The Influences of Acculturative Stress and Gender Roles on Sexual Subjectivity in European, Asian, and Latinx Immigrant Women in the U.S.

Author

Silvia ReFollow

Date of Award

Summer 8-26-2023

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

PhD Counseling Psychology

Department

Professional Psychology and Family Therapy

Advisor

Pamela Foley, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Margaret Brady-Amoon, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Alan Groveman, Ph.D.

Keywords

Acculturation, Stress, Sexuality, Subjectivity, Gender, Roles, Immigration, Women

Abstract

In the process of acculturation, cisgender immigrant women are at greater risk of experiencing acculturative stress, often entailing a reconsideration of their self-concepts and identities as members of new sociocultural contexts. Gender roles and sexual subjectivity are two identity features they can revise given their ties to culture and socialization. Results from previous studies suggest that cisgender immigrant women’s sociocultural contexts, related values, and attitudes may contribute to their levels of stress, sense of self-efficacy, self-esteem, and sexual subjectivity. This study aimed to fill gaps in the existing literature and raised awareness of the relationship between acculturative stress, gender role attitudes, and sexual subjectivity. To examine this relationship, this study utilized linear and bivariate regression analyses and a mixed between-within ANOVA. The groups were categorized by region of origin (i.e., European, Asian, and Latinx) based on their growing presence in the United States. Results of the analyses showed that sexual subjectivity was negatively influenced by higher levels of acculturative stress and positively influenced by more egalitarian gender role attitudes. On the other hand, the gender role attitudes they endorsed before moving to the U.S. were not correlated to their experiences of acculturative stress. Lastly, only time of immigration accounted for changes in their gender role attitudes, with more egalitarian values endorsed after immigration. The findings from this study suggest that considering the varying sociocultural contexts in which cisgender immigrant women live is of paramount importance to reduce the risk of acculturative stress, empower their sense of self, and enhance their sexual subjectivity and overall psychological well-being. The study concludes with a discussion of study limitations, recommendations, and implications of future research.

Recommended Citation

Re, Silvia, "The Influences of Acculturative Stress and Gender Roles on Sexual Subjectivity in European, Asian, and Latinx Immigrant Women in the U.S." (2023). Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs). 3109.
https://scholarship.shu.edu/dissertations/3109