Alvin N. Alvarez

The Role of Coping in the Relationship between Perceived Racism and Racism-Related Stress for Asian Americans: Gender Differences.

On the basis of stress and coping theory, the authors examined coping as a mediator of the relationship between perceptions of racism and racism-related stress with a sample of Asian American college students (N 336). Results indicated that coping mediated the relationship between racism and racism-related stress differentially by gender. The more that men perceived racism, the more likely they were to use support-seeking coping strategies that were associated with higher levels of racism-related stress. The more that women perceived racism, the more they used active coping strategies that were associated with higher levels of racism-related stress. The findings demonstrate how coping with racism differs for Asian Americans on the basis of gender.

Development and Validation of a Coping With Discrimination Scale: Factor Structure, Reliability, and Validity

Four studies were conducted to develop and validate the Coping With Discrimination Scale (CDS). In Study 1, an exploratory factor analysis (N = 328) identified 5 factors: Education/Advocacy, Internalization, Drug and Alcohol Use, Resistance, and Detachment, with internal consistency reliability estimates ranging from .72 to .90. In Study 2, a confirmatory factor analysis (N = 328) provided cross-validation of the 5-factor model as well as evidence for validity of the scale. The validity evidence was similar across racial groups and for males and females. In Study 3, the estimated 2-week test-retest reliabilities (N = 53) were between .48 and .85 for the 5 factors. Education/Advocacy, Internalization, Drug and Alcohol Use, and Detachment were positively associated with active coping, self-blame, substance use, and behavioral disengagement, respectively, providing further support for validity of the CDS. Finally, incremental validity evidence was obtained in Study 4 (N = 220), where it was shown that the CDS explained variance in outcome variables (i.e., depression, life satisfaction, self-esteem, and ethnic identity) that could not be explained by general coping strategies.

Effective Advising of Diverse Students in Community Colleges

In-depth interviews with 363 students across nine campuses capture the experiences of Latino, African American, Asian, Native American, White and Immigrant students in the California community college system. Four themes emerged with respect to advising and counseling: (a) Differences in the Use of Counseling and Advising; (b) The Importance of the Counseling Relationship; (c) Knowing the System; and (d) Cultural Understanding and Racism.

Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the Asian American Racism-Related Stress Inventory.

The authors conducted exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the Asian American Racism-Related Stress Inventory (AARRSI) to further examine the underlying factor structure in a total sample of 1,273 Asian American participants. In the first step of analysis, an exploratory factor analysis with 651 participants yielded a 13-item two-factor solution to the data. In the second step, a confirmatory factor analysis with 622 participants supported both the 13-item two-factor model and the original 29-item three-factor model in the cross-validation sample and generational and ethnicity analyses. The two-factor and three-factor models produced internal consistency estimates ranging from .81 to .95. In addition, the authors examined convergent and criterion related evidence for 13-item and 29-item versions of the AARRSI. Given its brief nature and generally good fit across generational status and ethnicity, the authors suggest that the 13-item AARRSI might be advantageous for research and assessment endeavors.

Measurement invariance of the people of Color Racial Identity Attitudes Scale with Asian Americans.

Racial identity has been linked to a number of important psychological outcomes, including perceptions of racism, self-esteem, and psychological well-being in Asian American populations. Although the People of Color Racial Identity Attitudes Scale (PRIAS; Helms, 1995) is the most widely used measure in Asian American racial identity research, numerous competing measurement models of the PRIAS have been identified in independent Asian American samples. Therefore, this study tested these competing PRIAS measurement models and also examined PRIAS measurement invariance across generational status, gender, and ethnicity using a combined sample of 1,946 Asian American college students and community adults. Study findings demonstrated the superiority of a 12-item 4-factor PRIAS measurement model that was consistent with Helmss original racial identity theory, suggesting that the PRIAS operates in an equivalent manner across generational status, gender, and ethnicity. Study limitations and future directions for research are discussed.

Asian Americans and Racism: Mental Health and Health Consequences

Racial discrimination – from individual to institutional forms – has been a persistent facet of the life experiences of Asian Americans since their arrival in the United States. As a consequence, perceived racism has been linked with a host of adverse outcomes ranging from depression to poor treatment utilization to suicide attempts. To further explore this phenomenon, the chapter provides a conceptual overview of the literature on racism followed by an examination of its impact on psychological and health outcomes as well as health behaviors.

Measurement invariance of the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18) across Asian American ethnic, nativity, and gender groups.

This study was the first to examine the factor structure, measurement invariance, and criterion-related evidence for the construct validity of the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18; Derogatis, 2000) in an Asian American sample. Multigroup confirmative factor analyses were carried out in a community sample of adults of Asian ethnic descent (N = 624; M = 41.47 years, SD = 13.28) across ethnicity (Chinese, Filipinx, and Vietnamese), nativity status (U.S.-born and Asian-born), and gender (female and male) to test a priori competing models and measurement invariance. Results of bifactor analyses and ancillary estimates provided strong evidence for the general factor of the BSI-18. Invariance tests indicated that BSI-18 items were interpreted in a similar fashion, and responses could be meaningfully compared across ethnicity, gender, and nativity samples. In addition, theory-consistent correlations with self-esteem and racial microaggression experiences provided criterion-related evidence for the BSI-18. Results may not generalize to other Asian American groups (e.g., South Asians, Asian elders, and clinical samples), and researchers are strongly encouraged to conduct further internal structure analyses of the BSI-18 among Asian American populations. In conclusion, we recommend calculation and interpretation of the BSI-18 total score as a measure of general psychological distress for Asian American populations.