Laura R. Johnson

Youth Civic Engagement in China: Results from a Program Promoting Environmental Activism.

China is a key player on the global stage, and nearly 300 million Chinese youth stand to be affected by rapid social and ecological transformations. Programs that promote developmental assets in Chinese youth could increase their resilience in the face of contemporary stressors and enhance their capacity to contribute to Chinas development. In this paper we describe a unique, service-learning approach to youth development, the Jane Goodall Institutes Roots & Shoots program (R&S), as it is implemented in China. Through qualitative and quantitative methods we explore perceptions of program impact on the personal and social development of Chinese youth. Cultural, sociopolitical, and environmental issues related to program practices, outcomes and viability are highlighted. Results suggest that R&S mobilized Chinese youth to work for the benefit of their environment, their communities, and themselves.

Ethnic Identity, Self-Efficacy, and Intercultural Attitudes in East African and U.S. Youth:

Positive intercultural attitudes and civic action are increasingly important for youth around the world given the economic, social justice, and environmental challenges they face. Among U.S. youth and emerging adults, ethnic identity and self-efficacy are related to positive intercultural attitudes and may prompt civic engagement. Youth’s efficacy and civic involvement are critically important in sub-Saharan Africa, where rates of civil conflict are among the highest in the world. However, little research has been conducted with East African youth. In this paper, we discuss contextual challenges facing East African youth and the potential role of ethnic identity and self-efficacy in promoting peaceful and sustainable societies. We report qualitative results and scores on standard measures of self -efficacy, ethnic identity, and intercultural attitudes for 554 youth members of environmental clubs in Tanzania, Uganda, and the United States. Ethnic identity was associated with enhanced self-efficacy in East African, but not U.S. participants. East Africans scored higher on ethnic identity compared to U.S. youth and were more likely to reference intercultural attitudes in open-ended responses. Results provide some support for construct relevance in East Africa, however psychometric results, including internal consistency, validity, and factor structure, were mixed. Our results provide a cautionary tale about the import of measures across cultures and contexts. There is a need for international research, measurement development, and further explication of the meaning and function of ethnic identity across cultures.

Contrasting Concepts of Depression in Uganda: Implications for Service Delivery in a Multicultural Context

Depression is a rising public health concern worldwide. Understanding how people conceptualize depression within and across cultures is crucial to effective treatment in a global environment. In this article, we highlight the importance of considering both lay and professional perspectives when developing a culturally competent and contextually relevant model for service delivery. We conducted interviews with 246 Ugandan adults to elicit their explanatory belief models (EMs) about the nature of depression, its causes, social meanings, effects, help seeking, and treatment. Interviews were transcribed, content analyzed, and coded. We compared EMs of community members (n = 135) to those of professional practitioners (n = 111), whom we further categorized into traditional healers, primary care providers, and mental health professionals. We found significant differences between lay and professional EMs and between 3 types of professionals. Contrary to our expectations, lay concepts did not overlap more with traditional healers than with other professional EMs. We discuss the diverse concepts of depression in Uganda, the nature of group differences, and implications for service delivery and treatment.

Ethnocultural Conflict in Uganda: Politics Based on Ethnic Divisions Inflame Tensions Across the Country

Kibanja, Kajumba, and Johnson describe the ethnocultural conflicts currently occurring in the various regions of Uganda whose population includes over 40 different ethnic groups. Broad reasons presented for these conflicts include competition for resources and positions of power which are traced back to colonial history when tribal divisions became more pronounced. The authors delineate the various conflicts for political power that have occurred since independence, and associated factors and consequences.

Interjournalistic discourse about African Americans in television news coverage of Hurricane Katrina

This article examines how on-air conversations between journalists indicate how US television coverage of a race-related crisis can reflect racial ideology. Using critical discourse analysis, we examined interjournalistic discourse about African Americans in national network and cable news programs that aired after Hurricane Katrina reached New Orleans. While we expected conversational semantic items from conservative Fox News to reflect racial ideology, we also found such discursive elements from politically moderate and progressive news organizations such as CBS, CNN, and MSNBC. These findings are consistent with Anxiety Uncertainty Management theory, which predicts that exposure to stressors in unfamiliar settings causes individuals to think in ethnocentric, dichotomous, stereotypical ways. Our research underscores the impact of white privilege on language, communication, and news production, and the need for cultural competence training to enhance journalists’ ability to discuss racial matters with ease.

Ethnic identity and civic attitudes in Latino and Caucasian youth

Understanding youths perceptions of their civic skills is important for enriching the lives of youth as well as society. This study explored the relationship between civic attitudes, leadership skills, and ethnic identity in Northwest Georgia schools using two measures, the Civic Attitudes and Skills Questionnaire (CASQ) and the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM). In sharp contrast with Georgia school demographics, these schools are predominately Latino/a. Within our sample population (N=1000), we expected that Latino/a students would score higher on both measures compared with Caucasian students based on research, which suggests that a strong ethnic identity is related to social justice concerns. On the contrary, Caucasian students scored higher on 4/6 domains of the CASQ. On the MEIM, Latino/a students scored lower than Caucasian students on both subscales. However, Latino/a students scored significantly higher than Caucasian students on items relating to participation in cultural activities. Our results suggest that Caucasian students perceived community-wide action and leadership as their civic strengths, whereas Latino/a students reported civic action limited to their cultural group and expressed less confidence in leadership skills. This has implications for designing programs to promote civic engagement in youth. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to engendering civic learning and action.

