%0 Journal Article %J Am J Public Health %D 2010 %T Discrimination and mental health-related service use in a national study of Asian Americans. %A Spencer, Michael S %A Chen, Juan %A Gee, Gilbert C %A Fabian, Cathryn G %A Takeuchi, David T %K Adult %K Asia %K Asian Americans %K Communication Barriers %K Female %K Health Care Surveys %K Humans %K Male %K Mental Health Services %K Middle Aged %K Patient Acceptance of Health Care %K Perception %K Prejudice %K United States %X

OBJECTIVES: We examined the association between perceived discrimination and use of mental health services among a national sample of Asian Americans.

METHODS: Our data came from the National Latino and Asian American Study, the first national survey of Asian Americans. Our sample included 600 Chinese, 508 Filipinos, 520 Vietnamese, and 467 other Asians (n=2095). We used logistic regression to examine the association between discrimination and formal and informal service use and the interactive effect of discrimination and English language proficiency.

RESULTS: Perceived discrimination was associated with more use of informal services, but not with less use of formal services. Additionally, higher levels of perceived discrimination combined with lower English proficiency were associated with more use of informal services.

CONCLUSIONS: The effect of perceived discrimination and language proficiency on service use indicates a need for more bilingual services and more collaborations between formal service systems and community resources.

%B Am J Public Health %V 100 %P 2410-7 %8 2010 Dec %G eng %N 12 %R 10.2105/AJPH.2009.176321 %0 Journal Article %J Am J Public Health %D 2010 %T English proficiency and language preference: testing the equivalence of two measures. %A Gee, Gilbert C %A Walsemann, Katrina M %A Takeuchi, David T %K Acculturation %K Adult %K Asian Americans %K Attitude to Health %K Choice Behavior %K Data Interpretation, Statistical %K Educational Status %K Emigrants and Immigrants %K Female %K Health Status %K Humans %K Language %K Logistic Models %K Male %K Morbidity %K Multilingualism %K Surveys and Questionnaires %K Thinking %K United States %X

OBJECTIVES: We examined the association of language proficiency vs language preference with self-rated health among Asian American immigrants. We also examined whether modeling preference or proficiency as continuous or categorical variables changed our inferences.

METHODS: Data came from the 2002-2003 National Latino and Asian American Study (n = 1639). We focused on participants' proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing English and on their language preference when thinking or speaking with family or friends. We examined the relation between language measures and self-rated health with ordered and binary logistic regression.

RESULTS: All English proficiency measures were associated with self-rated health across all models. By contrast, associations between language preference and self-rated health varied by the model considered.

CONCLUSIONS: Although many studies create composite scores aggregated across measures of English proficiency and language preference, this practice may not always be conceptually or empirically warranted.

%B Am J Public Health %V 100 %P 563-9 %8 2010 Mar %G eng %N 3 %R 10.2105/AJPH.2008.156976 %0 Journal Article %J J Immigr Minor Health %D 2010 %T Examining alternative measures of social disadvantage among Asian Americans: the relevance of economic opportunity, subjective social status, and financial strain for health. %A de Castro, A B %A Gee, Gilbert C %A Takeuchi, David T %K Adolescent %K Adult %K Aged %K Asian Americans %K Body Mass Index %K Data Collection %K Educational Status %K Employment %K Female %K Health Status %K Humans %K Income %K Male %K Middle Aged %K Obesity %K Smoking %K Social Class %K United States %K Young Adult %X

Socioeconomic position is often operationalized as education, occupation, and income. However, these measures may not fully capture the process of socioeconomic disadvantage that may be related to morbidity. Economic opportunity, subjective social status, and financial strain may also place individuals at risk for poor health outcomes. Data come from the Asian subsample of the 2003 National Latino and Asian American Study (n = 2095). Regression models were used to examine the associations between economic opportunity, subjective social status, and financial strain and the outcomes of self-rated health, body mass index, and smoking status. Education, occupation, and income were also investigated as correlates of these outcomes. Low correlations were observed between all measures of socioeconomic status. Economic opportunity was robustly negatively associated with poor self-rated health, higher body mass index, and smoking, followed by financial strain, then subjective social status. Findings show that markers of socioeconomic position beyond education, occupation, and income are related to morbidity among Asian Americans. This suggests that potential contributions of social disadvantage to poor health may be understated if only conventional measures are considered among immigrant and minority populations.

%B J Immigr Minor Health %V 12 %P 659-71 %8 2010 Oct %G eng %N 5 %R 10.1007/s10903-009-9258-3 %0 Journal Article %J Am J Ind Med %D 2010 %T Smoking and the Asian American workforce in the National Latino and Asian American Study. %A de Castro, A B %A Garcia, Gabriel %A Gee, Gilbert C %A Tsai, Jenny Hsin-Chun %A Rue, Tessa %A Takeuchi, David T %K Adolescent %K Adult %K Aged %K Asian Americans %K Cross-Sectional Studies %K Employment %K Female %K Hispanic Americans %K Humans %K Interviews as Topic %K Male %K Middle Aged %K Occupations %K Prevalence %K Smoking %K United States %K Young Adult %X

BACKGROUND: Smoking among the Asian American workforce has not been extensively researched. This study examines smoking prevalence among a nationally representative sample of Asian Americans with an emphasis on occupational classification.

METHODS: Cross-sectional data come from the National Latino and Asian American Study. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine smoking prevalence by occupation, gender, and nativity, among 1,528 participants self-identifying as in the labor force.

RESULTS: Blue collar workers reported the highest smoking prevalence (32%) followed by unemployed (19%), other (17%), service (14%), and white collar (10%). Among both employed males and females, blue collar workers had the highest prevalence (45% and 18%, respectively). By nativity, smoking was highest among blue collar workers for immigrants (25%) and highest among the unemployed for U.S. born (16%). Blue collar employment was significantly associated with being a current smoker (OR = 2.52; 95% CI: 1.23-5.16; P < 0.05) controlling for demographics (e.g., age, gender, ethnic group, nativity, etc.).

CONCLUSIONS: Findings reveal that smoking differs by occupation among Asian Americans. Future research should examine factors explaining differences while considering gender and nativity.

%B Am J Ind Med %V 53 %P 171-8 %8 2010 Feb %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1002/ajim.20697