Assessing the Impact of COVID-19 on Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Towards Effective Post-Pandemic Policies

[...]a broad and inclusive approach to post-pandemic policy-making—one that considers Indigenous forms of knowledge whilst fostering appreciation for their cultures and lives—is needed to adequately assist Indigenous peoples in repairing the harm they have suffered as a result of COVID-19.3 COVID-19 and its deadly impact on Indigenous communities There are no less than eight hundred distinct Indigenous communities across Latin America, each with its own unique identity, culture, and [End Page 169] history. In Bolivia, for example, where Indigenous groups comprise a significant portion of the electorate (between 41 and 62 percent of the population), Latin America's first Indigenous political executive was elected in 2006.4 In most instances, however, Indigenous peoples make up only a small proportion of Latin American country populations (generally ranging from 0.5–15 percent), one factor ensuring limited political influence and the widespread marginalization of their interests.5 As a consequence, Indigenous peoples across the region entered the pandemic whilst already suffering from a range of serious economic and socio-cultural inequalities.6 Inadequate access to medical care, chronic poverty and economic marginalization, racism and prejudice, and inadequate access to education are common issues that exacerbated the impact of the pandemic.7 The World Health Organization confirmed the arrival of the pandemic in the region on February 26, 2020. [...]Indigenous mortality rates were 4.03 percent in Brazil and 19.9 percent in Mexico—significantly higher than 2.2 percent and 5.7 percent overall mortality rates in each country respectively.9 Unfortunately, the lack of regional data on, and deliberate under-reporting of, Indigenous mortality rates across much of Latin America has problematized many of the available datasets.10 In Brazil, for example, organizations such as The Articulation of Indigenous Peoples (APIB), have shown that the total number of recognized Indigenous deaths (902 persons as of April 7, 2022), undercounts the actual figure by at least 31 percent.11 Other sources, such as the Special Secretariat for Indigenous Health (SESAI), which is responsible for Indigenous medical care, also provides incomplete data on Brazilian Indigenous mortality by failing to count Indigenous urban dwellers or those who live outside of recognized government-controlled territories in their data sets.12 Such groups are among some of the most vulnerable Indigenous communities in the country, receiving little, if any, support from government agencies charged with supporting Indigenous communities.13 As a result, the scale and scope of COVID-19's impact on Indigenous Brazilians is, and for the foreseeable future will likely remain, unknowable.14 Despite a lack of adequate data across much of Latin America, a growing body of evidence indicates that Indigenous peoples were particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, and that they likely died or suffered long-term health issues in disproportionate numbers.15 In a study of Indigenous peoples in Chile, for instance, regions with larger Indigenous populations recorded a noticeable increase in overall mortality.16 Where direct data do not exist, emerging studies suggest that the medical impact of COVID-19 was likely compounded by a range of structural inequalities and environmental factors.17 Many Indigenous peoples lack access to adequate medical care. [...]disproportionate exposure to pesticides—used extensively in agricultural industries in which many Indigenous people find employment, as well as exposure to smoke inhalation—caused by out-of-control forest fires across Latin America—likely exacerbated the repertory symptoms caused by COVID-19.18 As a consequence, Indigenous peoples had to face COVID-19 not only with fewer resources, but with greater exposure to the types of pre-existing conditions known to aggravate the impact of the disease.19 Particularly high mortality rates among Indigenous elders, who act as stores of traditional knowledge, affected cultural continuity and community cohesion.20 To better understand this we spoke with a representative of the Indigenous Kaingang people, Duko Vãgfy, who explained that "[t]he worst losses [we suffered] were the elders, because they held so much knowledge about [our] people.

Dismantling cultural borders through social media and digital communications: How networked communities compromise identity

This book explores how social media and its networked communities dismantles, builds, and shapes identity. Social media has been instrumental, sometimes dangerously so, in binding together different communities;with thirteen original chapters by leading academics in the field, the volume investigates how belonging, togetherness, and loyalty is created in the digital sphere, in a way that transcends, and even dismantles, ethnic and national borders around the world. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022. All rights reserved.