Measuring social desirability across language and sex: A comparison of Marlowe–Crowne Social Desirability Scale factor structures in English and Mandarin Chinese in Malaysia

Malaysia is a Southeast Asian country in which multiple languages are prominently spoken, including English and Mandarin Chinese. As psychological science continues to develop within Malaysia, there is a need for psychometrically sound instruments that measure psychological phenomena in multiple languages. For example, assessment tools for measuring social desirability could be a useful addition in psychological assessments and research studies in a Malaysian context. This study examined the psychometric performance of the English and Mandarin Chinese versions of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale when used in Malaysia. Two hundred and eighty-three students (64% female; 83% Chinese, 9% Indian) from two college campuses completed the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale in their language of choice (i.e., English or Mandarin Chinese). Proposed factor structures were compared with confirmatory factor analysis, and multiple indicators-multiple causes models were used to examine measurement invariance across language and sex. Factor analyses supported a two-factor structure (i.e., Attribution and Denial) for the measure. Invariance tests revealed the scale was invariant by sex, indicating that social desirability can be interpreted similarly across sex. The scale was partially invariant by language version, with some non-invariance observed within the Denial factor. Non-invariance may be related to differences in the English and Mandarin Chinese languages, as well as cultural differences. Directions for further research include examining the measurement of social desirability in other contexts where both English and Mandarin Chinese are spoken (i.e., China) and further examining the causes of non-invariance on specific items.

Predicting Civic Competencies Among East African Youth and Emerging Adults: Report on the Swahili General Self-Efficacy Scale

Self-efficacy has been examined around the world, with research indicating its importance for personal and civic development. The General Self-Efficacy Scale has been translated into 33 languages; however, no African language version has been well established, and research on self-efficacy in the region is rare. A measure of self-efficacy in Swahili, a language widely used in East Africa, could spur research. We describe the development of the Swahili General Self-Efficacy Scale and its psychometric properties with a large, diverse group of Tanzanian youth and emerging adults (N = 1,409, ages 13–26). We report psychometrics including internal consistency, factor structure, convergent reliability, and the ability of the measure to predict civic competencies. Our results establish the Swahili General Self-Efficacy Scale as a credible measure with implications for personal and civic development. We suggest areas for investigation and provide the Swahili scale as an impetus for research in the region.

Views on Depression From Traditional Healing and Psychiatry Clinics in Uganda: Perspectives From Patients and Their Providers

In Uganda, depression is a growing concern, yet mental health professionals are in short supply, and help is often sought from traditional healers. To develop an integrated system of care, we must understand sociocultural aspects of depression including beliefs about help seeking and treatment. In a mixed methods study, we used semi-structured interviews and self-report measures to assess depressed patients (N = 30) seeking treatment in traditional healing (n = 15) and psychiatry clinics (n = 15) near Kampala, Uganda. We assessed demographics, symptoms, treatment characteristics, and explanatory models (EMs) of depression (e.g., labeling the problem, cause, impact on life, best type of treatment). We predicted differences across treatment settings. To further explore EMs, we assessed differences in EMs of patients and their providers by interviewing patient–provider dyads (n = 8 dyads). Patients in both settings were similar in demographics, symptoms, perceived cause, seriousness, and impact of depression. However, patients at traditional clinics were more likely to desire herbal remedies, while those in psychiatry clinics were more likely to desire modern medication. Patient–provider dyads also had different treatment beliefs, with patients desiring financial assistance, social support, and medication, and providers more likely to suggest counseling or advice. The study highlights the need to understand diverse beliefs and treatment trajectories in a multicultural context.

Do Concepts of Depression Predict Treatment Pathways? A Closer Look at Explanatory Models Among Clinical and Nonclinical Samples in Uganda

OBJECTIVE Explanatory models (EMs) are a collection of beliefs about a disorder that can help us understand help-seeking and treatment pathways in diverse contexts. In 2 related studies, we explore EMs about depression held among both clinical and nonclinical samples in Uganda. To explore the potential of EMs to predict help seeking, we assessed the relationship between 2 main aspects of the EM: problem conceptualization and treatment. METHOD In Study 1, we interviewed and assessed EMs of depression for 135 lay community members and 111 professional practitioners using a vignette. In Study 2, we assessed actual EMs among 33 clinically depressed adults. We transcribed all interviews and analyzed and coded the content. In Study 1, we used logistic regression to examine the relationship of problem conceptualization and stigma to treatment choice; in Study 2, we used Fishers exact tests to examine the relationship between conceptualization and treatment. Sociodemographics such as age, income, and language were also examined. RESULTS Interviews elicited a diverse range of beliefs about the nature of depression and the types of treatment needed. However, problem conceptualization did not predict treatment in either group. Instead, education and interview language predicted treatment in clinical and nonclinical samples. CONCLUSION Although EMs can be useful for both exploring mental health and treatment-related beliefs in clinical settings and developing mental health services, contextual factors may be more significant predictors of help seeking.