title: The idealized cultural identities model on help-seeking and child sexual abuse: a conceptual model for contextualizing perceptions and experiences of South Asian Americans.
abstract: In this paper, we propose an interdisciplinary framework to study perceptions of child sexual abuse and help-seeking among South Asians living in the United States. We integrate research on social marginality, intersectionality, and cultural psychology to understand how marginalized social experience accentuates South Asian immigrants' desire to construct a positive self-identity. Using model minority ideology as an example of such a construction, we highlight its role in silencing the topic of child sexual abuse within this immigrant community as well as its impact on attitudes towards professional mental health services. We contend that our framework, the idealized cultural identities model on help-seeking and child sexual abuse, provides a unique analytical model for clinicians and researchers to understand how South Asian Americans process, experience, and react to child sexual abuse.
authors: Adler School of Professional Psychology, Chicago, Illinois 60602, USA. snishik@gmail.com
authors: Shanta N
authors: SN
authors: Kanukollu
authors: Ramaswami
authors: R
authors: Mahalingam
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001210:Asia, Southeastern / Q000208:ethnology; D001213:Asian / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D002669:Child Welfare / Q000208:ethnology; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups; D008960:Models, Psychological; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000208:ethnology*; D012938:Social Perception; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult