5 research outputs found
Persevere in Adversity: Perrceived Religious Discrimination and Islamic Identity as Predictors of Psychological Wellbeing in Muslim Women in New Zealand
Given the increasing prevalence of Islam, current socio-political climate and
visibility of Muslim women in Western societies the current study aimed to investigate 1)
the nature of religious discrimination experienced by Muslim women in New Zealand and
2) the influence of perceived religious discrimination and differing facets of Islamic
identity (psychological, behavioural and visible) on the psychological wellbeing (life
satisfaction and psychological symptoms) of 153 Muslim women. The results of the present
study revealed that Muslim women rarely feel discriminated against, although women
originating from the Middle East and Africa reported significantly more discrimination
than women from Asia. When discrimination did occur, it was more likely to come from
strangers and service people and take the form of social exclusion as opposed to direct
harassment. Furthermore, Muslim women wearing highly visible hijab experienced
significantly more religious discrimination.
A strong sense of Islamic identity (psychological, behavioural and visible) and low
frequency of perceived religious discrimination were hypothesized to predict significantly
greater life satisfaction and fewer psychological symptoms in Muslim women. Contrary to
the hypothesis, psychological and behavioural facets of Islamic identity, in addition to
perceived religious discrimination, failed to independently predict psychological wellbeing.
Islamic visibility did however predict greater psychological wellbeing. Strong endorsement
of the different aspects of Islamic identity was hypothesized to buffer the detrimental
influence of perceived religious discrimination on psychological wellbeing. The results of
the present study however indicated strong psychological affiliation with Islam may have
exacerbated the detrimental effect of perceived religious discrimination and as a
consequence was associated with poorer psychological wellbeing. The act of participating
in Islamic practices, on the other hand, seemed to provide a degree of resistance against the
detrimental effects of religious discrimination and was associated with better psychological
wellbeing