Associations between demographic factors and perceived acculturative stress among African migrants in Germany

This study investigated the nature and extent of the associations between demographic variables and acculturative stress of African migrants in Germany with the premise that living in Germany would be stressful for Africans. Data from 85 migrants from the general population and prisons showed that 73.4% were males and 26.6% females with age ranging from 18 to 46 years. Participants completed the MAQ used in assessing acculturative stress.Results from hierarchical regression analysis showed that: majority of Africans reported racial discrimination, negative situation, a precarious job and a huge volume of daily hassles as predominant problems experienced in Germany. Acculturative stress increased with duration of stay in Germany. Family fragmentation and being separated from one’s spouse was a strong predictor of acculturative stress. Being an economic refugee was also associated with acculturative stress. Recommendations were made in the light of the conclusions made in the study

Climate Change Attitudes, Beliefs and Intentions Among Young Adults In an Institution of Higher Learning: Does Personality Matter?

The present article is concerned with the relationships between personality traits and climate change attitudes, beliefs and intentions. This was done to determine the relationship that exists between personality traits and attitudes, beliefs and intentions towards climate change issues. A descriptive survey design was used in conducting this study. The sample comprised 203 undergraduate students (116 males and 87 females) selected from various Faculties in Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Convenience sampling technique was used to collect data from the respondents. Their age ranged from 15 to 35 years (M=23.6; SD=5.2). The Big Five Personality Inventory (BFPI) and the Climate Change Attitude Survey (CCAS) were used to collect data from participants. Results revealed that the vast majority of participants agree or strongly agree that human activities cause global climate change. (46% and 37.4% respectively). Furthermore, the results showed that there is a significant influence of personality dimensions on climate change attitudes, beliefs and intentions ({F (5,195) =20.327, p<.05, R²=.326}). Also, there is no significant difference between undergraduates in science faculties and non-science related faculties on attitudes, beliefs and intention towards climate change ({t (198) =-.827, p>. 05). The study concluded that personality traits are determinants of climate change attitudes, beliefs and intentions among undergraduates in the study area. The outcome of this study has implications for policy-making in the areas of capacity building and climate change education in institutions of higher learning

Well-Being and Culture: An African Perspective

Well-being as a subject is often looked at from a Western perspective, including definitions and measurements. This, however, ignores the sociocultural characteristics of individuals or groups that may be crucial to the subjective conceptualization of well-being. The concept of well-being relates to understanding how people derive and interpret wellness regarding their interactions with other humans within the family, community and social context. This viewpoint of well-being is presented in this chapter as “holistic” from a cultural approach. The notion of well-being from an African perspective is usually defined within the framework of group norms, values, kinship relationships and ties entrenched in cultural values. The concept of well-being in this sense also runs counter to the idea of well-being in western cultures. The African is a ‘group person’, a ‘family person’ and the ‘we person’. These sociocultural features are presumed to affect or influence well-being, mental health and treatment. This chapter expounds on techniques to effectively understand the culture in health from the African perspective. We submit that culturally sensitive measures of well-being will aid deeper exploration of the construct within the African setting and allow for a construct base comparison between Western and African settings

Social worldviews and social attitudes: Examining the psychological correlates for other-concern

Social inequality or inequity is existent in every society. As such, most societies dedicate efforts to ensuring fairness and justice for all its members. The university environment constitutes a miniature society on its own and everyday broader realities of the larger society are equally applicable within the university.  The attitude that students hold with regards to social inequality could be a function of their worldviews which act as guiding principles for social conduct. In this study, the worldviews of self-transcendence and just-world beliefs were examined in relation to support for affirmative action and social dominance orientation among students. The study employed a survey approach with data collected through questionnaires from a sample of 331 (62.8% female) undergraduate students in a public university. The authors hypothesized that self-transcendence and just-world beliefs would be positively associated with support for affirmative action and negatively with social dominance orientation. Result of data analysis using structural equation modelling confirmed the hypotheses in this study. However, the relationship between just-world beliefs and social dominance orientation was not significant. Results were discussed for their implications for acceptance of social policies that try to bridge the gap between dominant and marginalised groups. The implication of findings for understanding and managing interaction between groups in an educational setting were emphasised. Recommendations were made regarding how policy makers can use knowledge of worldviews held by student in designing strategies geared towards acceptance of policies targeted at ensuring positive outcomes for members of disadvantaged groups. Suggestions for future research were given

Transnational migrants' philanthropy: Its forms, operations, and implications from the perspectives of Ghanaian residents in Europe

IntroductionWith the emergence of transnational migration studies in the 1990's, migration studies became involved in showing how migrants maintain transnational connections through money and non-monetary philanthropic contributions in their origin countries. However, there is little evidence about the interconnections between different forms of migrants' philanthropy and how they are developed and sustained over time across international borders.MethodsThis work investigates individual and groups transnational philanthropy and shows how migrants become involved in these forms of philanthropy, highlighting some changes therein over time. We relied on fifty semistructured interviews and six focus group discussions conducted with Ghanaians in the Netherlands, Italy and Germany.Results and discussionOur thematic analyses confirm that transnational migrant philanthropy is about fulfilling certain “moral obligations,” to derive a sense of belonging “here” (destinations) and “there” (origins). In performing the self, religious or culturally imposed sense of responsibility for human welfare and institutional development in the home country, Ghana, involved migrants overcome some challenges. For transnational migrant philanthropy to sustain itself, studied migrants think origin country governments must take necessary steps to remove structural obstacles like tedious procedures for clearing philanthropic goods at the ports and harbors. Involved migrants also suggested a need for a more organized platform to collect relevant information on potential beneficiary needs for their preparations to “give back” to their homeland

Personality and criminal outcomes of homeless youth in a Nigerian jail population: results of PDS and MAACL-H assessments

Objective: The unprecedented incidence of armed robberies and the involvement of young people in these crimes necessitated — as part of a comprehensive study on homelessness and criminal behaviour in Nigeria — an assessmet and comparison of homeless youths incarcerated in prisons with a control group of non-prison and never-homeless youths from the general population using the Psychopathic Deviate Scale (PDS) and the Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist hostility subscale (MAACL-H).Method: Through in-depth interviews using a questionnaire, data were collected from 100 randomly selected homeless inmates in three Nigerian medium-security prisons aged 15 to 26 (mean = 17.2), and another 100 non-prison and never-homeless youths from the general population aged 15 to 31 (mean = 25.2).Results: Hypothesis 1 showed a higher score on the PDS (mean = 29.3) and MAACL-H (mean = 21.7) among the homeless group than the non-prison and never homeless group (PDS mean = 21.2) and (MAACL-H = mean 12.5), (PDS (t = (98) = 6.62, p < .05) and MAACL-H (t = (98) = 21.7, p < .0001). The second hypothesis also showed a significant relationship between PDS and the type of crime committed by homeless inmates F (2, 97) = 3.213; p < .05) and the direction of this relationship was higher for PDS and felony followed by misdemeanour offences (p < .05, LSD = 2.81). The MAACL-H did not reach an acceptable level of significance for type of crime.Conclusion: These findings have significant practical and theoretical implications for personality and criminal outcomes for homeless youths in prisons when compared with non-prison and neverhomeless youths. The study also suggests the need for more research in this direction and a review of antiquated penal policies for children, while the effective roles of governments and non-governmental organisations were also stressed.Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2007, 19(2): 137–14

Spatial patterns and insecurity in urban Nigeria

As a result of the unprecedented level of insecurity in Nigeria due to gang-related violence, this study examined violence-related crimes (armed robbery, the ‘area boys' phenomenon and communal/street clashes) and security situation and coping measures across different spatial patterns in urban Nigeria, Ibadan city. Ibadan is the second largest city in Nigeria, after Lagos. Three hundred residents participated in the study: 184 males (61.3%) and 116 females (38.7%). They were aged between 14 and 30 years, with a mean age of 22.4 years (SD = 5.20 years). Three focussed group discussions (FGD) and in-depth interviews were used to collect data from participants, who were randomly selected from 12 localities in three density areas of Ibadan (low, medium and high). Results revealed that males were in the majority (61.3%) compared to females (38.7%). In addition, demographic attributes also conformed to spatial pattern: Muslims were in the majority in high-density areas while Christians were in the majority in the low- and medium-density areas. Low-density areas had better housing qualities, including accessibility to good roads, than high- and medium-density areas, and consequently high crime rates. Also, results showed that violence-related crimes were spatially patterned: the prevalence and incidence of armed robbery was highest in the low-density areas, while the prevalence and incidence of ‘area boys' was highest in high-density areas. Communal/street clashes were common to all density areas. Police ratings in terms of accessibility and effectiveness were poor for all density areas. Coping behaviours differed according to spatial patterns: low-density residents used more high-walled fencing, dogs and security guards while vigilante formation was common among high-density residents. Other security-related information and recommendations have also been discussed. Keywords: crime network, gang-related violence, insecurity, housing density, youthsJournal of Psychology in Africa 2005, 15(1): 65–72

Influence of age and gender on the psychological well–being of people with HIV/AIDS

The study explored the influence of age and gender on the psychological well-being of people living with HIV/AIDS. Using a cross-sectional design, two hundred males and females drawn from Polokwane/Mankweng Hospital complex in Limpopo Province, South Africa, participated in the study. Participants were women 124 (62%) and men 75 (37, 5%) with ages ranging from 20 to 71 years with a mean age of 43.70 (SD = 12.42). Data were collected using a questionnaire that measured the demographic variables and psychological well-being. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test the hypotheses. Results revealed a significant influence of age F (4, 198) = 2,361; p < .05 on psychological well-being but there was no significant influence of gender on psychological well-being. The finding of the study concluded that age influence the psychological well-being of PLWHA. It is therefore recommended that social support groups' intervention accommodates different age and gender groups