Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dk4vv Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T19:12:24.378Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Measuring Acculturation and Enculturation among Chinese Canadian Older Adults*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 December 2014

Yvonne Tieu  and
Candace Konnert
Yvonne Tieu
Affiliation:
Clinical Services Department, Kings Regional Rehabilitation Centre
Candace Konnert*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Calgary
*
†La correspondance et les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adressées à : / Correspondence and requests for offprints should be sent to: Candace Konnert, Ph.D. Department of Psychology University of Calgary 2500 University Drive NW Calgary, AB T2N 1N4 (konnert@ucalgary.ca)
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Cultural adaptation is important to assess; however, most acculturation measures are unidimensional with little psychometric data for older immigrants. This study assessed a bidimensional measure, the Vancouver Index of Acculturation (VIA; Ryder, Alden, & Paulhus, 2000), among 149 (mean age: 73.92 years) Chinese Canadians. Internal consistencies were .84 and .83 for the Mainstream and Heritage subscales respectively, and they were orthogonal. Convergent and discriminant validity were demonstrated by predicted correlations between the VIA subscales and age at immigration, years in Canada, English fluency, and the Belief in Chinese Culture and Values Scale (BCCV; Lai & Chau, 2007). The VIA accounted for significantly more variance in language ability than the BCCV, above and beyond acculturation proxies. Exploratory factor analysis replicated the two-factor structure reported by Ryder et al. (2000). A confirmatory factor analysis indicated poor fit. This study supports a bidimensional model of cultural adaptation among older Chinese Canadians.

Résumé

Il est important de déterminer l'adaptation culturelle; cependant, la plupart des mesures d'acculturation sont uni-dimensionnelles, avec peu de données psychométriques pour les immigrants plus âgés. Cette étude a évalué une mesure bi-dimensionnelle, l'indice d'acculturation Vancouver (IAV; Ryder, Alden, et Paulhus, 2000), parmi 149 patients (âge moyen = 73,92 années) Canadiens d'origine chinoise. Les cohérences internes étaient 0,84 et 0,83 pour les sous-échelles du grand public et du patrimoine, respectivement, et ils étaient orthogonal. La validité convergente et discriminante ont été démontrées par des corrélations entre les sous-échelles prévues IAV et l'âge à l'immigration, les années au Canada, la maîtrise de l'anglais, la croyance dans la culture chinoise et l'échelle de valeurs (CCCV; Lai et Chau, 2007). Le VIA a représenté beaucoup plus de la variance dans la capacité de la langue de la BCCV, au-dessus et au-delà des procurations d'acculturation. L'analyse factorielle exploratoire reproduit la structure à deux facteurs signalés par Ryder et al. (2000). Une analyse factorielle confirmatoire a indiqué un ajustement médiocre. Cette étude prend en charge un modèle bi-dimensionnel d'adaptation culturelle entre Canadiens chinois plus âgés.

Keywords

agingacculturationassessmentChinese older adultsenculturationimmigrantvieillissmentacculturationévaluationles aînés chinoisenculturationimmigrant
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 34 , Issue 1 , March 2015 , pp. 36 - 46
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

*

The authors thank Daisy Bai, Sue-Len Chow, Stephanie Low, and Panna Lu for their assistance with data collection.

References

Abe-Kim, J., Okazaki, S., & Goto, S. G. (2001). Unidimensional versus multidimensional approaches to the assessment of acculturation for Asian American populations. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 7, 232–246.Google Scholar
Abu-Bader, S. H., Tirmazi, M. T., & Ross-Sheriff, F., (2011). The impact of acculturation on depression among older Muslim immigrants in the United States. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 54, 425–448. doi:10.1080/01634372.2011.560928.Google Scholar
Arbuckle, J. L. (2011). IBM SPSS AMOS 20 for Windows. Chicago, IL: SPSS.Google Scholar
Asvat, Y., & Malcarne, V. L. (2008). Acculturation and depressive symptoms in Muslim university students: Personal-family acculturation match. International Journal of Psychology, 43, 114–124.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Berry, J. W. (1980). Acculturation as varieties of adaptation. In Padilla, A. M. (Ed.), Acculturation: Theory, models, and some new findings (pp. 9–25). Boulder, CO: Westview.Google Scholar
Boomsma, A. (2000). Reporting analyses of covariance structure. Structural Equation Modeling, 7, 461–483.Google Scholar
Byrne, B. M. (2010). Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
Canadian Multiculturalism Act. (1988). Retrieved 15 December 2013, from http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/c-18.7/FullText.html.Google Scholar
Chae, M. H., & Foley, P. F. (2010). Relationship of ethnic identity, acculturation, and psychological well-being among Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Americans. Journal of Counseling & Development, 88, 466–476.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cole, D. A. (1987). Utility of confirmatory factor analysis in test validation research. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 55, 584–594.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gamst, G. C., Liang, C. T. H., & Der-Karabetian, A. (2011). Handbook of multicultural measures. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hinrichsen, G. A. (2006). Why multicultural issues matter for practitioners working with older adults. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 37, 29–35. doi:10.1037/0735-7028.37.1.29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hsu, L., Woody, S. R., Lee, H.-J., Peng, Y., Zhou, X., & Ryder, A. G. (2012). Social anxiety among East Asians in North America: East Asian socialization or the challenge of acculturation? Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 18, 181–191. doi:10.1037/a0027690.Google Scholar
Huynh, Q.-L., Howell, R. T., & Benet-Martínez, V. (2009). Reliability of bidimensional acculturation scores. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 40, 256–274. doi:10.1177/0022022108328919.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hwang, W., Myers, H. F., Abe-Kim, J., & Ting, J. Y. (2008). A conceptual paradigm for understanding culture’s impact on mental health: The cultural influences on mental health (CIMH) model. Clinical Psychology Review, 28, 211–227. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2007.05.001.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jang, Y., Chiriboga, D. A., & Okazaki, S. (2009). Attitudes toward mental health service: Age-group differences in Korean American adults. Aging & Mental Health, 13, 127–134. doi:10.1080/13607860802591070.Google Scholar
Jang, Y., Kim, G., & Chiriboga, D. (2005). Acculturation and manifestation of depressive symptoms among Korean-American older adults. Aging & Mental Health, 9, 500–507.Google Scholar
Jang, Y., Kim, G., Chiriboga, D., & King-Kallimanis, B. (2007). A bidimensional model of acculturation for Korean American older adults. Journal of Aging Studies, 21, 267–275. doi:10.1016/j.jaging.2006.10.004.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kennedy, M. A., Parhar, K. K., Samra, J., & Gorzalka, B. (2005). Suicide ideation in different generations of immigrants. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 50, 353–356.Google Scholar
Kim, C., Laroche, M., & Tomiuk, M. A. (2004). The Chinese in Canada: A study in ethnic change with emphasis on gender roles. The Journal of Social Psychology, 144, 5–29.Google Scholar
Kleinman, A. (1980). Patients and healers in the context of culture: An exploration between anthropology, medicine, and psychiatry. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press.Google Scholar
Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Kung, W. (2004). Cultural and practical barriers to seeking mental health treatment for Chinese Americans. Journal of Community Psychology, 32, 27–43. doi:10.1002/jcop.10077.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lai, D. W. L. (2004). Impact of culture on depressive symptoms of elderly Chinese immigrants. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 49, 820–827.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lai, D. W. L. (2012). Ethnic identity of older Chinese in Canada. Journal of Cross Cultural Gerontology, 27, 103–117. doi: 10.1007/s10823-011-9157-7.Google Scholar
