Resilience and the protective effects of cultural identity and engagement
Positive experiences and healthy coping strategies can counteract the negative impact of stress on our health and well-being. Social support and a connection to nature have been identified as sources of resilience for Indigenous people, aligning with Indigenous views that link physical, psychological, and spiritual well-being to the land and environment. Some of our research focuses on how various aspects of cultural identity and engagement are associated with health and well-being in Indigenous populations and might serve as protective factors against the negative effects of stress and trauma. Connecting with one’s culture through learning ancestral languages, engaging in traditional practices, participating in ceremonies, creating art, and preparing traditional food can build resilience in Indigenous individuals and communities empowering them to thrive. These cultural connections are strengthened when shared with family, elders, and community members.
Research on strength and resilience aids Indigenous communities and organizations in advocating for health programs that align with their cultural knowledge. This type of research reinforces the importance of what Indigenous communities already know about promoting well-being and allows them to strengthen their bonds and identities while seeking support for health initiatives.
To find out how our research is beginning to assess how biological factors might be involved in the transmission of effects of residential schools or the child welfare system across generations, please click here.
To find out how the consequences of numerous harmful past and ongoing aspects of settler colonialism in Canada are contributing to health and social inequities relative to the non-Indigenous population in Canada, please click here.
To find out how our research has been used in various ways to benefit Indigenous peoples, including by providing evidence of the continued direct and intergenerational effects of the residential school system and the child welfare system so that Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples can have a shared understanding of the legacy of colonialism in Canada, please click here.
To find out how we are examining the current landscape of Indigenous education curriculums in Canada and exploring best practices for educators and academics conducting Indigenous health research please click here.
Journal Articles
https://doi.org/10.1177/21568693221108766
Limited studies have assessed how parent and/or grandparent attendance at residential schools is associated with mental health and substance use among First Nations peoples living off reserve, while also considering how cultural dimensions relate to these outcomes. Analyses of the 2017 Aboriginal Peoples Survey revealed that the odds of self-reported diagnosed mood and anxiety disorders, past-year heavy drinking, and frequent marijuana use were significantly higher among First Nations adults living off reserve who had either a parent and/or grandparent who attended residential schools, even when controlling for covariates. In predicting diagnosed mood disorder, positive cultural identity affect and cultural engagement moderated the effect of parent residential school attendance while cultural exploration moderated the effect of two generations of attendance. Cultural exploration was a protective factor for grandparent residential school attendance in relation to past-year frequent marijuana use. Interventions that are trauma-informed and culturally-based should be considered for this population.
https://doi.org/10.1177/13634615221109359
The well-being of Indigenous peoples continues to be affected by intergenerational effects of numerous harmful government policies, which are considered root causes for bullying and cyberbullying that exist in some communities. Despite ongoing stressors, Indigenous youth demonstrate resilience, which often appears grounded in connecting to their cultural identities and traditional practices. However, few studies have tested the direct and stress-buffering role of various aspects of culture in relation to well-being among First Nations youth. Analyses of the 2015-16 First Nations Regional Health Survey (RHS) revealed that bullying and cyberbullying were associated with increased psychological distress among youth aged 12-17 living in First Nations communities across Canada (N = 4,968; weighted = 47,918), and that these links were stronger for females. Feelings of community belonging were directly associated with lower distress and buffered the relationships between bullying/cyberbullying and distress. Among youth who experienced cyberbullying, those who participated in community cultural events at least sometimes reported lower distress compared to those who rarely or never participated. Those who disagreed that traditional cultural events were important reported the highest levels of distress, but perceived importance of such events failed to buffer the associations between bullying/cyberbullying and distress. These national data highlight the importance of certain culture-related variables as key factors associated with the well-being of youth living in First Nations communities across Canada.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461519832240
Two studies assessed the nature of parental communication about the trauma of Indian Residential Schools (IRSs) in relation to the psychological distress of their adult offspring, and whether the link between parental communication and distress was mediated by offsprings’ greater awareness of collective discrimination or sense of pride in cultural identity. In Study 1, an online survey of Indigenous participants from across Canada (N = 498) demonstrated a curvilinear relation between the extent to which parents talked about their negative IRS experiences and the severity of depressive symptoms among offspring, among whom symptoms were particularly pronounced with more frequent communication. This relation was mediated by greater perceived discrimination. A similar, but inverse, association was found when parental communications conveyed positive construals of their IRS experiences. Study 2 (N = 134) further demonstrated an association between direct communications from IRS survivors and offspring wellbeing in that, either the absence of, or especially frequent communications were related to more severe depressive symptoms among offspring. However, hearing about parental IRS experiences from someone other than the parent was not related to offsprings’ depressive symptoms. Qualitative analyses indicated that direct communications from parents tended to provide excessive detail, whereas parental silence was associated with speculation and feelings of isolation or resentment among offspring of IRS survivors. Taken together, the results suggest that either insufficient or excessive parental communication about trauma might undermine offspring wellbeing, whereas moderate levels of communication that provide positive meaning and promote cultural pride or diminish perceptions of personal discrimination could be beneficial.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732315609569
A large body of literature explores historical trauma or intergenerational trauma among Aboriginal communities around the globe. This literature connects contemporary forms of social suffering and health inequity to broader historical processes of colonization and the residential school systems in Canada. There are tendencies within this literature, however, to focus on individual pathology and victimization while minimizing notions of resilience or well-being. Through a social constructionist lens, this research examined how interpersonal responses to historical traumas can be intertwined with moments of and strategies for resilience. Detailed narrative interviews occurred with four Aboriginal Cree elders living in central Saskatchewan, Canada, who all experienced historical trauma to some extent. From this analysis, we argue that health research among Aboriginal populations must be sensitive to the complex individual and social realities that necessarily involve both processes of historical and contemporary traumas as well as resilience, strength, and well-being.
