title: Is There a Healthy Immigrant Effect Among Women Through Transnational Marriage? Results from Immigrant Women from Southeast Asian Countries in Taiwan.
abstract: In this study we examine whether there is healthy immigrant effect among women immigrated to Taiwan through transnational marriage. A sample of immigrant women (N = 246) with original nativity of Southeast Asian countries and Taiwanese-born women sample (N = 201) was recruited from December 2008 to December 2009. Their depressive symptoms, acculturative stresses and family functioning were assessed by a series of questionnaires. Immigrant women had lower depressive scores than their native-born counterparts when other potential confounders were controlled for in the multiple regression model. Our findings suggest that the healthy immigrant effect exists among immigrant women in Taiwan. Although such effect may due to immigrant women is a highly selective population with hardy mental characteristics, it is crucial to improve immigrant women's mental health by helping them to enhance the ability of expressing emotions between family members as well as by mitigating socioeconomic inequality of cross-cultural immigrant families.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, College of Health Care and Management, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Rd., Taichung, 40201, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Sheng-Shiung
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, College of Health Care and Management, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Rd., Taichung, 40201, Taiwan, Republic of China. hjyang@csmu.edu.tw.|Department of Family and Community Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, Republic of China. hjyang@csmu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Hao-Jan
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D001210:Asia, Southeastern / Q000208:ethnology; D044466:Asian People; D003863:Depression / Q000208:ethnology; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008393:Marriage; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013624:Taiwan; D016387:