How Ethnic Identification Attitudes and Acculturative Stress Interact to Predict Suicide & Eating Disorder Symptomatology in Individuals of African Descent

• Other Authors: Hollar, Daniel Leighton (authoraut)
• Format: Others
• Language: English; English
• Published: Florida State University
• Subjects: Psychology
• Online Access: http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/fd/FSU_migr_etd-3977

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between culture and psychopathology to determine if proposed psychological risk factors (i.e., ethnic identification and acculturative stress) are predictive of several key mental health variables related to suicide and eating disorder behaviors (i.e., depression, anxiety, suicidality, body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness) in minority versus non-minority undergraduate students. The main hypothesis is that factors related to a low ethnic identification will be a risk for greater suicidality (i.e., suicide ideation) and eating disorder behaviors (i.e., body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness) among African American individuals who report acculturative stress. Results confirm the hypothesis that a low ethnic identification on the MEIM interacts with cculturative stress to predict greater suicidality (r=. 58, p === A Thesis submitted to the Department of Psychology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. === Fall Semester, 2006. === July 7, 2006. === Ethnic Identification, African Self-Consciousness, Acculturative Stress === Includes bibliographical references. === Thomas E. Joiner, Jr., Professor Directing Thesis; Na’im Akbar, Committee Member; Ashby Plant, Committee Member.