Resilience Assessment in Times of Covid-19 in Ecuador

Since the 2019 outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ecuador was challenged by a combination of high health risk and serious economic and social impact. A need emerged to evaluate the resilience of the population in a social situation at the level of health and public safety unprecedented since the term resilience appeared in the scientific literature. The aim of this study is to create an instrument to assess resilience during the period when traumatic events are occurring due to the pandemic. Furthermore, it will consider the fact that the researchers conducting this study are themselves immersed in the same traumatic events provoked by Covid-19. For the development of the instrument, Ungar's Ecological Model has been taken as a reference, which encompasses several theories from the behavioural, cognitive, systemic, and functionalist currents. The instrument consists of 29 items that provide information on 4 dimensions associated with resilience: (1). interpersonal resources, (2). formal support networks, (3). informal support networks and 4. facing the risk situation. The instrument was validated by the "Judges Method” using the Aiken coefficient, in which 10 professionals from various universities in Ecuador participated. As for the reliability of the instrument, internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's alpha. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Using a cultural and social identity lens to understand pandemic responses in the US and India

The world over, countries have been racing to control the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. Central to the mitigation of the virus spread is the ability of nations to ensure behavior of its people adheres to the constraints imposed in the wake of the pandemic. However, there has been much variation in how individuals and collectives have responded in conformance to expected behavioral changes necessitated by the pandemic. The paper offers a cross-cultural and social identity perspective based on group categorizations to understand the variation in pandemic responses in the context of two different countries, that of India and the United States. Relevant cultural dimensions of difference shaping behavior such as individualism-collectivism, power distance, and other cultural norms shaping divergent behavioral responses in the US and India are examined. Differing group categorizations relevant for each country are also explored to understand the dynamics of behavioral response, be it adherence to mask wearing and following norms of social distancing, or the migrant labor exodus in India from urban to rural areas amidst the first wave of the pandemic. Implications for managing behavioral responses considering cross-cultural differences and group categorization processes are also discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Cross-Border Cooperation Health in Ireland//A RESPONSE

Providing healthcare services commands the largest allocation of public funding on both sides of the Irish border and concerns over the efficiency and effectiveness of these systems are perennial. Over the past two decades health has been identified as a key area for cross-border collaboration. However, in the absence of an overarching framework or strategy, there is little clarity about objectives. Using the responses to the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study it demonstrates that even in the face of an existential crisis, political leaders default to debates over culture and identity. The paper sets out how the healthcare systems in the two jurisdictions share similar core principles and values and face similar social, economic and political pressures. They have adopted broadly comparable approaches to tackling systemic issues, such as an ageing and growing population, evolving healthcare needs, workforce planning and financial pressures. It argues that there is potential for greater cross-border cooperation but this requires high-level political agreement and must be based on robust evidence. As this paper shows, there are significant barriers to developing all-island approaches, but these are not insurmountable.

Changing the narrative of disengagement: Exploring academic identity formation for non-ethno-European students

