Work

Psychological Wellbeing in the Face of Adversity among American Indians: Preliminary Evidence of a New Population Health Paradox?

Year: 2016

Type: article

Abstract: Our objective was to determine self-reported psychological wellbeing of American Indians (AIs). Data are from two surveys, a) 218 adults from the 2011 - 2012 Mino Giizhigad study including Ojibwe adults in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and b) 146 AI women aged 15 - 35 years from the 2011 Sacred Journey study residing in the Pacific Northwest. Reports of AI mental wellness/positive mental health were on par with or higher than found in previous studies with non-AI samples despite simultaneously disparate rates of AI anxiety, depressive symptoms, and differential exposure to sociohistorical stressors. Results are a paradoxical mismatch between mental wellness and mental stressors consistent across two separate, diverse samples of AI adults.

Source: PubMed

Authors: Melissa Walls, Cynthia Pearson, Margarette Kading, Ciwang Teyra

Institutions: University of Minnesota, University of Washington

Language: English

Topic: Indigenous Health, Education, and Rights

Subfield: Health

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities

Awards: Mentoring Diverse Scientists in HIV Research on Substance Abuse and Mental Health, Indigenous Wellness Research Institute National Center of Excellence, Mental Health and Diabetes among Ojibwe Adults, Cognitive Processing Intervention for HIV/STI and Substance Use among Native Wome, The ITZA Program: Indigenous HIV/AIDS Research Training 3 (IHART3) Program