Health Outcomes of Arab Americans

Health Outcomes of Arab Americans

Introduction

Arab Americans have been living in the United States since 1854 (Miller, 1976) and belong to one of 22 Arab countries Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, Iraq, Syria and Jordan (LeNoir, 2009). According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2000), of all the Arab Americans currently residing in the U.S., about 3.5 million are of Arab descent. However, little is known about their collective experiences and the effects of immigration on their overall mental health (Faragallah, Schumm, & Webb, 1997). The lifestyle, language, and culture of the Arab Americans are inspired by their country of origin.

The health status of the US population is very disparate, which may be influenced by multiple factors such as religion, culture and lifestyle. This may hold particularly true for Arab Americans who are faced with the problem of cultural and religious discrimination because they feel they do not belong to the society they live in and this puts them under stress and burden (Kulwicki & Hill, 2003). The health statistics of the Arab American population are reflective of this too (Johnson, 2008). Some of the major reasons that have lead to increased scrutiny of this minority group in the United States are the US attack on the twin towers also famously known as the September 11 attack, the conflict between Arabs and Israelis, and the war going on in Iraq (Kulwicki, 2003).The Arab Americans are mostly Muslim and Muslims have faced many changes in the US policy framework on immigrants after the occurrence of the three aforementioned events involving Muslims (Jaber et al., 2003). Arab Americans reported grief, anxiety, and trauma as a result of the tragedy. Arab Americans have been constantly exposed to the American mass media and their negative stereotypes of the Arab culture (Hassoun, 1999). Other than the aforementioned events, there are other reasons why Arab American health statistics are not very satisfactory (Williams & Yu, 2007). The traditions and values of Arab Americans, as well as their comfort with adapting to American culture, have been affected by these stereotypes (Ghamen-Ybarra, 2003).

Research Questions

What are the experiences of Arab Americans in the United States and how do these experiences influence overall mental and physical health status?

How does incorporation into the United States impact overall happiness and mental health for Arab Americans?

What influence, if any all, does September 11th have on health for Arab Americans in the US?

How do Arab Americans perceive discrimination in the US? Does this influence their mental health outcomes?

What policies do Arab Americans express could be beneficial for reducing the negative effects associated with discrimination?

What are the experiences of less acculturated Arab-Americans?

Does less acculturation serve as a protective factor against discrimination?

Significance of the Study

The significance of the study is reinforces from the fact that the discriminations against Arab Americans affect their ability to conform to the American society and make themselves comfortable. In the long run, it leads to stress and other physical and mental health ...