The COVID-19 pandemic and the changing demographics of the American identity have drawn attention to the necessity of reforming the Ethno-European education system to meet the needs of a diverse student population. If the educational landscape is to be transformed to meet the needs of a growing non-Ethno-European student population, more research is needed to explore factors that increase non-Ethno-European students' academic engagement. This research attempted to identify individual and systemic factors contributing to non-Ethno-European students' academic engagement during secondary education. This exploration began by outlining the role a cohesive identity continuum has on education engagement for non-Ethno-European students. Antecedent moderators of academic engagement for non-Ethno-European students were explored utilizing the seminal work of attachment theory by John Bowlby (1969) and Mary Ainsworth (1991), the Psychosocial Development of Identity Formation theory by Erik Erikson (1950), and Social Identity theory by Tajfel (1972). This exploratory research used a Convergent-Parallel Mixed Method design to evaluate potential antecedent moderators during the 2020-2021 academic year. The Convergent-Parallel Mixed Method used three research instruments to explore whether Ethnic Identity, Grit, and other school engagement factors (SEI) contribute to student attendance. The research also used a semi-structured interview to explore teacher and student perceptions and expectations about factors influencing student engagement. For this research, student engagement is defined as the number of days students attend school. As such, the terms student engagement and the number of days students attended school is used synonymously throughout the dissertation.The QUAN portion of the research utilized varies from three research instruments: Ethnic Identity Scale, Grit Scale, and Student Engagement Scale (SEI), as well as the number of days students attended school during the 2020-2021 school year. The QUAN portion of the research revealed statistically significant differences between grade-level groups, 10th graders and 12th graders, as well as among Gender, males, and females, for the Grit scale, though the variables were not statistically significant predictors of student attendance. In the QUAL portion of the research, a semi-structured interview was conducted to explore student and teacher perceptions of factors that increase or decrease school engagement. This research portion points to students' psychosocial moratorium as an antecedent factor influencing student and teacher classroom interactions. Lastly, a teacher's Psychological Grind appears to be an essential phenomenon with theoretical implications among teachers of non-Ethno-European students. A teacher's Psychological Grind may facilitate the intersectionality between a student's psychosocial moratorium and academic engagement. A teacher's Psychological Grind is defined as the ability of an educator to remain emotionally and psychologically engaged and consistent, despite a student's emotional and cognitive instability. The finding points to the need for further research on how students' attachment patterns contribute to their psychosocial moratorium influencing biases and perceptions about the education system and its teachers well before entering the classroom. Teachers have a brief window of opportunity to contribute to a healthy attachment with students. Teachers must attune, grasp, interpret, and respond to the student's internal and external needs to create a healthy attachment to students. Focusing on a teacher's and student's attachment patterns, the student's psychosocial moratorium, and a teacher's Psychological Grind has the potential to guide future research in exploring attachment patterns as antecedent moderating factors of school engagement among non-Ethno-European students. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Resilience Assessment in Times of Covid-19 in Ecuador

Since the 2019 outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ecuador was challenged by a combination of high health risk and serious economic and social impact. A need emerged to evaluate the resilience of the population in a social situation at the level of health and public safety unprecedented since the term resilience appeared in the scientific literature. The aim of this study is to create an instrument to assess resilience during the period when traumatic events are occurring due to the pandemic. Furthermore, it will consider the fact that the researchers conducting this study are themselves immersed in the same traumatic events provoked by Covid-19. For the development of the instrument, Ungar's Ecological Model has been taken as a reference, which encompasses several theories from the behavioural, cognitive, systemic, and functionalist currents. The instrument consists of 29 items that provide information on 4 dimensions associated with resilience: (1). interpersonal resources, (2). formal support networks, (3). informal support networks and 4. facing the risk situation. The instrument was validated by the "Judges Method” using the Aiken coefficient, in which 10 professionals from various universities in Ecuador participated. As for the reliability of the instrument, internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's alpha. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

The Dualistic Trends of Sinophobia and Sinophilia: Impact on Foreign Policy Towards China

The People's Republic of China has invited both fascination and fear, admiration and contempt in the last few years. Various public opinion surveys' data findings reveal a nuanced and conflicted phenomenon of ‘Sinophobia' and ‘Sinophillia' across the world nations. One view of China is that of an ‘autocratic,' ‘anti-democratic' regime provoking anxiety and suspicion reflected in a trending wave of anti-China sentiments evolving into ‘Sinophobia,' with its prevalence and intensity highlighted in increasing cases of racism and violence towards immigrant Chinese after the novel coronavirus outbreak. The growing intensity of Sinophobia is noticed in countries witnessing a barging influx of Chinese investment with Chinese land grabs and the loss of native jobs. However, another view is of a nation that inspires vast admiration for its economic ascent and traditional culture. Today, China has an increasing appeal and attraction not just for its economic engagement but also for its culture, language and tourism. Public perceptions and opinions are critical factors in determining a state's foreign policy preferences and choices. This qualitative study utilises various global surveys and public opinion polls to gauge the dualistic trends of public opinion on China and examines the salience of public opinion in foreign relations, underlining a pluralist approach. The article illustrates multiple cases highlighting how negative or positive public opinion of China is correlated with an aggressive or friendly foreign policy posture towards China. © 2023 SAGE Publications.

