Dissertation
"Demands most moderate": Activism, hope, and resilience to minority stress
Washington State University
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
01/2022
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7273/000004630
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/124832
Abstract
Minority populations in the United States face a wide array of sources of minority stress, including systemic factors such as hostile or discriminatory policies, laws, and climates. In response to these stressors, minority individuals may engage in forms of group-level coping, including collective action and activism to address structural oppression and discrimination. However, despite research on the buffering effects of activism against minority stress, substantial limitations remain in our empirical understanding of these relationships. The present research assessed activism behaviors broadly across individuals from all minority groups (e.g., sexual, gender, ethnic, and religious minorities) and evaluated the relationships among discrimination, activism, hope, and psychological distress. Activism correlated positively with both discrimination and distress, and partial correlations demonstrated a positive relationship between activism and hope, controlling for discrimination. The positive relationship between activism and distress was no longer significant when controlling for discrimination. Neither activism nor hope buffered the discrimination-distress link. Analyses revealed a significant interaction between activism and hope: greater activism was associated with higher distress only in the low-hope group. This research may fill important gaps in the empirical understanding of the relationships among activism, discrimination, distress, and hope. Results may suggest that activism motivated by expectations of change is protective compared to activism motivated by a sense of desperation. These findings may guide future research on activism among minority populations, as well as mental health interventions with minority groups highly engaged with activism.
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Details
- Title
- "Demands most moderate"
- Creators
- Gregory Hans Keiser
- Contributors
- Paul Kwon (Advisor)Walter D Scott (Committee Member)Susan E Collins (Committee Member)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Psychology, Department of
- Theses and Dissertations
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University
- Number of pages
- 63
- Identifiers
- 99900898531901842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Dissertation