Foreigners in a strange land: Self-construal and ethnic identity in male Arabic immigrants.
Author: Barry, D., Elliott, R., Evans, E.M.
Source:
Journal of Immigrant Health, 2(3), 133-144.
Many authors have emphasized the importance of cultural sensitivity in delivering mental health services to immigrants. Self-construal and ethnic identity are important components of the acculturative process, which may be useful in the diagnosis, assessment, and treatment of immigrant clients. This study investigated the self-construal and ethnic identity of male Arabic immigrants (aged 18-54 yrs) in the US. Based on pilot interview data and existing measures, a Male Arabic Ethnic Identity Measure (MAEIM) was developed using a sample of 115 male Arabic immigrants. Satisfactory reliability is reported for the overall MAEIM as well as its four factor analytically derived scales, including Religious-Family Values, Sense of Belonging/ Ethnic Pride, Friendship, and Ethnic Arabic Practices. Arabs reporting a strong Arabic ethnic identity had a more salient interdependent sense of self than those reporting a weaker ethnic identity. Independent self-construal was not significantly correlated with any of the individual MAEIM scales or the total MAEIM scale. The implications of these findings for research and clinical practice are discussed.