47. Cultural Connection and Mental Health for American Indian Adolescents

Purpose: American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) adolescents face significant physical and mental health disparities. These inequities result from historical and intergenerational traumas, which are the cumulative, permeating effects that impact individuals and communities who share a specific identity. Currently there is a paucity of research focusing on the mental health of AI/AN youth as well as the relationship between mental health and cultural connection. This project assesses the relationship between cultural identity (ethnic identity and tribal affiliation) and outcomes associated with mental health (loneliness, friendships, emotional support, and sleep) for AI/AN adolescents. It also aims to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on stress management for AI/AN adolescents. Methods: 12 to 18 year old adolescents from the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina participated in this mixed-methods study. The project involved two phases informed by the principles of community-based participatory research. Phase 1, discussed in this , involved surveys using validated instruments to assess cultural connection, mental health outcomes, stress management, and resilience among participants. Phase 2 involves semi-structured interviews with adolescents. Results: Of 123 AI/AN youth who completed the survey, 54.5% (N=67) were 15-18 years old with mean age of 14.9 (SD=2.0). 61% (N=75) were assigned female at birth, 56% (N=70) identified as female, and 4.1% (N=5) identified as non-binary. Mean tribal affiliation (TA) and ethnic identity (EI) scores suggest strong cultural connection among participants (TA: mean 3.1/5, SD 0.6;EI: 3.4/5, SD 0.9). Sleep quality (mean 2.63/5) and positive stress management (mean 2.06/5) were low, suggesting room for improvement. Bivariate analysis and logistic regressions demonstrated moderate positive correlations between ethnic identity and friendship, ethnic identity and emotional support, tribal affiliation and friendship, and tribal affiliation and emotional support. Conclusions: Results highlight that AI/AN adolescents in this sample have a moderate-strong connection with culture, marked by ethnic identity and tribal affiliation. They also demonstrate the impact of cultural connection on mental health for AI/AN adolescents. Phase 2 will draw upon Phase 1 findings to further understand the relationship between cultural connection and mental health outcomes, and to promote community-driven interventions emphasizing inherent strengths and resiliencies identified through qualitative interviews of AI/AN youth. Data related to cultural connection and mental health outcomes may also be used to set the framework for policy formulation which may allow for increased funding and programming addressing mental health for AI/AN youth. Sources of Support: This research received support from the UNC Chapel Hill Office of Global Health.

Transforming Transitions: Developing Cultural Competence in Supporting Caregivers of Children and Youth Growing up with Autism Spectrum Disorder

BACKGROUND: Transition to adulthood is a stressful time for caregivers of children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Anecdotally, we know that cultural perspectives can directly influence decisions made around ASD diagnosis, treatment, and transition to adulthood. However, there is a paucity of research into these cultural perspectives and how they may affect illness trajectories. OBJECTIVE(S): 1.Through open-ended responses, identify cultural values that play a role in decision making around health care and life course planning during transition to adulthood in ASD. 2.Identify criteria for success in adulthood from parents of children and youth with ASD in a culturally diverse population. 3.Identify systemic barriers that prevent families from accessing culturally sensitive care 4.Educate health care workers on any unique cultural perspective that may impact transition planning. DESIGN/METHODS: In-depth interviews (IDIs) were conducted with caregivers (i.e., parents/guardians) of children and youth with autism. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded using deductive and inductive coding methods by two independent coders, with inter-rater reliability confirmed by Cohen's kappa coefficient. RESULT(S): A total of 12 IDIs were conducted. The main themes that were discussed included caregivers' understanding of adulthood for their child with ASD, barriers to accessing services, the importance of culture and religion/spirituality to their child's future, recommendations to improve current services and programming and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on decision-making. Caregivers expressed their desire for their child to be independent as they transition to adulthood. They also described how cultural or religious/spiritual practices are integrated into their child's life and the importance of maintaining their cultural identity. Caregivers emphasized the lack of culturally tailored resources as their child transitions to adulthood to maintain that sense of community. CONCLUSION(S): Caregivers' cultural perspectives are an integral part of their identity and an important aspect of their environment that should be taken into consideration as children and youth with ASD transition to adulthood.

