Shawn O. Utsey

Effect of ethnic group membership on ethnic identity, race-related stress, and quality of life.

This study examined the effect of ethnic group membership on ethnic identity, race-related stress, and quality of life (QOL). The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure, the Index of Race Related Stress--Brief Version, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life--Brief Version were administered to 160 male and female participants from 3 ethnic groups (African American, Asian American, and Latino American). Results indicated that African American participants had significantly higher race-related stress, ethnic identity, and psychological QOL scores than did Asian and Latino American participants. A stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that ethnic identity and cultural racism were significant predictors of QOL and accounted for 16% of the total variance for the entire sample.

Self-Concealment, Social Self-Efficacy, Acculturative Stress, and Depression in African, Asian, and Latin American International College Students.

The primary purpose of this exploratory investigation was to examine self-concealment behaviors and social self-efficacy skills as potential mediators in the relationship between acculturative stress and depression in a sample of 320 African, Asian, and Latin American international college students. The authors found several differences by demography with regard to the studys variables. After controlling for regional group membership, sex, and English language fluency, they found that self-concealment and social self-efficacy did not serve as mediators in the relationship between African, Asian, and Latin American international students acculturative stress experiences and depressive symptomatology. Implications of the findings are discussed.

The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM): Psychometric Review and Further Validity Testing

This article examines the psychometric strengths and limitations of a widely used measure of ethnic identity development: the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM). A review of 12 studies incorporating the MEIM found its two subscales—Ethnic Identity (EI) and Other-Group Orientation (OGO)—to be relatively distinct, have satisfactory levels of internal consistency, and have moderate degrees of construct and criterion-related validity. The first confirmatory factor analysis (N=219) of the MEIM is reported, the results of which indicate that a two-factor structure is a better fit than a global model but that the goodness of fit is mediocre. A follow-up exploratory factor analysis identified weaker items, and suggestions for possible MEIM revision are presented. Finally, the first formal readability analysis of the MEIM places item difficulty at the sixth- to seventh-grade level.

Collectivism, Forgiveness, and Social Harmony

Existing models of forgiveness and the strategies to promote forgiveness that draw from them are predominantly individualistic. As the United States becomes more diverse and counseling psychology becomes a more global field, counseling psychologists are increasingly likely to encounter clients who have a collectivistic worldview. The authors propose a theoretical model that clarifies the relationship between collectivism and forgiveness. The importance of maintaining social harmony in collectivistic cultures is central to this relationship. The model has two propositions. First, collectivistic for- giveness occurs within the broad context of social harmony, reconciliation, and relational repair. Second, collectivistic forgiveness is understood as pri- marily a decision to forgive but is motivated largely to promote and maintain group harmony rather than inner peace (as is more often the case in individ- ualistically motivated forgiveness). Finally, the authors suggest a research agenda to study collectivistic forgiveness and provide guidelines for address- ing forgiveness with collectivistic clients.

Do sociocultural factors predict suicidality among persons of African descent living in the U.S.

Given that researchers have found increased risk for suicidality and other psychiatric problems among acculturated individuals, we predicted similar results for African-descended people living in the U.S. We surveyed a community sample of 423 adult men and women of African descent to determine acculturations relationship to Black suicide. Participants completed the African American Acculturation Scale, the Multi-Dimensional Support Scale, and a subscale of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale. Suicidal ideation and history of suicide attempt were defined as a “yes” response to the questions, “have you ever considered taking your own life?” and “have you ever attempted to take your own life?” We found that religious well-being (not acculturation) was predictive of both suicidal ideation and history of suicide attempt.

Testing the Structural Invariance of the Africultural Coping Systems Inventory Across Three Samples of African Descent Populations.

Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the factorial invariance of the Africultural Coping Systems Inventory’s (ACSI) measurement model and underlying factor structure across three independent and ethnically distinct samples of African descent populations. Results indicated that factor pattern coefficients of the ACSI’s underlying structural model were invariant across the three samples, but its variance and covariance parameters were not.

A confirmatory test of the underlying factor structure of scores on the collective self-esteem scale in two independent samples of Black Americans.

In this study, we examined the factor structure of the Collective Self-Esteem Scale (CSES; Luhtanen & Crocker, 1992) across 2 separate samples of Black Americans. The CSES was administered to a sample of Black American adolescents (n = 538) and a community sample of Black American adults (n = 313). Results of confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs), however, did not support the original 4-factor model identified by Luhtanen and Crocker (1992) as providing an adequate fit to the data for these samples. Furthermore, an exploratory CFA procedure failed to find a CSES factor structure that could be replicated across the 2 samples of Black Americans. We present and discuss implications of the findings.

Examining the Reactions of White, Black, and Latino/a Counseling Psychologists to a Study of Racial Issues in Counseling and Supervision Dyads.

More than 30 years ago, Vontress (1971) advocated for counselor training programs to address the role of race in the counseling process and the ways in which racial factors impede the development of counselor-client rapport. He posited that the anxiety experienced by White clinicians in cross-racial counseling dyads is manifest in reactions of counter-transference. A quarter of a century later, Helms (1994) took counseling psychologists and counselor educators to task for continuing to ignore the role of racial factors in the counseling process. More recently several scholars have reiterated the need for multicultural counseling training curricula (Ancis & Szymanski, 2001; Arredondo, 1999; Burkard, Ponterotto, Reynolds, & Alfonso, 1999; Cardemil & Battle, 2003; D’Andrea & Daniels, 1999, 2001; Helms & Cook, 1999; Landany, Inman, Constantine, & Hofheinz, 1997; Pack-Brown, 1999; Utsey, Gernat, & Bolden, 2002). Yet despite the calls for further investigation of the influence of racial factors and racial identity in counseling, few researchers have empirically committed to examining racial factors in the counseling and supervision relationship. Our study (Utsey, Gernat, & Hammar, 2005 [this issue]) was intended to widen the dialogue within and among counseling psychology training programs and among researchers and counselor educators regarding the significance of racial issues in the counseling and supervision dyad. We hope that our findings will provide insight into the complexity of the defenses erected by White counselor trainees to manage the anxiety associated with confronting racial issues in the counseling and supervision. We are especially grateful for the opportunity to share our research with the broader community of counseling psychologists. We appreciate the comments by the reactants, all