https://doi.org/10.3109/10253890.2014.1001975
Living with a chronic illness can be challenging, but the ability to derive benefits and grow from this experience may enhance well-being. However, the possibility of obtaining such benefits may be dependent on the levels of stigmatization and lack of social support experienced by an individual as a result of the illness. Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and fibromyalgia are chronic conditions that remain largely unexplained and those with these conditions must often contend with stigma and skepticism from others. Individuals with CFS/fibromyalgia often display stress-related biological alterations and the experience of stressful life events has been associated with illness development. The present study demonstrated that women with CFS/fibromyalgia (n = 40) as well as community participants who were depressed/anxious (n = 37), reported higher stigma levels than healthy women (n = 33). Moreover, women with CFS/fibromyalgia and those with depression/anxiety also reported greater levels of stigma than women with a chronic yet more widely accepted condition (n = 35; rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis and multiple sclerosis). Secrecy related to stigma among those with CFS/fibromyalgia declined with increased social support, but this was not apparent among those with other chronic conditions. In addition, posttraumatic growth was lower among women with CFS/fibromyalgia compared to those with other chronic conditions. Qualitative analysis examining both negative impacts and positive changes stemming from illness experience revealed many similarities between women with CFS/fibromyalgia and those with other chronic conditions, including elevated appreciation for life, personal growth and compassion for others. However, women with CFS/fibromyalgia tended to report less positive change regarding interpersonal relationships compared to women with other chronic conditions. In general, unexplained illnesses were also accompanied by stigmatization which might ultimately contribute to women’s lower ability to derive positive growth from their illness experience.
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037541
Aboriginal peoples are at greater risk of experiencing early life adversity relative to non-Aboriginal peoples in Canada, and as adults frequently experience high levels of discrimination that act as a further stressor. Although these factors appear to contribute to high rates of depressive disorders and suicidality in Aboriginal peoples, the psychosocial factors that contribute to the relationship between childhood adversity and the development of depressive symptoms have hardly been assessed in this group. The present investigation explored potential mediators to help explain the relation between childhood trauma and depressive symptoms among a sample of First Nations adults from across Canada. These mediated relationships were further examined in the context of unsupportive social interactions from ingroup and outgroup members. In Study 1, (N = 225), the relationship between childhood trauma and depression scores was mediated by perceived discrimination, and this was particularly notable in the presence of unsupportive relations with outgroup members. In Study 2, (N = 134) the relationship between childhood trauma and depressive symptoms was mediated by emotion-focused coping that was specific to coping with experiences of ethnic discrimination, and this mediated effect was moderated by both outgroup and ingroup unsupportive social interactions. Thus, it seems that experiences of discrimination and unsupport might contribute to depressive symptoms among First Nations adults who had experienced early life adverse events.
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021373
The present investigation examined the relationship between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms among First Nations adults in Canada (N = 220). It was considered that specific aspects of ethnic identity (in-group affect, centrality, in-group ties) could serve as resilience and/or vulnerability factors. Whereas in-group affect (positive feelings regarding one’s group) was directly associated with decreased depressive symptoms and buffered against perceived discrimination, high levels of centrality (salience of group membership) was associated with increased symptomatology and intensified the relation between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. In-group ties (connection to other group members) buffered against perceived discrimination, although this protective effect only applied for males. The data underscore the importance of examining different aspects of identity and gender differences in determining the role of ethnic identity in the well-being of minority populations.
https://doi.org/10.22215/etd/2008-12357
Stressful events have been implicated as a fundamental factor that promotes and exacerbates depressive symptoms. Given that discrimination has been suggested to be a powerful stressor, the present investigation examined the relationship between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms among First Nations adults in Canada (A = 158). As marked individual differences exist regarding experiences of discrimination and depressive symptoms, it was considered that ethnic identity and social support could serve as potential resilience/vulnerability factors. Regression analyses confirmed that perceived discrimination was associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms, but levels of perceived discrimination, depressive symptoms, and the consequences of this relationship varied as a function of ethnic identity (in-group affect, in-group ties, centrality). High levels of centrality (i.e., importance of heritage to one’s self-concept) were associated with higher levels of perceived discrimination and intensified the relationship between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. In contrast, high levels of in-group affect (i.e., positive feelings regarding one’s heritage) were associated with lower levels of perceived discrimination. In addition, high levels of in-group affect and in-group ties were associated with reduced depressive symptoms and buffered against the negative impact of discrimination on depressive symptoms, though many of these relations were more pronounced among males than females. Social support did not buffer against perceived discrimination when considered alone. However, tangible support interacted with in-group affect in reducing depressive symptoms associated with perceived discrimination. These data underline the importance of examining different aspects of identity and different types of social support in determining the relation between discrimination and depressive symptoms.