A Biopsychosocial Formulation of Psychosis after Kidney Transplantation: When Cultural Identity and Biology Collide

Background: When working with colleagues of predominantly biological perspectives, it is an important role of the consultation psychiatrist to recognize psychosocial factors that may be impacting a patient's pathology. This case exemplifies the importance of such education between psychiatric and transplant providers. Case: This is a 38-year-old divorced Russian man, with history of cannabis use and childhood trauma;and history of ESRD secondary to IgA nephropathy s/p DDKT on tacrolimus/mycophenolate/prednisone. Eighteen months after transplantation, in the setting of daily cannabis use, he developed psychosis with persecutory delusions, referential experiences, and experiences of thought alienation. The content of his delusions was tied closely to his experience of emigration from Russia, having spent his childhood in Volgograd/Stalingrad after the dissolution of the USSR. He was found to have a tacrolimus level of 20, above goal-range of 8-10. He was medically hospitalized and followed by psychiatry. The medical, transplant, and psychiatry teams collaborated to downtitrate his tacrolimus and initiate treatment with antipsychotic medication. His psychosis initially improved but recurred six months after discharge. At that time, there were several changes to his presentation of diagnostically significance. His tacrolimus level was found to be within goal. He had also recently recovered from COVID-19, self-discontinued olanzapine, and ceased cannabis use. The patient's new persecutory delusions developed concurrently with the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, raising suspicion that activation of trauma was playing a larger role. Discussion(s): Biologically, the effect of cannabis on immunosuppression through CYP3A4 inhibition is relevant, as is the independent relationship between cannabis, tacrolimus and psychosis1,2 At the time of writing, any effect of the change to belatacept is yet unknown. Psychologically, trauma history likely contributed to suspiciousness toward others and persecutory delusions. There is also evidence to suggest a relationship between trauma, cannabis and psychosis.3 Culturally, his sensation of being targeted was likely related to his Russian identity, immigrant status, and the current international conflict. Conclusion/Implications: This case demonstrates multiple contributing factors to psychosis in a patient post-transplant, which include psychological, trauma-related, and cultural factors in addition to those explained by pathophysiology of transplant, substance use, and immunosuppression. Transplant psychiatry has an essential role in educating our colleagues and patients about the multitude of contributors to psychiatric health post-transplant. References: 1. Nogueira JM, Freire MJ, Nova VV, Jesus G. When Paranoia Comes with the Treatment: Psychosis Associated with Tacrolimus Use. Case Rep Nephrol Dial. 2021;11(2):241-246. 2. Sikavi D, McMahon J, Fromson JA. Catatonia Due to Tacrolimus Toxicity 16 Years After Renal Transplantation: Case Report and Literature Review. J Psychiatr Pract. 2019;25(6):481-484. 3. Tomas-Roig J, Piscitelli F, Gil V, et al. Effects of repeated long-term psychosocial stress and acute cannabinoid exposure on mouse corticostriatal circuitries: Implications for neuropsychiatric disorders. CNS Neurosci Ther. 2018;24(6):528-538. Copyright © 2022

COVID-19 information seeking behavior versus value perception among U.S. ethnic/racial minorities: differences and vaccination implications

PurposeThis study explores information behavior and perception and vaccination among America's three largest ethnic minorities, Hispanic, Black/African American and Asian, in COVID-19 context. Information behavior and perception are investigated from cultural and demographic characteristics, while vaccination is explored from COVID-19 related information behavior and utility/value of COVID-19 vaccine information.Design/methodology/approachUsing Qualtrics survey panel, a national survey of America's Hispanic, Black/African American and Asian population was conducted to better understand the impact of cultural and demographic factors on COVID-19 related information. Data were collected in Fall 2021. Multiple and logistic regression were conducted to analyze data.FindingsResults show that cultural factors (i.e. cultural identity, social identity, social capital and religiousness) exert significant impact on information value and seeking across all three minority groups, while some demographic factors, Republicanism and age, also significantly predict COVID-19 related information seeking and value for Black/African Americans and Hispanics, but less for Asian Americans. Lastly, information value was found to significantly predict vaccine status, willingness and eagerness, the three facets of vaccination as conceptualized in this study, for top three racial/ethic minorities.Originality/valueThe finding of this study reveal that there are variations in terms of the level and type of attachment to one's culture/social group in COVID-19 informational context. Between the three groups, granular differences were observed regarding the relationship between cultural factors and perceived COVID-19 information value. While cultural identity is most associated with African Americans, social capital is most evident for the Asian Americans, but social identity was the strongest predictor among Hispanics. Thus, this study offers important strategic insights into a unique population sample to better understand the impact of COVID-19 related information perception and vaccination implication.

Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania 2022 Conference Distinguished Lecture: Social Movement Sightseeing in Melanesia and Beyond

Social movements often attract tourists in their wake. The Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania convened a successful annual meeting in Portland, Oregon, less than a year after passionate protests that attracted national attention in the United States. Concerned city boosters, in response, invited tourists to enjoy Portland's vibrant diversity. That same year, Tulsa (Oklahoma) commemorated a 1921 race massacre with a new museum and events that also invited tourist visits. This brings me to consider the consequences of increasing (pre‐Covid‐19) tourists on Tanna (Vanuatu). Island entrepreneurs have packaged Tanna's famed John Frum and Prince Philip movements to entice tourists. Touristic attention and resources, however, can spark dispute within local communities, commoditize bits of culture, and reframe island identity and self‐conception.

Changing the narrative of disengagement: Exploring academic identity formation for non-ethno-European students

The COVID-19 pandemic and the changing demographics of the American identity have drawn attention to the necessity of reforming the Ethno-European education system to meet the needs of a diverse student population. If the educational landscape is to be transformed to meet the needs of a growing non-Ethno-European student population, more research is needed to explore factors that increase non-Ethno-European students' academic engagement. This research attempted to identify individual and systemic factors contributing to non-Ethno-European students' academic engagement during secondary education. This exploration began by outlining the role a cohesive identity continuum has on education engagement for non-Ethno-European students. Antecedent moderators of academic engagement for non-Ethno-European students were explored utilizing the seminal work of attachment theory by John Bowlby (1969) and Mary Ainsworth (1991), the Psychosocial Development of Identity Formation theory by Erik Erikson (1950), and Social Identity theory by Tajfel (1972). This exploratory research used a Convergent-Parallel Mixed Method design to evaluate potential antecedent moderators during the 2020-2021 academic year. The Convergent-Parallel Mixed Method used three research instruments to explore whether Ethnic Identity, Grit, and other school engagement factors (SEI) contribute to student attendance. The research also used a semi-structured interview to explore teacher and student perceptions and expectations about factors influencing student engagement. For this research, student engagement is defined as the number of days students attend school. As such, the terms student engagement and the number of days students attended school is used synonymously throughout the dissertation.The QUAN portion of the research utilized varies from three research instruments: Ethnic Identity Scale, Grit Scale, and Student Engagement Scale (SEI), as well as the number of days students attended school during the 2020-2021 school year. The QUAN portion of the research revealed statistically significant differences between grade-level groups, 10th graders and 12th graders, as well as among Gender, males, and females, for the Grit scale, though the variables were not statistically significant predictors of student attendance. In the QUAL portion of the research, a semi-structured interview was conducted to explore student and teacher perceptions of factors that increase or decrease school engagement. This research portion points to students' psychosocial moratorium as an antecedent factor influencing student and teacher classroom interactions. Lastly, a teacher's Psychological Grind appears to be an essential phenomenon with theoretical implications among teachers of non-Ethno-European students. A teacher's Psychological Grind may facilitate the intersectionality between a student's psychosocial moratorium and academic engagement. A teacher's Psychological Grind is defined as the ability of an educator to remain emotionally and psychologically engaged and consistent, despite a student's emotional and cognitive instability. The finding points to the need for further research on how students' attachment patterns contribute to their psychosocial moratorium influencing biases and perceptions about the education system and its teachers well before entering the classroom. Teachers have a brief window of opportunity to contribute to a healthy attachment with students. Teachers must attune, grasp, interpret, and respond to the student's internal and external needs to create a healthy attachment to students. Focusing on a teacher's and student's attachment patterns, the student's psychosocial moratorium, and a teacher's Psychological Grind has the potential to guide future research in exploring attachment patterns as antecedent moderating factors of school engagement among non-Ethno-European students. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Those Asian American woke kids: Asian American hashtag activism, identity, and interracial solidarity

