Handbook of Arab American Psychology


Book Description

The Handbook of Arab American Psychology is the first major publication to comprehensively discuss the Arab American ethnic group from a lens that is primarily psychological. This edited book contains a comprehensive review of the cutting-edge research related to Arab Americans and offers a critical analysis regarding the methodologies and applications of the scholarly literature. It is a landmark text for both multicultural psychology as well as for Arab American scholarship. Considering the post 9/11 socio-political context in which Arab Americans are under ongoing scrutiny and attention, as well as numerous misunderstandings and biases against this group, this text is timely and essential. Chapters in the Handbook of Arab American Psychology highlight the most substantial areas of psychological research with this population, relevant to diverse sub-disciplines including cultural, social, developmental, counseling/clinical, health, and community psychologies. Chapters also include content that intersect with related fields such as sociology, American studies, cultural/ethnic studies, social work, and public health. The chapters are written by distinguished scholars who merge their expertise with a review of the empirical data in order to provide the most updated presentation of scholarship about this population. The Handbook of Arab American Psychology offers a noteworthy contribution to the field of multicultural psychology and joins references on other racial/ethnic minority groups, including Handbook of African American Psychology, Handbook of Asian American Psychology, Handbook of U.S. Latino Psychology, and The Handbook of Chicana/o Psychology and Mental Health.




Arab American Youth


Book Description

This book examines the implications of discrimination in Arab American youth with a focus on K-12 school systems. It begins with an introduction to Arab American youth and their experiences in the education system. The book follows with an overview regarding historical contributions of discrimination and the history of discrimination against Arabs in America, including the education system. It then presents relevant theoretical perspectives regarding discrimination and developmental processes. The book examines research specific to Arab American youth, identifies research limitations, and provides strategies on how to strengthen methodological approaches to better inform research, practice, and policy. It concludes by offering strategies for improving educational practice and policy and recommendations for interventions designed to enhance developmental health of Arab American youth in schools. Key areas of coverage include: Arab American youth, development, and discrimination in America. Discrimination in the K-12 educational system. Self-concept, ethnic identity, well-being and discrimination among Arab American youth. Arab American Youth is an essential resource for practitioners, researchers, educators, and related professionals as well as graduate students in school psychology, educational psychology, education, and related disciplines. ______________________________________________________________________ Dr. Tabbah has written a book that is well overdue ... she provides a blueprint for moving forward in education as well as in policy development that can be transformative for Arab-American youth. Antoinette Miranda, Professor of School Psychology, The Ohio State University This book is a valuable contribution given the nascent literature on the experiences of Arab youth and the significant impact of discrimination on their schooling. Desiree Vega, Associate Professor of School Psychology, University of Arizona




Counseling Muslims


Book Description

A young female client presents with anorexia nervosa and believes that her problem has its roots in magic; parents are helpless in the face of their son's substance abuse issues; an interracial couple cannot agree on how to discipline their children. How would you effectively help these clients while balancing appropriate interventions that are sensitive to religious, cultural, social, and gender differences? This handbook answers these difficult questions and helps behavioral health practitioners provide religio-culturally-competent care to Muslim clients living in territories such as North America, Australia, and Europe. The issues and interventions discussed in this book, by authoritative contributors, are diverse and multifaceted. Topics that have been ignored in previous literature are introduced, such as sex therapy, substance abuse counseling, university counseling, and community-based prevention. Chapters integrate tables, lists, and suggested phrasing for practitioners, along with case studies that are used by the authors to help illustrate concepts and potential interventions. Counseling Muslims is also unique in its broad scope, which reflects interventions ranging from the individual to community levels, and includes chapters that discuss persons born in the West, converts to Islam, and those from smaller ethnic minorities. It is the only guide practitioners need for information on effective service delivery for Muslims, who already bypass significant cultural stigma and shame to access mental health services.




Biopsychosocial Perspectives on Arab Americans


Book Description

The biopsychosocial study of Arab Americans yields compelling insights into innovative theoretical and applied initiatives. In the context of a growing population of Arab Americans, coupled with the current tenure of xenophobia and exposed structural racism in the US, clinical and community practitioners must be attuned to their clients of Arab ancestry, whose experiences, development, and health concerns are distinctly different than that of their White counterparts. This second edition, with its uniquely interwoven sections of culture, psychosocial development, and health and disease, provides a rich overview of timely, critical topics. The audience for the text includes counselors, social workers, psychologists, nurses, psychiatrists, sociologists, and any other public and mental health practitioners, researchers, and policy makers who work with and on behalf of clients and patients of Arab descent. The authors represent a team of leading experts spanning disciplines of sociology, clinical mental health, and community public health. "This edition draws on leading experts in Arab American health and sociology who document the complexity of this population's immigration and acculturation experience. It offers critical and current research that speaks to the centrality of context and diversity in treating Americans of Arab descent. Contributors explore the complex and limited racial framework within which Arabs in the U.S. form their identities, and the impact of structural racism on their lives and health. This collection offers practitioners much needed insights on a population often hidden or rendered invisible by data limitations, and yet misrepresented by cultural stereotypes." Helen Hatab Samhan, Former Executive Director, Arab American Institute/Foundation. "Nassar, Ajrouch, Hakim-Larson, and Dallo’s breakthrough work in the area of culturally competent health care has been inspiring across interdisciplinary fields and to the communities they serve. Their work on Arab American health issues, in particular, has greatly improved clinical practice at the community and national levels. I heartily recommend taking the time to become familiar with their important body of work and this latest text." Ismael Ahmed, Former Michigan State Director of Health and Human Services.




Biopsychosocial Perspectives on Arab Americans


Book Description

This book introduces an interdisciplinary lens by bringing together vital research on culture, psychosocial development, and key aspects of health and disease to address a wide range of salient concerns. Its scholarship mirrors the diversity of the Arab American population, exploring ethnic concepts in socio-historical and political contexts before reviewing findings on major health issues, including diabetes, cancer, substance abuse, mental illness, and maternal/child health. And by including policy and program strategies for disease prevention, health promotion, and environmental health, the book offers practitioners--and their clients--opportunities for proactive care. Featured in the coverage: Family, gender and social identity issues Arab Americans and the aging process Acculturation and ethnic identity across the lifespan Arab refugees: Trauma, resilience, and recovery Cancer: Crossroads of ethnicity and environment Health and well-being: Biopsychosocial prevention approaches Arab American health disparities: A call for advocacy Rich in cultural information and clinical insights, Biopsychosocial Perspectives on Arab Americans is an important reference that can enhance health practices across the disciplines of medicine, nursing, rehabilitation, social work, counseling, and psychology.




Social Issues in Living Color


Book Description

Offering fresh and exciting approaches to solving global problems, this book creatively views challenging social issues through the lens of racial and ethnic psychology. As the demographic makeup of the American population continues to evolve, understanding and addressing the psychological needs of ethnic minorities in the United States becomes more important to the overall health and well-being of society. This three-volume set is the first publication to explicitly tackle social issues from the perspective of racial and ethnic psychology. It uniquely presents racial and ethnic psychological perspectives on topics such as media, criminal justice, racism, climate change, gender bias, and health and mental health disparities. Volume one introduces readers to the basic scientific concepts of racial and ethnic minority psychology and then examines the intersectionality of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. It also addresses how race and ethnicity affect communication styles, leadership styles, and media. The second volume discusses the experiences of individuals within racial and ethnic minorities, including overt racism, covert racism, and colonialism, and addresses how ethnic minority psychology plays a role in our educational system, poverty, global climate change, and sustainability. The third volume covers ethics in health and research, considers the causes of health and mental health disparities, and identifies diversity initiatives that can improve the health and well-being of all citizens, not just racial and ethnic minority citizens.




Community Mental Health Engagement with Racially Diverse Populations


Book Description

Community Mental Health Engagement with Racially Diverse Populations summarizes research on reducing mental health disparities in underserved populations through community engagement programs. It discusses the efficacy of such programs with specific populations of people of color and cultures, for specific disorders, and via specific communities. It identifies how and why community engagement works with these populations, how best to set up new community programs, the steps and stakeholders to success, and includes case studies showing successes and the challenges involved. - Identifies how and why these programs achieve success through patient engagement - Explores efficacy with specific ethnicities and cultures - Discusses efficacy of programs through schools, churches, non-profits, and more - Includes case studies with their successes and challenges - Provides guidelines on the development and implementation of community programs




APA Handbook of Community Psychology


Book Description

This two-volume handbook summarizes and makes sense of exciting intellectual developments in the field of community psychology. As a discipline that is considered a half century old in the United States, community psychology has grown in the sophistication and reach of theories and research. Reviewing the chapters of the APA Handbook of Community Psychology, the reader will readily notice several themes emerge. Community psychology's ideas are becoming increasingly elaborated; its theory, research and interventions more situated; and its reach in both thought and action, more expansive. Ideas that may have seemed much simpler when first proposed -- for example, community, prevention and empowerment -- have come to pose challenges, contradictions and opportunities initially unspecified and perhaps unimagined. Under the editorial direction of Meg A. Bond, Irma Serrano-Garc�a, Christopher B. Keys, and Marybeth Shinn, with chapters authored by both senior and rising scholars, the APA Handbook of Community Psychology provides an indispensable and authoritative reference resource for researchers, instructors, students, practitioners, field leaders and life-long learners alike. This highly anticipated addition to the APA Handbooks in Psychology� series covers current knowledge and identifies the most pertinent sources of information in both the core and evolving literature. It highlights community psychology's emphasis on the synergistic relationship between research and action, and offers an international outlook, including chapters integrating perspectives from across cultures and contexts around the world.




Asian Families in Canada and the United States


Book Description

This book presents a comprehensive overview of Asian families residing in Canada and the United States by portraying and analyzing Asian Canadian and Asian American immigrant families in an integrated yet nuanced way. Chapters use an interdisciplinary approach to provide more comprehensive coverage of the vast diversity as well as common trends and shared characteristics of Asian families. Specifically, the volume examines the experiences of families whose ancestry can be traced to East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. Key areas of coverage include: Integrated overview of Asian American and Asian Canadian families, including an exploration of the historical and current immigration policies. Experiences of families of East Asian, Southeast Asian, South Asian, and West Asian ancestry across Canada and the United States. Asian religious traditions and worldviews, traditional practices, and religio-cultural views on gender, sexuality, and family. Specific Asian immigrant groups on immigration demographics, family dynamics and relationships, gendered roles, parenting practices and beliefs, and implications for mental health. Challenges and issues that families face as Asians and immigrants, the strength and resilience of families, with extensive reviews on various intervention and prevention programs. Methodological strategies in investigating Asian families and their impact on the field. Asian Families in Canada and the United States is a must-have resource for researchers, professors, graduate students as well as clinicians, professionals, and policymakers in the fields of developmental, social, and cross-cultural psychology, parenting and family studies, social work, and all interrelated disciplines.




Handbook of Culture, Therapy, and Healing


Book Description

Emotional, as well as physical distress, is a heritage from our hominid ancestors; it has been experienced by every group of human beings since our emergence as a species. And every known culture has developed systems of conceptualization and intervention for addressing it. The editors have brought together leading psychologists, psychiatrists, anthropologists, and others to consider the interaction of psychosocial, biological, and cultural variables as they influence the assessment of health and illness and the course of therapy. The volume includes broadly conceived theoretical and survey chapters; detailed descriptions of specific healing traditions in Asia, the Americas, Africa, and the Arab world. The Handbook of Culture, Therapy, and Healing is a unique resource, containing information about Western therapies practiced in non-Western cultures, non-Western therapies practiced both in their own context and in the West.