Measuring Acculturation and Symptoms of Depression of Foreign Immigrants in the Athens Area
| Autor: | E. Papadopoulou, Efi Rogakou, D. Ploubidis, Michael G. Madianos, Fragiskos Gonidakis |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2008 |
| Předmět: |
Adult
Male Gerontology medicine.medical_specialty Time Factors media_common.quotation_subject Immigration Salud mental Emigrants and Immigrants Catchment Area Health Surveys and Questionnaires Ethnicity medicine Humans Depression (differential diagnoses) media_common Depressive Disorder Major Greece Public health Social environment Mental health Acculturation Psychiatry and Mental health Scale (social sciences) Female Psychology Clinical psychology |
| Zdroj: | International Journal of Social Psychiatry. 54:338-349 |
| ISSN: | 1741-2854 0020-7640 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/0020764008090288 |
| Popis: | Background: Acculturation is the phenomenon that results when a group with one culture comes into continuous contact with a host culture and changes occur in the original culture of either one or both groups. Acculturation has also been linked with stress-related psychological disorder and depression. Aims: This article investigates the acculturation process and the depressive state of foreign immigrants living in the greater Athens area. Methods: All consecutive cases of 157 foreign immigrants who visited a non-governmental organization (NGO) providing consultative services to immigrants were interviewed using a structured questionnaire including the Immigrant Acculturation Scale (IAS) and the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies — Depression (CES-D) scale. Results: Factor analysis of IAS yielded a three-factor solution and 17 items with loadings ranging from 0.74 to 0.41. This scale was also tested and proven to be reliable. The main finding is that the higher the acculturation level of the immigrant individual, the lower the CES-D scale score; the fewer the depressive symptoms are self-reported. Length of stay, existence of family in Greece, legal status of residence and employment were also found to have an effect on depressive symptomatology. Conclusion: Acculturation could be seen as a beneficial mechanism protecting the individual to be exposed to stressful non-adaptive behaviour. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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