This dissertation examined the discursive strategies employed by Asian American activists engaged in interracial solidarity activity on Twitter. In light of the recent anti-Asian racism due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the long-standing model minority stereotype, studying Asian American identity and activity is a timely and relevant endeavor. The study contributes to a rich understanding of race relations in the United States beyond the black-white binary and furthers research on Asian American representation and use of social media for activism purposes. I use theories of racial formation and racial triangulation to make sense of the current racial order. I also conceptualize Twitter as a space conducive for the creation and maintenance of counterpublics through its affordances and build upon scholarly work on racial biases and representations online. I use critical discourse studies, discourse tracing, and guided interviews to answer the research question, how do Asian Americans express solidarity with other people of color online? I select three hashtags for analysis: #Asians4BlackLives, #JusticeForAkaiGurley, and #NotYourWedge. I also conducted interviews with seventeen respondents who participated in at least one of the hashtags above. I found in my analysis that Asian American activists employ several discursive strategies that redefine Asian American identity and position in the racial order. Because I theorize race as context specified and mutually constitutive, I found that in expressing interracial solidarity Asian American activists must interrogate their own racializations and challenge a racial order in which Asian Americans as a group are used to uphold white supremacy. They do this by creating alternative racial projects and use their racial identities as a mechanism or technology to accomplish their goals. However, challenging the racial order involves provisional and liminal redefinitions of identity and position. I also problematize the educational and class barriers to Asian American activism within the context of the model minority stereotype and techno-Orientalist perspectives. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Usability Evaluation of Educational Games: An Analysis of Culture as a Factor Affecting Children’s Educational Attainment

Educational games have been employed among Omani schools but those used by local Omani schools were imported and were mostly designed based on western contexts. For Omani children, these games may be culturally inappropriate and difficult to comprehend and follow, impeding children’s learning. Three questionnaires and one observational checklist were used to gather data from 40 respondents (observers). SPSS was used in data analysis. Through experiments, the behavior of Omani students towards the use of imported educational games was examined. Five main factors, namely, efficiency, learnability, memorability, errors, and satisfaction, of educational games for a target user were measured using Hybrid User Evaluation Methodology for Remote Evaluation (HUEMRE), Training Framework for Untrained Observer (TFUO), and Framework on Educational Games Behavior Intention (EGsBI), which are specifically designed frameworks for this purpose. The results of this study explained that the Omani children are facing difficulties in using the imported educational games;furthermore, this study proves that culture, language, animation, and interaction are contributing heavily to benefiting from educational games, and, therefore, these factors shall be highly considered in the process of educational games design to facilitate and ensure children learning;furthermore, the findings of this study enrich the comprehension of how the specified factors positively affect behavioral intention of Omani students in the use of educational games and in improving the behavior intention level of these students.

Navigating Covid-19 to Bring Access to STEM Mentorship to Bipoc/underrepresented Students

Background: The Mentorship Educational Directive (MED) Program is a medical student-run initiative connecting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) high school students interested in healthcare with BIPOC medical student mentors. Early health career pipeline programs contribute to achieving health equity by working to assure an adequate and culturally representative health workforce, which is shown to improve access to, and quality of health services for underserved populations. The Health Education Resource Opportunity (HERO) program is a community program focused on increasing the number of underrepresented high school students in STEM fields. The MED program partnered with HERO to add a medical student mentorship component with first- and second- year medical students. Methods: Medical student leaders used a structured virtual platform for mentor/mentee engagement. The HERO program recruited mentees, and student leaders recruited mentors who completed extensive training and were paired via a speed-matching system. Student leaders conducted group sessions on Zoom using breakout rooms and videos as learning tools for demonstrations before students practiced techniques and concepts with their mentors. Mentors and mentees also participated in individual meetings. Following the program, mentors completed reflection questionnaires. We used descriptive and in vivo coding to analyze themes from the questionnaires. Results: Mentors valued the program's structure, created cultural connections, became comfortable having difficult conversations, and felt empowered to mentor students. One of the most common themes was about mentorship;mentors stated they would seek additional opportunities to be mentors and that early mentorship is essential. Shared racial and cultural identities created a deeper connection between mentors and mentees. Mentors found comfort in discussing sensitive topics with their mentees and peers. Conclusion: The MED Program facilitated engagement between medical student mentors and high school mentees using a virtual platform. Three themes emerged from the reflection questionnaires, including cultural connections and shared identities, empowerment of mentors, and comfort with conversations about sensitive topics. These are important findings since studies have shown that sustained relationships and community partnerships enhance students' abilities in higher education. Our findings are a positive step in that direction since mentors expressed satisfaction in their mentoring relationships and felt like they made a positive impact on the students' life and education. The HERO program is currently working with a new set of MED medical student leaders, planning for the coming year and addressing areas for improvement. Overall, we concluded that a virtual BIPOC student mentorship program was a rewarding and meaningful experience for medical students. Areas for further study include analysis of high school student responses and expansion to additional communities. We anticipate that similar programs could potentially expand the network of BIPOC physicians and healthcare leaders, in turn inspiring upcoming generations of potential healthcare providers.

