Applying Theory to Recent Immigration Stress in Koreans

这项提案是为了对居住在洛杉矶地区的韩国成年人进行前瞻性的、基于社区的调查

This proposal is for a prospective, community based survey of Korean adults living in the Los Angeles area (the largest Korean community outside of Seoul). Immigrants of varying degrees of acculturation will describe the problems in their lives, their attributions for those problems, and their ways of coping; one month later, they will report the sequelae to those problems, including stress levels and physical and psychiatric symptoms. The goals of this study are (1) Epidemiologic, in terms of documenting the problems, stress levels, and related pathology in Korean-Americans (a relatively understudied population), (2) Explanatory, to try to explain any differential rates of morbidity between recent and established immigrants in terms of cultural values, attributions, and coping strategies and goals, and (3) Theoretical, in terms of refining a general model of attributions, coping, stress and illness. Findings hold promise both for the advancement of theory, and for effective community interventions for stress-related disorders. In terms of theory, findings will not only test the replicability of an existing causal model, but will advance that model by showing the influence of culture. In terms of practice, findings will, at the very least, provide epidemiological information valuable to clinicians working in this community. Moreover, if explanatory results are as anticipated, they will indicate the most efficacious means of intervening with this population, thereby enhancing the cultural competence of mental health service providers. Cognitive and behavioral could easily be adapted to changing the attributions and coping behaviors of those immigrants most "at risk" for stress and illness. This allows the possibility of not only focused and effective individual therapy, but community-based prevention workshops as well.