Anita S. Mak

Ethnic identification, self-esteem and immigrant psychological health

Abstract This study focused on the psychological consequences of immigration. It was designed to assess the relative significance of a range of variables in predicting the ethnic identification, personal and ethnic self-esteem, and psychological health of members of a variety of immigrant groups to Australia. Of particular interest was the possible impact of the degree of cultural distance between the immigrant groups and the host country. The study included 510 adult participants from Hong Kong, Vietnam, Bosnia, Sri Lanka and New Zealand. The results indicated that the main predictors of ethnic identification (i.e., immigrants’ identification with their culture of origin) were cultural distance, extent of friendship with Australians, the degree to which the immigrants were involved with their ethnic communities, and their ability to speak English. The immigrants’ level of ethnic identification was found to be the primary determinant of ethnic self-esteem whereas the main predictors of personal self-esteem were individual achievements and accomplishments. Finally, immigrant psychological health was mainly dependent upon personal self-esteem rather than ethnic self-esteem and/or ethnic identification. The findings are discussed in relation to theories and research on ethnic adaptation, in addition to social identity theory.

A self-report delinquency scale for Australian adolescents

This article reports the construction and validation of a culturally relevant and economical measure of delinquent behaviour among Australian adolescents. The resulting Australian Self-Reported Delinquency Scale assesses individual differences in engagement in a list of 34 types of delinquent activity. The instrument contains nine subscales (Cheat, Status, Fight, Vehicle, Drugs, Theft, Harm, Driving, and Disturb), which enable assessment of involvement in specialised areas of offending. These measures would be useful in a variety of educational, rehabilitation, and research situations within the Australian context. The limitations in the use of the new scale are also discussed.

Personality and family influences on adolescent attitudes to school and self-rated academic performance

Abstract We assessed the extent to which attitudes to school and self-rated academic performance are linked to the major personality dimensions as well as to perceptions of parental bonding. Respondents were 115 high school students (modal age=15 years and 9 months). Results revealed that the personality factors Conscientiousness and Psychoticism were consistently related to attitudes to school and academic performance, while the parental factors (care and overprotection) were only weakly related to outcomes. The results are discussed with reference to current knowledge of the major personality domains.

Optimising conditions for learning sociocultural competencies for success

Abstract Culturally different recent immigrants and sojourners lack familiarity with the social values, roles, and rules governing interpersonal relationships and this may hinder the attainment of their goals for career and educational success in the new country despite their qualifications and dedication. This paper identifies a number of psychosocial barriers to developing social competence in a different culture, including lack of coaching and practice opportunities, cross-cultural interpersonal anxiety, threat to the newcomers original cultural identity, and various personal factors. The paper further discusses how integrating instructional implications from established models of operant and classical conditioning, and social cognitive learning in a role-based group training program, can address these potential psychosocial barriers and provide optimal conditions for learning intercultural social skills.

Big five personality and cultural relocation factors in Vietnamese Australian students’ intercultural social self-efficacy

Abstract The aim of this study was to test an integrative model of intercultural social self-efficacy using a sample of 124 Vietnamese migrant university students in Australia. According to the model, Asians’ intercultural social self-efficacy in western societies would be predicted by three of the five Big Five personality factors (higher levels of extraversion and openness, and a lower level of neuroticism), three cultural relocation variables (a weaker ethnic identification, a higher level of fluency in the host language, and a longer period of residence in the host country), and their co-ethnic social self-efficacy. As well, the model tested if co-ethnic social self-efficacy would mediate the effects of the personality variables on intercultural social self-efficacy. Subsequent path analysis results partially supported the model tested. There were significant total effects of co-ethnic social self-efficacy, weak Vietnamese ethnic identification, English fluency, extraversion, and openness on intercultural social self-efficacy. The effect of extraversion was mediated by co-ethnic social self-efficacy. The results highlight the relevance of not only cultural relocation factors, but also the possession of relatively stable personal resources (in the form of characteristic social efficacy, extraversion, and openness), to acculturating Asians’ social efficacy in interacting with host nationals. Methodological limitations of the present study and implications of the findings for both the sociocultural adjustment literature and training for migrant students are discussed.

