Social Networks, Cultural Pride, and Historical Loss Among Non-Reservation American Indian / Alaska Native Emerging Adults

Abstract

Health disparities among American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations in the United States are the result of historical traumas, such as colonization, forced relocation, and federal policies focused on cultural assimilation. Culturally-tailored health interventions aim to address intergenerational trauma by emphasizing cultural strengths and building positive social connections. In this article, we explore the social network characteristics of participants of the first culturally-tailored health intervention for AI/AN emerging adults (18-25) living outside of tribal lands. Participants (N = 150; 86% female) were recruited across the United States via social media and completed online egocentric network interviews prior to the start of intervention workshops. Participants’ networks were diverse in composition and structure. They were primarily composed of family and friends, were people they had regular contact with, were similar age, and provided participants with support. We tested for significant associations between network characteristics, individual characteristics (age, gender, travel to reservations, speaking tribal languages, etc.) and two dependent measures: 1) cultural pride and belongingness and 2) thoughts of historical loss. Multiple regression results show that higher proportions of network members who discussed AI/AN identity with participants and having more network members who engage in traditional practices was associated with stronger cultural pride and belongingness. Higher proportions of network members having discussion of AI/AN identity with participants was also associated with more frequent thoughts of historical loss. Controlling for network factors, no individual characteristics were associated with either dependent variable. We discuss implications for the development of culturally-tailored health interventions.