Senel Poyrazli

Perceived discrimination, social connectedness, and other predictors of adjustment difficulties among Turkish international students

This study examined the role of perceived discrimination, social connectedness, age, gender, years of study in the US, English language competency, and social contact patterns on adjustment difficulties among a sample of 229 Turkish international students studying in the United States. Findings indicated that students who reported higher levels of social connectedness, lower levels of perceived discrimination, more years of study in the US, and higher levels of English language competency reported lower levels of adjustment difficulties. Other results showed that (lack of) social connectedness and perceived discrimination were predictors of adjustment difficulties. In addition, results indicated that students who socialized with individuals from the US had lower levels of adjustment difficulties than did those who socialized with coculture members. Implications are discussed and suggestions for interventions are provided.

Identity and Adolescent Adjustment

This article is the report of an investigation of relations among identity coherence/identity confusion, the ego strength of competence, antisocial behavior, academic competence, and perceptions of school environment in a sample of 574 adolescents. The primary results of this cross-sectional study suggest significant associations between identity-related constructs and indicators of adolescent adjustment. Study implications are discussed in terms of identity-related interventions.

Suicidal behavior and psychological distress in university students: a 12-nation study

This study investigated the prevalence of suicidal behavior and psychological distress in university students across 12 nations. A total of 5,572 university students from 12 countries were surveyed about suicide ideation, suicide attempts, and psychological distress by means of a self-administered questionnaire. Almost 29% of the samples reported having contemplated suicide and 7% reported attempting suicide. Of the total sample, 51.1% scored above the General Health Questionnaire-12 ≥ 3 cut-off points, 41.6% above the GHQ-12 ≥ 4 cut-off points, and 33.8% scored above the GHQ-12 ≥ 5 cut-off points. While odds of suicide ideation were elevated in Austria and the UK, reduced ORs were detected for China, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and Turkey. Similarly, while odds of suicide attempt were high in Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, and to some extent in Turkey, reduced ORs were observed for Austria, China, Italy, Japan and the United States. Elevated ORs for psychological distress were seen in Japan, Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and Turkey but reduced ORs were noted in Austria, China, Iran, Italy, and the United States. Psychological distress was strongly associated with reports of suicide ideation and attempts. Suicide ideation, suicide attempt, and psychological distress are common in university students but their rates vary depending on the sociocultural context. Due attention should be devoted to the mental health needs of young adults enrolled in higher educational institutions and more cross-cultural research is warranted to better understand the etiology of the observed intersocietal variations in suicidal behavior and psychological distress.

Ethnic identity and psychosocial adjustment among international students.

A total of 118 international students studying in four different universities in the USA participated. Analyses indicated that search for ethnic identity and English proficiency predicted psychosocial adjustment. Students with higher English proficiency and students who understood the role of ethnic identity for themselves and showed commitment to learning more about their background also tended to report better adjustment.

Cross - national comparisons of attitudes towards suicide and suicidal persons in university students from 12 countries

This paper reports the results of a comparative investigation of attitudes to suicide and suicidal persons in 5,572 university students from 12 countries. Participants filled out two scales measuring attitudes towards suicide and suicidal persons, a measure of psychological distress together with the questions about suicidal behavior. Results showed that the highest suicide acceptance scores were observed in Austrian, UK, Japanese and Saudi Arabian samples and the lowest scores were noted in Tunisian, Turkish, Iranian and Palestinian samples. While the highest social acceptance scores for a suicidal friend were noted in Turkish, US, Italian and Tunisian samples, the lowest scores were seen in Japanese, Saudi Arabian, Palestinian and Jordanian samples. Compared to participants with a suicidal past, those who were never suicidal displayed more internal barriers against suicidal behavior. Men were more accepting of suicide than women but women were more willing to help an imagined suicidal peer. Participants with accepting attitudes towards suicide but rejecting attitudes towards suicidal persons reported more suicidal behavior and psychological distress, and were more often from high suicide rate countries and samples than their counterparts. They are considered to be caught in a fatal trap in which most predominant feelings of suicidality such as hopelessness or helplessness are likely to occur. We conclude that in some societies such as Japan and Saudi Arabia it might be difficult for suicidal individuals to activate and make use of social support systems.

DISCRIMINATORY ATTITUDES : A SCALE DEVELOPMENT IN TURKISH

This study presented the development of a reliable and valid scale, the Discriminatory Attitudes Scale, for use in research related to discrimination in a Turkish context. First, related literature was searched and a pool of 69 items was generated to cover the basic forms of discrimination. Then, data were collected from 840 college students and subjected to exploratory factor analysis with varimax rotation, leaving 21 items. Next, a confirmatory factor analysis was performed, which confirmed a 4-factor structure. These factors were named Discrimination Against Homosexuals, Discrimination Against Women, Discrimination Based on Race or Ethnicity and Religion, and Discrimination Against Foreigners. Correlational analyses with ratings from the Left–Right Orientation Scale, Cronbach coefficient alpha, and expert opinion provided evidence on validity and internal consistency and reliability of the Discriminatory Attitudes Scale.