Date of Award

Winter 3-20-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MA - Master of Arts

Department

Mindfulness Studies

First Advisor

Melissa Jean

Second Advisor

Nancy Waring

Abstract

This paper argues the need for culturally-attuned mindfulness- and meditation-based programs designed to help Latinx immigrants facing acculturative stress in the United States. There are over 43.7 million immigrants living in the U.S (Pew Research Center, 2018); even though research does not show how many are suffering from acculturative stress, research does show that discrimination has been strongly linked to negative psychological consequences and acculturative stress (Torres, Driscoll, and Voell, 2012, p. 18). Research on discrimination from Perez, Fortuna, and Alegria and the Pew Hispanic Center (as cited in Torres, Driscoll, and Voell, 2012) share that on average 30 percent or more of Latinxs have been victims of racial or ethnic discrimination in the US (p. 17). Therefore, it is essential to serve the millions of Latinx immigrants, like me, who have experienced discrimination in the US. Mindfulness and meditation programs available target generalized stress reduction for white Americans; very few have added cultural adaptations, and none have been designed to target acculturative stress of Latinxs. My findings suggest that there is a need for a program that takes into consideration mental health stigmas, barriers, cultural values, traditions, and beliefs. I hope that this project can heal acculturative stress for readers and participants and that it inspires others to develop innovative, culturally-attuned, and adapted mental health tools for this population.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Language

English and Some Spanish

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