Cultural resources and health among Asian Americans: results from the National Latino and Asian American Study

The primary aim of this study is to improve our understanding of Asian American health. Stereotypes such as the “model minority myth” continue to obscure diversity and give the impression that Asian Americans are uniformly successful and healthy. However, some sub‐groups of Asian Americans are at higher risk of health problems than others. It is important to better understand the risk and protective factors that contribute to health among this large and growing segment of the U.S. population. ❧ The “immigrant paradox” is often used to explain heterogeneity in health outcomes among Asian Americans. This perspective posits that immigrants have superior health status compared to those who are U.S.‐born. However, over time this health advantage deteriorates, such that the health status of long‐term immigrants and subsequent generations tends to converge to that of their U.S.‐born counterparts. Using data from the National Latino and Asian American Survey (NLAAS) and the cultural resource hypothesis as a conceptual framework, this dissertation examines the effects of three cultural resources—ethnic identity, native language proficiency, and religious service attendance—on mental and physical health outcomes. ❧ Study 1 of this multiple‐manuscript dissertation explores the impact of each cultural resource on mental and physical health, stratified by ethnic group. Findings indicate that native language proficiency and ethnic identity are associated with better health for at least one ethnic group. Study 2 examines the moderating role of cultural resources in the relationship between longer duration of residence and health, finding moderating effects of ethnic identity and native language proficiency. Study 3 uses latent class analysis to empirically identify risk profiles of health among Asian Americans, revealing four sociodemographically distinct profiles. ❧ Findings from this dissertation illustrate the potential of cultural resources as protective factors for health and extend the cultural resource hypothesis to include Asian Americans. Instead of accepting health declines among immigrant populations as inevitable, it is important to consider heterogeneity and understand that longer duration of residence in the U.S. does not always result in poor health. Helping professionals can facilitate maintenance of cultural resources as part of a larger effort to improve health among Asian Americans.本研究的核心目标是深化对亚裔美国人健康状况的认知。“模范少数族裔神话”这类刻板印象仍在掩盖群体内部的多样性，给人以亚裔美国人整体均取得成功且健康状况良好的错误印象。但实际上，亚裔美国人中的部分亚群体面临的健康风险要高于其他群体。作为美国人口中规模庞大且持续增长的组成部分，深入了解影响该群体健康的风险与保护因素，具有重要意义。 “移民悖论”常被用以阐释亚裔美国人健康结局的异质性。该视角提出，移民群体的健康状况优于美国本土出生人群。但随着时间推移，这种健康优势会逐渐衰减，长期移民及其后代的健康水平往往会趋近于本土出生同辈群体。本研究借助《拉美裔与亚裔美国人全国调查》（National Latino and Asian American Survey, NLAAS）的数据，并以文化资源假说作为概念框架，探讨了三大文化资源：民族认同（ethnic identity）、母语水平（native language proficiency）以及宗教礼拜参与度（religious service attendance）对身心健康结局的影响。 本多手稿博士论文的第一项研究探讨了各项文化资源分别对身心健康的影响，并按民族群体进行了分层分析。研究结果显示，母语水平与民族认同至少对某一个民族群体的健康状况存在正向关联。第二项研究考察了文化资源在居留时长与健康之间关系中的调节作用，结果发现民族认同与母语水平均存在调节效应。第三项研究采用潜类别分析（latent class analysis），从实证层面识别出亚裔美国人的健康风险分型，共揭示出四类具有不同社会人口学特征的分型。 本研究的结果表明，文化资源可作为健康保护因素发挥作用，并将文化资源假说的适用范围拓展至亚裔美国人群体。我们不应将移民群体的健康衰退视为必然，而应重视群体内部的异质性，并认识到在美国居留时长更长并不总会导致健康状况变差。相关服务从业者可将维护文化资源作为提升亚裔美国人健康水平的整体工作的一部分，以此助力改善该群体的健康状况。