Relations of Discriminatory Experiences and Marianismo Beleifs with PTSD Symptoms in Latinx Women Claire Maria Bird Marquette University
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Marquette University e-Publications@Marquette Master's Theses (2009 -) Dissertations, Theses, and Professional Projects Relations of Discriminatory Experiences and Marianismo Beleifs with PTSD Symptoms in Latinx Women Claire Maria Bird Marquette University Recommended Citation Bird, Claire Maria, "Relations of Discriminatory Experiences and Marianismo Beleifs with PTSD Symptoms in Latinx Women" (2018). Master's Theses (2009 -). 487. https://epublications.marquette.edu/theses_open/487 RELATIONS OF DISCRIMINATORY EXPERIENCES AND MARIANISMO BELEIFS WITH PTSD SYMPTOMS IN LATINX WOMEN by Claire Bird, B.A. A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School, Marquette University, in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science Milwaukee, Wisconsin August 2018 ABSTRACT RELATIONS OF DISCRIMINATORY EXPERIENCES AND MARIANISMO BELEIFS WITH PTSD SYMPTOMS IN LATINX WOMEN Claire Bird, B.A. Marquette University, 2018 Research examining the discriminatory experiences of Latinx women in minimal. The present study examined if various forms of discrimination predicted mental health symptoms in a sample of Latinx women, with the conceptualization of chronic discrimination as a possible form of trauma. There is evidence showing that Latinx individuals are at risk to develop posttraumatic stress disorder at higher rates than their non-Hispanic White counterparts, with many studies pointing to the experiences of racial/ethnic discrimination as a significant contributor (Kaczkurkin, Asnaani, Hall-Clark, Peterson, Yarvis, & Foa, 2016). Given the multiple forms of discrimination that women of color experience, ethnic discrimination, sexism, and sexual objectification were assessed as forms of discrimination. These variables were examined for their relationship to psychological distress and PTSD symptoms. Marianismo, traditional Latinx cultural gender roles, was examined as a moderator for discrimination and mental health symptoms. A community sample of Latinx women ( N = 132) were recruited to complete self- report surveys. Ethnic discrimination was found to be a robust predictor of both PTSD symptoms and psychological distress. Sexual objectification predicted PTSD symptoms above and beyond other variables, while sexism was found to predict psychological distress above and beyond other variables in a series of hierarchical regressions. Marianismo was not a significant moderator for discrimination and mental health symptoms. This study aimed to expand on the intersectional experiences of Latinx women and the relationship to mental health symptoms. Support was found for the relationship between discriminatory experiences and symptoms of PTSD as well as psychological distress. i TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………………..iv CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………….1 A. Ethnic Discrimination…………………………...…………………….4 B. Sexism……………………………………………………………...….6 C. Sexual Objectification…...…………...……………………………..…8 D. Cultural Values……………………………………………….......….10 E. Current Study…………...……………………………………………11 II. METHOD..……………………….………………………………………….13 A. Participants and Sampling……………………………………………13 B. Procedure………………………………………….…………………14 C. Measures – Independent Variables………………………..…………15 a. Demographic Form………………………………………..…15 b. Marianismo……………...………………………………...…15 c. Ethnic Discrimination….......………………………………...16 d. Sexism…………….…………………………………….……17 e. Sexual Objectification………………………………………..17 D. Measures – Dependent Variables…………………………………….18 a. Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms……………………………...18 b. Psychological Distress……………………………………….18 III. RESULTS……………………………………………………………………..19 A. Data Screening…………………………………………………….…19 ii B. Preliminary Analyses……………………………………………...…21 C. Hypothesis 1……………………………………………………….…23 a. Hypothesis 1a ………………………………………..………24 b. Hypothesis 1b………………………………………...………24 D. Moderator Analyses……………………………………………….…25 E. Hypothesis 2…………………………………………………….……26 a. Hypothesis 2a…………………………………...……………26 b. Hypothesis 2b……………………………………...…………27 c. Hypothesis 2c………………………………………………...28 d. Hypothesis 2d………………………………………………...28 F. Hypothesis 3…………………………………………………….……29 a. Hypothesis 3a………………………………………………...30 b. Hypothesis 3b………………………………………………...30 c. Hypothesis 3c………………………………………………...31 d. Hypothesis 3d………………………………………………...31 G. Hypothesis 4…………………………………………………….……32 a. Hypothesis 4a………………………………...………………33 b. Hypothesis 4b…………………………………...……………34 c. Hypothesis 4c…………………………………...……………34 d. Hypothesis 4d…………………………………...……………35 IV. DISCUSSION…………………………………………………………..…….36 a. Limitations…………………………………………………….…………42 b. Future Directions and Conclusion……………………….………………43 iii BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………...…………...………45 iv LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Descriptive Statistics of Variables of Interest……………………………...…..22 Table 2: Correlations of Variables of Interest………..………………………………….22 Table 3: Hierarchical Regression Analysis for Variables Predicting PTSD symptoms…24 Table 4: Hierarchical Regression Analysis for Variables Predicting Psychological Distress….………………………………………………………………………………..25 Table 5: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Ethnic Discrimination and PTSD symptoms…………………………………..27 Table 6: Hierarchical Regression Examining Positive Marianismo as Moderator Between Ethnic Discrimination and PTSD symptoms………………………………………….....27 Table 7: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Ethnic Discrimination and Psychological Distress……….……………………28 Table 8: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Ethnic Discrimination and Psychological Distress ………..…………………...28 Table 9: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexism and PTSD symptoms ……………..……………………………………30 Table 10: Hierarchical Regression Examining Positive Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexism and PTSD symptoms.………….………………………………………31 Table 11: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexism and Psychological Distress.……………………………………………32 Table 12: Hierarchical Regression Examining Positive Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexism and Psychological Distress..……….…………..………………………32 Table 13: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexual Objectification and PTSD symptoms..…………………………………33 Table 14: Hierarchical Regression Examining Positive Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexual Objectification and PTSD symptoms……..……………………………34 Table 15: Hierarchical Regression Examining Negative Marianismo as Moderator Between Sexual Objectification and Psychological Distress…………………………….35 Table 16: Hierarchical Regression Examining Positive Marianismo as Moderator……..35 1 Relations of Discriminatory Experiences and Marianismo Beliefs with PTSD Symptoms in Latinx Women The Latinx 1 population is currently one of the fastest growing in the United States and is expected to double in size by 2050 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2014). Unfortunately, the health disparities apparent within this group are not well understood. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a major mental health problem impacting approximately 8% of the U.S. population each year, affecting women at double the rate of men, at 10.4% and 5%, respectively (Berg, 2006; Kessler, Sonega, Bromet, Hughes, Nelson, 1995). Additionally, racial/ethnic minorities, particularly Latinxs, are at increased risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder after experiencing a traumatic event (Carter, 2007; Pole, Best, Metzler, & Marmar, 2005). There is evidence showing that Latinx individuals are at risk to develop posttraumatic stress disorder at higher rates than their non-Hispanic White counterparts, with many studies pointing to the experiences of racial/ethnic discrimination as a significant contributor (Kaczkurkin, Asnaani, Hall-Clark, Peterson, Yarvis, & Foa, 2016; Pole et al., 2005). It has been proposed that chronic exposure to discrimination places added stress on the lives of ethnic minority individuals, which can manifest in psychological problems (Carter, 2007; Pascoe & Smart Richman, 2009; Schwartz & Meyer, 2010). The experiential perception of discrimination by women of color and its connection to psychopathology is lacking in the empirical literature. By embodying multiple 1 The term “Latinx” will be used in place of Latina/Latino in this paper to be inclusive of the varying personal gender identifications and as an attempt to break down stringent gender role constraints on people of Latin descent. 2 minority identities, women of color are put in the situation of “double jeopardy” in which they experience discrimination relating to the disenfranchised identities of both their ethnicity and their gender (Cole, 2009). Due to the inextricable link of these identities, women of color experience unique forms of discrimination that address the intersection of their gender and ethnicity. Ethnic discrimination, sexism and sexual objectification are stressful experiences associated with negative mental health outcomes. Ethnic discrimination can be defined as unfair treatment due to one’s racial or ethnic identity (Williams, Spencer, and Jackson, 1999). While sexism is defined as gender specific, negative events or unfair treatment unique to women (Szymanski, Gupta, & Carr, 2009). The link between ethnic discrimination and PTSD symptoms has been found throughout the literature (Carter, 2007). Less research has examined the relationship between sexism and PTSD development, however, the existing research does provide some support for this link,