Differentiation of self and racial identity

Gushue, George V.; Mejia-Smith, Brenda X.; Fisher, Lauren D.; Cogger, Alise; Gonzalez-Matthews, Melissa; Lee, Yi-Jung; Mancusi, Lauren; McCullough, Rosemary; Connell, Maya T.; Weng, Wan Chen; Cheng, Min; Johnson, Veronica E.

doi:10.1080/09515070.2013.816839

Cited by 7 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 20 publications

(24 reference statements)

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“…Inspired by Gushue et al . 's () findings and McGoldrick et al . 's () call for culturally sensitive treatments, our study attempted to expand the current literature by examining the relationships between differentiation of self and cultural harmony (Benet‐Martínez and Haritatos, ) using a group of Asian‐American immigrant adults.…”

mentioning

confidence: 66%

“…The current findings are consistent with prior research on Bowen family systems theory (1976), which suggested that differentiation of self as a whole is a cross‐culturally valid construct for ethnic minorities (e.g. Gushue et al ., ; Kim et al ., 2015). However, because of the inconsistent findings across the subscales of the DSI‐R (Skowron and Schmitt, ), we believe more investigations is needed to provide conceptual clarity to the distinct aspects of differentiation of self.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More specifically, we believed individuals’ levels of differentiation would predict their perceptions of cultural harmony. Indeed, those who belong to two cultural groups are constantly faced with various racial stereotypes and/or questions about their group memberships (LaFromboise, Coleman and Gerton, ); these external pressures can be overwhelming, especially for those who are susceptible to others’ opinions and expectations (Gushue et al ., ). Thus, it is logical to assume that poorly differentiated individuals are more likely to over‐internalize and over‐react to the biased attitudes and beliefs of others, which can then contribute to the perceptions that their cultural values are in conflict.…”

Section: Cultural Harmonymentioning

confidence: 97%

“…For example, Benet‐Martínez and Haritatos () sampled 133 Chinese‐American biculturals and showed that individuals with lower levels of neuroticism, which is arguably associated with greater differentiation of self, reported higher levels of cultural harmony. Additionally, differentiation of self has been found to predict identity integration (Gushue et al ., ) and intercultural competence (Sandage and Harden, ). Together, these studies strongly suggest a positive association between differentiation of self and cultural harmony.…”

Section: Cultural Harmonymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further support of this argument came from Gushue et al . 's () findings that Bowen's () construct, differentiation of self, predicted Helm's () construct of racial identity, suggesting that there is some association between individuals’ intrapsychic and interpersonal maturity and their ability to make sense of race‐related experiences. Inspired by Gushue et al .…”

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confidence: 99%

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Differentiation of self as a predictor of Asian‐American immigrants’ perceptions of cultural harmony

Lee

Johnson

2017

Journal of Family Therapy

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The purpose of the study was to examine whether Bowen's (1976) construct, differentiation of self, would predict cultural harmony (Benet-Mart ınez and Haritatos, 2005) among Asian-American immigrants. The study was a correlational design, with a sample of 154 adults who identified as first-generation Asian Americans and had lived in the US for at least five years. Results of regression analyses showed that greater overall differentiation of self, measured by the Differentiation of Self Inventory-Revised (DSI-R; Skowron and Schmitt, 1998), had a positive significant association with participants' perceptions of cultural harmony. That is, highly differentiated individuals perceived their host and ethnic cultural orientations as compatible rather than in constant conflict. Furthermore, analyses of the subscales of the DSI-R showed there were differences across the four underlying dimensions of differentiation of self in terms of associations with cultural harmony. Implications for theory, clinical practice, and future research are included.Practitioner points • A lack of self-differentiation may be indicative of struggles to achieve identity integration among first-generation Asian Americans • Exploring the pattern of emotional cutoff, fusion with others, emotional reactivity and ability to take an I-position potentially decreases conflict between cultural orientations • The use of family diagram may help increase one's ability to balance two cultural orientations