COMMUNITY-ENGAGED COVID-19 DISASTER SOLUTIONS (CCDS): COLLABORATIVE ACTION RESEARCH TO SUPPORT PSYCHO-SOCIALECOLOGICAL STRESSORS AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS AFFECTING THE HEALTH OF INDIGENOUS, VISIBLE MINORITIES, AND REFUGEE COMMUNITIES

This project is a community-led collaboration between an interdisciplinary research team (including Indigenous and visible minority academics, health professionals and students working in health, and community disaster researchers) and First Nation leadership and community members. The project addresses two critical issues that affect Indigenous, visible minorities, and refugee communities: negatively impact their health and poor access to healthcare. We will examine how ethnic and cultural identity, protective factors, and psycho-social stresses impact this pandemic. Given the growing ethnically diverse population of Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada, it is essential to understand how these communities view, use, and experience health services to build their health resiliency. The findings will provide a high reward policy and programming recommendations to improve health services and deliver equitable, quality and ethnically conscious care during the COVID-19 disaster. Following relational, Indigenous, and antiracist theoretical frameworks, we will use a mixed-method approach of self-reported surveys, focus groups, individual interviews, and Indigenous story-sharing to collect data from the Indigenous, visible minorities, and refugee communities' overall health, factors that negatively impact their health, how they cope with adversity, and their usage of health services.

Henrik Ibsen and Conspiracy Thinking: The Case of Peer Gynt

Generating countless websites, books, films, series, and podcasts, and encompassing nearly every major negative event that has taken place since the end of World War II, conspiracies have become a phenomenon that anyone as a citizen and thinking individual has had to cope with in the last few decades, arguably reaching a peak during the Trump presidency, with the rise of QAnon and various conspiracy theories about the current Covid-19 pandemic (Barkun 2017;Amarasingam and Argentino 2020;Mitchell et al. 2020;Uscinski et al. 2020). Not surprisingly, the rise of conspiracy theories has also coincided with an increasing scholarly interest, especially within psychology and the social sciences, although studies of conspiracies in literature and film have also grown in number during the last two decades. Just to mention two famous examples, the same Brown's Inferno (2013) draws upon the long-standing tradition of conspiracy theories related to Dante's Divine Comedy, and the works of William Shakespeare have been subjected to a long series of conspiratorial readings, arguably reaching a peak-at least in a Norwegian context-with Erlend Loe's and Petter Amundsen's mashup of theories about Shakespeare's persona and the coded messages that the English dramatist allegedly left in his texts (Loe and Amundsen 2006). Drawing upon Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari's rejection of a fixed identity in late modern society and cultural production, she makes a clear argument against two main avenues of scholarly interpretation of the play, a Hegelian and Cartesian one: "I argue that Peer Gynt should be understood as expressing a fundamentally non-transcendent world-view" (Rees 2014, 13, 19). [...]according to Rees, Peer Gynt's status as a "national epos" is highly paradoxical, and the play hardly seems to contain a clear-cut "message" or to allow a straightforward interpretation, be it about cultural identity or otherwise.

REFLECTIONS ON CARRIE MAE WEEMS'S RESIST COVID: TAKE 6!

Fakunle reflects on Carrie Mae Weems's RESIST COVID ;TAKE 6! public awareness campaign. As an artist, Weems has long used her work to investigate family relationships, cultural identity, sexism, class, political systems, and the consequences of power. Through this collection of posters and billboards, initiated in 2020 and created with Pierre Loving and other artists, Weems is very intentional in the way she elevates stories about the COV1D-19 pandemic that reflect the ongoing toll of historical and systemic minoritization, or marginalization of those belonging to minority groups, in the US and globally. Through images that simultaneously command our attention and cultivate intimacy, Weems clearly aims to demonstrate that there is nothing inherently minor about the lives of those who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color.