bref, Smith’s ethnic identity questionnaire, Basabe’s collective self-esteem, and Beck’s Anxiety and Depression questionnaires. The results provide evidence that both collective self-esteem and ethnic identity exert a partial mediation effect on the relationship between anxiety and depression on quality of life. The study provides evidence of the protective role that the maintenance and reinforcement of ethnic identity and collective self-esteem can have, with a view to strengthening the planning of interventions both in the field of prevention of mental health problems and in the improvement of quality of life based on evidence.

The manifestation of ethnic identity in philosophy is a multifaceted subject that intersects with various academic disciplines and cultural discourses. Stock provides a specific example of this intersection by discussing the emergence of “ethnic minority philosophy” in China, which integrates ethnic and cultural identity into philosophical discourse. This discipline reflects the broader issues of national, ethnic, cultural, and philosophical identity, highlighting the role of “culture” in redefining minoritarian traditions as philosophy. Similarly, Siegel (notes the historical significance of philosophy of education and its potential to address vital philosophical questions, including those related to ethnic identity, suggesting a need for philosophy to reconnect with its broader applications, potentially including the exploration of ethnic identity. Contradictions or interesting facts emerge when considering the relationship between ethnic identity and philosophy. For instance, Stock’s concept of “hierarchical inclusion” suggests a power dynamic in the recognition and integration of minority philosophies into the broader philosophical canon. This contrasts with the more egalitarian and developmental perspectives on ethnic identity found in psychological research, as seen in, and which focus on the development and validation of ethnic identity measures and their implications for minority group members. In summary, the specifics of the manifestation of ethnic identity in philosophy can be seen in the integration of ethnic and cultural considerations into philosophical discourse, as well as in the recognition of the power dynamics involved in the inclusion of minority philosophies. The literature suggests that ethnic identity plays a significant role in shaping philosophical thought and discourse, particularly in non-Western contexts and in relation to educational philosophy. Further exploration of these dynamics is warranted to understand the full impact of ethnic identity on philosophical inquiry.

Racial and ethnic identity research encompasses ethnic identity (Phinney, 1992), collective self-esteem (Luhtanen & Crocker, 1992), and racial identity (Sellers, Chavous, & Cooke, 1998). Distinguishing racial and ethnic identity constructs is difficult due to the complexity of racial and ethnic identity and conceptual differences between several psychometrically sound instruments (Ponterotto & Park-Taylor, 2007). This study investigated simultaneously the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure, the Collective Self-Esteem Scale–Race, and the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity in a sample of 160 diverse adolescents, comparing across measures to identify similar and dissimilar theoretical and item content. Reliability scores were adequate. Expectations for convergent validity were met. Significant moderate correlations were found for group membership and saliency of identity subscales (r = .31 to .46). Theoretically similar public or private regard subscales evidenced convergent validity at moderate to high levels (r = .73 and .91). No significant correlations emerged between private identity and public identity subscales. Identity researchers are encouraged to explore the nuanced theoretical bases on which measures were developed and the tremendous potential for application to specific research questions for specific groups within specific cultural contexts.

The present study examined the associations between attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help (ATSPPH), adherence to Asian values, cultural mistrust, and salience of ethnic identity in a sample of South Asian university students in Britain. A total of 148 participants completed a survey consisting of measures of the afore-mentioned variables, and provided their demographic details. Preliminary analyses showed that women held significantly more positive ATSPPH than men ( = 0.51); there were also small differences between participants of Indian, Pakistani, and other South Asian descent. Further analyses revealed that ATSPPH was significantly predicted by ethnic identity, cultural mistrust, and adherence to Asian values, once the effects of participant sex and ethnicity had been partialled out. The implications of these results for promoting mental health care utilisation among South Asian students are discussed in conclusion.

The current study investigated the direct and moderating effects of racial identity, ethnic identity, Asian values, and race-related stress on positive psychological well-being among 402 Asian American and Asian international college students. Results revealed that the racial identity statuses Internalization, Immersion-Emersion, Dissonance, Asian values and Ethnic Identity Affirmation and Belonging were significant predictors of well-being. Asian values, Dissonance and Conformity were found to moderate the relationship between race-related stress on well-being. Specifically, individuals in low race-related stress conditions who had low Asian values, high Conformity and low Dissonance attitudes started high on well being but decreased as race-related stress increased. These findings underscore the importance of how racial identity statuses, Asian values and ethnic identity jointly and uniquely explain and moderate the effects of race-related stress on positive well-being. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.

This article reports on a study that investigated the relationship between ethnic identity, collective self-esteem and academic self-efficacy among a sample of black (n = 81) and white (n = 55) students at a higher education institution (HEI). For the black sample, positive correlations were found between ethnic identity and academic self-efficacy, as well as between collective self-esteem and academic self-efficacy. For the white sample, however, no correlation was found between any of these variables. These findings are discussed in relation to the black respondents' possible experiences and perceptions of racial discrimination in the context of the study, wherein they are a minority. This is also taking into account the history of institutionalised discrimination against blacks during the apartheid era and the fact that the study took place in a historically white HEI.