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mentioning

confidence: 66%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Cultural Harmonymentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Cultural Harmonymentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differentiation of self as a predictor of Asian‐American immigrants’ perceptions of cultural harmony

Lee

Johnson

2017

Journal of Family Therapy

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Latinx and Asian trainees counseling White clients: An interpretative phenomenology

Haskins

Johnson

Finan

et al. 2022

Couns Edu & Supervision

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Using interpretative phenomenology analysis, this study explored the lived experiences of eight Latinx and Asian trainees. Four superordinate themes were identified: illuminating hegemonic structures, identity challenges, increasing competence through awareness, and varying connections. Implications related to cross-cultural counseling and counselor education and future research are discussed. K E Y W O R D SAsian students, counselor education, cross-cultural counseling, Latinx trainees, White clients Latinx and Asian students are growing populations within higher education and counselor education programs (Krogstad, 2016;Museus, 2014;Ng & Lau, 2011). Despite this growth, few studies have explicitly examined the experiences of Latinx and Asian counselor trainees. Scholars continue to reveal concerns expressed by Latinx and Asian students regarding their efficacy to serve a diverse clientele and adequately apply counseling skills, as well as their access to quality training and supervision experiences (Dickson et al., 2010;Goh et al., 2014;Spalding et al., 2018). Students are also concerned with the lack of course content related to White culture within counseling curricula (Spalding et al., 2018) and systemic racism, xenophobia, and discrimination within their communities and the broader society (Benjamin, 2021). These concerns warrant further investigation, as counselors of color have encountered racial microaggressions when providing counseling services to White clients (Branco & Bayne, 2020). In a prior study, found that Black counselor trainees also experienced racial stereotyping when working with White clients. Although the 2015 findings help us to understand more about this issue, experiences of Asian and Latinx counselors

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An Exploration of Differentiation of Self in Indian Youth

Narayanan

Sriram

2023

Hu Arenas

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Murray Bowen’s “differentiation of self” refers to a maturation process, wherein the individual can achieve an optimal balance between the biologically rooted dialectic forces of togetherness and separateness. Being a multigenerational process, differentiation is achieved within the context of the family’s emotional process and manifests in the intrapsychic and interpersonal domains of functioning. Higher levels of differentiation facilitate better psychological health, and lower levels leave the person vulnerable to psychological distress. While extensively explored in the West, there is a paucity of differentiation studies in India, which is a society characterised by values of interrelatedness. An online cross-sectional survey was conducted to explore differentiation among Indian youth enrolled in universities across Maharashtra, India, using the DSI-R (Differentiation of Self Inventory — Revised) scale (Skowron & Schmitt, 2003 ). Data collected from 783 youth (243 males, 540 females; mean age = 20.77 years) was analysed using non-parametric statistics. Findings indicated average levels of differentiation ( M = 3.4, SD = 0.59), high levels of I-position ( M = 4.1, SD = 0.77) and emotional reactivity ( M = 2.8, SD = 0.95) and average levels of emotional cut-off ( M = 3.7, SD = 0.91) and fusion with others ( M = 3. SD = 0.7). Contrary to Bowen’s assertion of the universality of the construct, sociodemographic factors like gender, birth order, relationship status and parental education were found to influence differentiation levels of youth significantly. Existing data provides contradicting evidence of the same. Findings support the need for more multicultural studies of differentiation to understand the construct and its manifestation in different cultures. Implications for assessment and therapeutic interventions are discussed.

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Differentiation of self and racial identity

Cited by 7 publications

References 20 publications

Differentiation of self as a predictor of Asian‐American immigrants’ perceptions of cultural harmony

Differentiation of self as a predictor of Asian‐American immigrants’ perceptions of cultural harmony

Latinx and Asian trainees counseling White clients: An interpretative phenomenology

An Exploration of Differentiation of Self in Indian Youth

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