Acculturative Influences on Psychological Well-Being and Health Risk Behaviors in Armenian Americans

Abstract

The acculturative process is often stressful and may lead to various mental health problems. Research on Armenian Americans and their acculturation process is limited. In the present study, the role of acculturation and acculturative stress in predicting depression, anxiety, and alcohol use were examined, in addition to treatment barriers for this population. In the study, the participants completed the Acculturation Rating Scale of Armenian Americans (ARSAA), the Multidimensional Acculturation Stress Inventory (MASI), the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II), the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and the Barriers to Accessing Care 3 (BACE-3). A sample of hundred forty-seven Armenian American adults were recruited online. The results of the study found the level of acculturation to be unrelated to depression, anxiety, and alcohol use levels, although it was related to the country of origin and number of years lived in the United States. However, higher levels of acculturative stress were predictive of depression and anxiety levels. Depression was found to be predicted by acculturative stress and education, while anxiety was predicted by income, gender, acculturative stress, and religion. Gender was predicted by alcohol use, while age and marital status played a role in alcohol use levels. Additionally, age affected depression levels and gender impacted barriers to treatment. This study highlights the importance of acculturative stress as a link to depression and anxiety in Armenian Americans. Additionally, the country of origin plays a significant factor in the acculturation level and barriers to treatment. Furthermore, various sociodemographic factors were identified as important factors in explaining the variability in depression, anxiety, alcohol use, and barriers to treatment levels.