title: Empathic family stress as a sign of family connectedness in Haitian immigrants.
abstract: Research on familial experiences has documented the important role of receiving family support, but has not examined the effects of providing such support. Empathic family stress refers to the stress that individuals experience in response to difficult life circumstances of family members. The current study took a first step in examining the empathic family stress of 134 Haitian immigrants. Results from hierarchical regressions indicate that empathic family stress is a significant predictor of depressive symptoms, but not acculturative stress, for Haitian immigrants. Findings from the study are examined from a strengths-based perspective, where empathic family stress is viewed as a sign of strong family connections among Haitian immigrants. Recommendations are provided for clinicians working with Haitian immigrants to help them experience empathic family stress in a healthy manner.
authors.affiliation: University of Miami, School of Education, 5205 University Dr., Coral Galdes, FL 33146, USA. nguerda@miami.edu
authors.forename: Guerda
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nicolas
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: DeSilva
authors.forename: Kimberly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Prater
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bronkoski
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003863:Depression; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology*; D004645:Empathy; D005195:Family Relations / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006205:Haiti / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000208:ethnology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult