The Impact of Historical Loss on Native American College Students’ mental health: the protective role of ethnic identity

Le résumé fourni par la source

Objectives: Culturally relevant stressors and protective factors are vital to understanding and effectively supporting Native American/Alaskan Native (NA/AN) college students’ mental health and well-being. This study examined the theorized pathways among historical loss, well-being, psychological distress, and the proposed cultural buffer of ethnic identity in the Indigenist Stress-Coping Model (ISCM). Methods: Cross-sectional data were collected via online survey and analyzed using structural equation modeling. Sample Description: Participants were a national sample of 242 NA/AN college students. Participants were predominantly women (n = 185; 76%) and Median age was 21. Results: Partial support was found for the ISCM. Participants reported frequent thoughts of historical loss, which were associated with lower well-being and higher levels of psychological distress. Ethnic identity moderated the relationship between historical loss and well-being such that those with stronger ethnic identities reported a weaker relationship between historical loss and lower well-being. Conclusions: Results underscore the importance of culturally specific risk and protective factors in NA/AN college students’ resiliency and inform needed interventions and systemic change in higher education.

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