Relational Health, Ethnic Identity, and Well-Being of College Students of Color

Abstract

Within the framework of relational-cultural theory, the current study examined how relational health and ethnic identity contribute to overall well-being in a sample of college students of color. A total of 229 students completed measures of relational health, ethnic identity, indicators of subjective well-being (SWB), and perceptions of physical health. Canonical correlation analyses revealed two patterns of relationships between the variable sets: (a) students who reported lower scores in ethnic identity and in peer, mentor, and community relationships, also demonstrated lower SWB and fewer days in good health, and (b) students who reported high relational health in peer and mentor domains, but lower scores for ethnic identity, had higher reports of both positive and negative affect, as well as both good and poor health. These preliminary findings reflect the complexity of how ethnic identity and relational health differentially predict the well-being of college students of color. The implications of these findings for counseling psychologists are discussed.

Arab American Emerging Adults’ Ethnic Identity and Its Relation to Psychological Well-Being

“…In addition, previous studies investigating how the MEIM’s EI subscale scores relate to psychological well-being (e.g., Lee & Yoo, 2004; Romero & Roberts, 2003; Schmidt, Piontkowski, Raque-Bogdan, & Ziemer, 2014) have generally used self-esteem measures (or, less commonly, measures of positive affect or life satisfaction) to assess well-being. Our findings suggest that future researchers seeking to understand the relationship between EI and positive mental health will likely gain deeper insight into this relationship by assessing a variety of other psychological well-being constructs as well.…”

Spirituality and relational health among Black Americans

“…Schmidt et al. (2014) evaluated alpha levels for scores on the Peer, Mentor, and Community scales to be 0.86, 0.96, and 0.85, respectively. In the current study, the reliability estimates for the scores on the RHI scales were strong and stable: Peer α = 0.88 (95% CI [0.85, 0.90]); Mentor α = 0.96 (95% CI [0.95, 0.97]); Community α = 0.90 (95% CI [0.89, 0.92]).…”

“…Liang et al (2002) provided evidence of relationship to other variables using two previously validated measures and concurrent validity using various existing scales measuring similar constructs. Schmidt et al (2014) evaluated alpha levels for scores on the Peer, Mentor, and Community scales to be 0.86, 0.96, and 0.85, respectively. In the current study, the reliability estimates for the scores on the RHI scales were strong and stable: Peer α = 0.88 (95% CI [0.85, 0.90]); Mentor α = 0.96 (95% CI [0.95, 0.97]); Community α = 0.90 (95% CI [0.89, 0.92]).…”

Relational‐Cultural Theory–Based Interventions With LGBTQ College Students

“…With an emphasis on the effects of sociopolitical and systemic influences on human development (Frey, ; Jordan, ), the use of RCT has expanded from a focus on White, heterosexual, cisgender women to other marginalized groups, such as people of color (Schmidt, Piontkowski, Raque‐Bogdan, & Ziemer, ), lesbians (Russell, ), gay male couples (Shannon, ), and sex workers who are transgender (Patton & Reicherzer, ). From an RCT perspective, individuals of marginalized groups living in a nation steeped in systems of oppression often face chronic disconnection from their authentic selves and others (L. S. Brown, ).…”