Kimberly J. Langrehr

A multiculturally inclusive positive psychology must account for the intersectional experiences of Black women and culturally specific factors that may contribute to their well-being. With a sample of 331 self-identified Black women, the present study investigated the potential mediating role of self-efficacy and self-worth in the relationship between a type of gendered racial socialization messaging (i.e., gendered racial pride) and three indicators of subjective well-being (i.e., positive feelings, negative feelings, and life satisfaction). Participants, ages 17 to 67 years ( M = 28.94 , SD = 12.04), completed measures of subjective well-being, gendered racial pride, self-efficacy, and self-worth. Results of this hybrid structural equation model revealed that greater gendered racial pride significantly impacted subjective well-being through the mediating role of self-efficacy but not through self-worth. Theory, clinical, research, and advocacy implications are discussed herein.

In 1998, Dr. Ruth Balser, a licensed practicing psychologist in Massachusetts, was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives to represent the 12th Middlesex District. She is the first psychologist to serve in the Massachusetts legislature and has won each reelection since she first ran, making this her 12th term in office. Having worked in the field of mental health for 30 years, Dr. Balser was 50 years old when she first ran for office. Throughout the interview, Dr. Balser was clear that she continues to strongly identify as a practicing psychologist, who is also a legislator and politician committed to advocating for and improving mental health legislation.

Objectives: The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between two forms of religious discrimination (religious prejudice and environmental discrimination) and life satisfaction among a sample of Muslim Americans. Based on the framework of minority stress theory, we also hypothesized that higher levels of religious prejudice as well as environmental discrimination, would significantly relate to higher fear of safety, and in turn, would relate to lower life satisfaction. Method: A total of 192 Muslim American participants (Age M= 27.87) completed an on-line survey about their experiences as Muslim American. Women made up almost 75% of the sample.Results: Findings revealed that higher religious prejudice as well as environmental discrimination were both significantly related to lower life satisfaction and that fear of safety partially mediated both of these relationships. Conclusions: Findings help illustrate that Muslim Americans are not immune to the social-political climate of Islamophobia and can experience religious discrimination in different ways. In addition, women and younger participants expressed higher fear of safety when compared to men and older participants. Professionals who work with individuals from the Muslim community are encouraged to consider the chronic and on-going impact of stress that Muslim Americans face especially within the context of the United States.

Over the last couple of years, the topic of White fragility has garnered a considerable degree of attention. White fragility is considered a state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress can become intolerable and trigger a range of emotional and behavioral reactions intended to restore a sense of racial comfort (DiAngelo, White fragility: Why it's so hard for White people to talk about racism, 2018, Beacon Press). In effort to measure the expression of White fragility, we developed and evaluated the psychometric properties of the 21-item White Fragility Scale (WFS). Data consisted of two independent samples of White participants recruited from M-Turk (327) and a Midwest University's Psychpool (234). Results from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided evidence for a bifactor model consisting of one general White fragility factor and three specific factors of Emotional Defensiveness, Accommodation of Safety, and Exceptionism. Ancillary bifactor indices supported treating the WFS as a unidimensional measure of White fragility yet also revealed meaningful utility of the Accommodation of Safety subscale. Concurrent validity evidence for the WFS was established through significant associations with modern racism, general and specific dimensions of colorblind racial attitudes, and social dominance orientation. In addition, nonsignificant, near-zero correlations with social desirability provided support for divergent validity. Recommendations for future research involving the WFS are provided as well as practical implications for professionals whose work requires a certain degree of racial stamina. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

In a sample of transracially adoptive parents, this study examined the moderating role of adoption stigma in the relationship between their colorblind attitudes and their perceptions of different forms of discrimination. Specifically, we hypothesized that parents' colorblind attitudes would be negatively related to their perceptions of their adopted children's experiences with racism and their views toward racial microaggressions and institutional racism. We also hypothesized that perceived adoption stigma would moderate these relationships, such that the inverse association between colorblindness and the 3 outcome variables would be weakened by adoption stigma. A total of 172 White parents (Mage = 48.41) with adopted children of color participated in the study by completing questionnaires about their experiences as transracially adoptive parents. Women comprised 74% of participants. Results indicated that the relationship between participants' colorblind attitudes and their reports of adoptees' racist experiences was enhanced at nearly all levels perceived adoption stigma. In addition, results revealed that at high levels of perceived adoption stigma (75th and 90th percentiles), the magnitude of the relationships between colorblind attitudes with microaggressions and institutional discrimination was significantly reduced and became nonsignificant for parents with younger adoptees but not older adoptees. Findings point to the potential benefits of helping transracially adoptive parents explore different dimensions of their own social-cultural identity as a way to enhance their ability to recognize different forms of discrimination that their adopted children may face. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Using survey data from 278 counseling psychology doctoral students, we explored the concept of professional socialization in graduate training and investigated the degree to which a combination of student training factors accounted for (a) greater professional involvement in the Society of Counseling Psychology, (b) endorsement of counseling psychology values, and (c) affiliation with the Society. Results revealed that training programs fostered students’ professional connection to the field by providing faculty models, emphasizing counseling psychology identity, and encouraging student involvement in the Society. Together, these three professional socialization variables accounted for students’ professional activity, counseling psychology values, and Society membership status above and beyond years of enrollment, degree at admission, and membership status in other professional organizations. Implications regarding the influence of early professional socialization in graduate training within the context of establishing a long-term professional pipeline for the Society are discussed.

This study examined the stress‐buffering role of social support on indicators of psychosocial functioning among a combined and split sample of ethnically diverse college students. Although high social support significantly moderated 2 relationships in the combined sample, high and low levels of social support significantly reduced the effect of stress on depressive symptoms of students of color. For White students, high social support moderated the effect of stress on protective behaviors. Implications for college counselors are discussed.