Lai, D. W. L., & Chau, S. B. Y. (2007). Predictors of health service barriers for older Chinese immigrants in Canada. Health and Social Work, 32, 57–65.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lai, D. W. L., & Surood, S. (2009). Chinese health beliefs of older Chinese in Canada. Journal of Aging and Health, 21, 38–62. doi:10.1177/0898264308328636.Google Scholar
Lee, J., Lei, A., & Sue, S. (2001). The current state of mental health research on Asian Americans. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 3, 159–178.Google Scholar
Li, H. Z., & Browne, A. J. (2000). Defining mental illness and accessing mental health services: Perspectives of Asian Canadians. Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health, 19, 143–159.Google Scholar
Matsudaira, T. (2006). Measures of psychological acculturation: A review. Transcultural Psychiatry, 43, 462–487.Google Scholar
McDonald, L. (2011). Theorising about ageing, family, and immigration. Ageing and Society, 31, 1180–12-1. doi:10.1017/S0144686X11000511.Google Scholar
Mjelde-Mossey, L. A., Chi, I., & Lou, V. W. Q. (2006). Relationship between adherence to tradition and depression in Chinese elders in China. Aging & Mental Health, 10, 19–26.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mui, A. C., & Kang, S. Y. (2006). Acculturation stress and depression among Asian immigrant elders. Social Work, 51, 243–255.Google Scholar
Nguyen, D. (2011). Acculturation and perceived mental health need among older Asian immigrants. Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 38, 526–532.Google Scholar
Roth, M. A., & Kobayashi, K. M. (2008). The use of complementary and alternative medicine among Chinese Canadians: Results from a national survey. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 10, 517–528. doi:10.1007/s10903-008-9141-7.Google Scholar
Ryder, A. G., Alden, L. E., & Paulhus, D. L. (2000). Is acculturation unidimensional or bidimensional? A head-to-head comparison in the prediction of personality, self-identity, and adjustment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 49–65.Google Scholar
Salant, T., & Lauderdale, D. S. (2003). Measuring culture: A critical review of acculturation and health in Asian immigrant populations. Social Science & Medicine, 57, 71–90.Google Scholar
Schmitt, T. A. (2011). Current methodological considerations in exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 29, 304–321. doi:10.1177/0734282911406653.Google Scholar
Schreiber, J. B., Stage, F. K., King, J, Nora, A., & Barlow, E. A. (2006). Reporting structural equation modeling and confirmatory factor analysis results: A review. The Journal of Educational Research, 99, 323–337.Google Scholar
Shea, M., & Yeh, C. J. (2008). Asian American students’ cultural values, stigma, and relational self-construal: Correlates of attitudes toward professional help seeking. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 30, 157–172.Google Scholar
Sood, E. D., Mendez, J. L., & Kendall, P. C. (2012). Acculturation, religiosity, and ethnicity predict mothers’ causal beliefs about separation anxiety disorder. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 43, 393–409.Google Scholar
Sorkin, D. H., Pham, E., & Ngo-Metzger, Q. (2009). Racial and ethnic differences in the mental health needs and access to care of older adults in California. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 57(12), 2311–2317. doi:10.1111/j.1532-5415.2009.02573.x.Google Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2001). The Chinese community in Canada. Catalogue no. 89-621-XWE. Ottawa, ON: Author.Google Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2005). Population projections of visible minority groups, Canada, provinces and regions, 2001–2017. Catalogue no. 91-541-XIE. Ottawa, ON: Author.Google Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2008). A portrait of seniors in Canada. Catalogue no. 89-519-XIE. Ottawa, ON: Author.Google Scholar
Statistics Canada. (2009). Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) – Annual component user guide: 2007–2008 microdata files. Ottawa, ON: Author.Google Scholar
Suinn, R. M., Rickard-Figueroa, K., Lew, S., & Vigil, P. (1987). The Suinn-Lew Asian self-identity acculturation scale: An initial report. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 47, 401–407.Google Scholar
Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (1989). Using multivariate statistics (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Harper & Row.Google Scholar
Tieu, Y. (2013). Predictors of mental health help-seeking attitudes among older Chinese immigrants (unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Calgary: Calgary, Alberta, Canada.Google Scholar
World Health Organization (WHO). (2007). Process of translation and adaptation of instruments. Retrieved 24 August 2007 from http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/research_tools/translation/en/.Google Scholar
Yang, L. H., Phelan, J. C., & Link, B. G. (2008). Stigma and beliefs of efficacy towards traditional Chinese medicine and Western psychiatric treatment among Chinese Americans. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 14, 10–18. doi:10.1037/1099-9809.14.1.10.Google Scholar