The current research aims to explore the effect of low or high perceived predictability and anxiety on willingness to interact with a person from another cultural group. How differences in anxiety, both individual (trait anxiety) and intergroup (anxiety specifically related to an interaction), influence willingness to engage within an intercultural communication is investigated. In addition, the contribution of ethnocentrism to willingness to interact is explored. Anxiety, uncertainty, and ethnocentrism are all important factors that negatively affect willingness to interact in an intercultural communication. Yet to date, anxiety and uncertainty have been examined separately to ethnocentrism in the literature. The current study found that an anxiety-provoking intercultural interaction has a negative impact on willingness to interact with an intercultural interaction partner. Perceived predictability alone was not found to affect willingness to interact, contrary to previous research, with results suggesting that intergroup anxiety may be a better predictor of willingness to interact than perceived predictability and trait anxiety. Overall results indicate that anxiety and uncertainty are separate but related constructs in support of current theoretical models. Ethnocentrism was shown to uniquely contribute to willingness to interact. This novel finding indicates the importance of cultural factors on willingness to engage in intercultural communication and points to the need for further research to explore the impact of cultural values on these relationships.
Objective:The current research aimed to assess the association between country of birth and use of a specialised mental health service in Sydney, Australia. Methods: Patient file data were analysed from individuals who accessed the Clinic for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress in Western Sydney between 1996 and 2010. Patients had undergone a clinical assessment and research interview prior to receiving treatment. Data on demographic information and health history were extracted from these files. South East (SE) Asian-and Middle Eastern-born minority groups were compared with an Australian-born majority group, using country of birth as a proxy measure of ethnicity. Ratios of service use by group were compared with data on ethnicities residing within the local government area health district. Results: Relative to the local population, country of birth minority status was associated with fewer patients accessing the service, with SE Asian-born patients reporting low service use across all cohorts studied. However, Middle Eastern-born patients' service utilisation increased over time, becoming commensurate with the local population. Middle Eastern-born patients reported a significantly shorter delay to seek treatment compared with Australian-born patients, although no significant differences were reported between ethnic minority groups. Conclusions: Differences between SE Asian-and Middle Eastern-born groups in service utilisation patterns over time and treatment delay relative to an Australianborn group highlight the importance of better understanding the impact of ethnicity on service use.
Previous research has demonstrated the importance of intercultural willingness to interact; however, these investigations have yet to be applied to a health context or to compare an ethnic minority with a majority sample. Consequently, the current study sought to better understand engagement with health services by investigating both attitudes towards seeking psychological help and intercultural willingness to interact within an ethnic minority South East Asian population, relative to an Anglo Australian sample. As predicted, negative attitudes towards seeking psychological help were higher in the South East Asian sample, with this relationship persisting across generations, despite significant differences in acculturation. In contrast, intercultural willingness to interact was not associated with ethnicity status but was associated with higher anxiety, uncertainty, ethnocentrism and help-seeking, consistent with current empirical and theoretical literature. The current study also sought to examine factors associated with help-seeking attitudes and found that ethnocentrism was a significant predictor, when accounting for previous health experience.
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