Parental neglect and overprotection as risk factors in delinquency

This study examined perceived parental neglect and overprotection as correlates of self-reported delinquency in 405 male and 387 female Australian secondary school students under the age of 18. Consistent with the research hypotheses, correlations obtained show that perceptions of low care and high protection, from either fathers or mothers, were associated with higher levels of both male and female delinquency. Results from analyses of variance confirm that adolescents reporting the parental style of affectionless control (neglect plus overprotection) were more delinquent than those with optimal parental bonding (care plus permission of independence). A regression analysis including various parental bonding interactions further shows that maternal care was the most important predictor of delinquency, that paternal care was another significant correlate, and that an interaction effect of paternal neglect and overprotection was found among male adolescents.

From Classroom to Boardroom and Ward: Developing Generic Intercultural Skills in Diverse Disciplines

A strategic approach to internationalize learning in higher education institutions is to use the curriculum and classroom cultural diversity to create opportunities to broaden students’ intercultural perspectives, appreciate sociocultural variability in professional practice, and improve their intercultural interaction skills. There is no clear consensus, however, on how to “link the global classroom to the global workplace.” The article examines an evidence-based approach to embed intercultural competency development in classroom teaching using an established intercultural resource (EXCELL) in an international human resource management course; a general communication course; a pharmacy course comprising only Saudi Arabian students; and a generic first year pharmacy course. Subsequently, stakeholder analyses with Business, Nursing, and Pharmacy academics and professionals led to the development of intercultural critical incidents for the curriculum. Strengths and limitations of the intercultural resource and recommendations for incorporating intercultural competency development in curriculum design in Business and Health disciplines are discussed.

Do adolescent delinquency and problem drinking share psychosocial risk factors? A literature review.

Despite the prevalence and damaging effects of adolescent problem drinking, relative to delinquency, far less research has focused on drinking using an integrated theoretical approach. The aim of the current research was to review existing literature on psychosocial risk factors for delinquency and problem drinking, and explore whether integrating elements of social learning theory with an established psychosocial control theory of delinquency could explain adolescent problem drinking. We reviewed 71 studies published post-1990 with particular focus on articles that empirically researched risk factors for adolescent problem drinking and delinquency in separate and concurrent studies and meta-analytic reviews. We found shared risk factors for adolescent delinquency and problem drinking that are encompassed by an extension of psychosocial control theory. The potential of an extended psychosocial control theory providing a parsimonious theoretical approach to explaining delinquency, problem drinking and other adolescent problem behaviours, along with suggestions for future investigations, is discussed.

Adolescent Drinking, Conduct Problems, and Parental Bonding

This study examined the relationships among perceived parental bonding and two common forms of adolescent deviance—alcohol use and conduct problems—using self-reported data collected from 158 male and 235 female Australian secondary school students. The hypothesis that perceptions of parental neglect would be associated with both types of adolescent deviance was generally supported. Perceived parental overprotection was found to be predictive of conduct problems only. A hierarchical regression analysis of delinquency scores (with those from alcohol-use items removed) revealed that alcohol misuse was a predictor of conduct problems above and beyond the contributions from various parental bonding and sociodemographic variables. Implications of the findings for theories of adolescent deviance and directions for future investigations and youth programs are discussed.

Contact and Attitudes Toward International Students in Australia Intergroup Anxiety and Intercultural Communication Emotions as Mediators

The current study investigated the impact of intercultural contact between domestic and international students on attitudes toward international students, and potential mediators of this relationship. A total of 247 Australian-born domestic undergraduates completed a survey of the quantity and quality of their contact with international students, levels of intergroup anxiety (IA) and intercultural communication emotions (ICE), and their attitudes toward international students. Positive quality of intercultural contact, less IA, and more positive ICE were all related to more positive attitudes toward international students. In addition, ICE mediated the relationship between positive quality of contact and attitudes, and between IA and attitudes. Quality of contact exerted both direct and indirect effects (via IA and intercultural communications emotions) on intergroup attitudes. Results highlight the importance of addressing communication barriers and the emotions associated with these when promoting positive interactions between domestic and international students. Suggestions are made for a theoretical integration of intergroup and communication-based perspectives when considering attitudes toward linguistically diverse outgroups like international students.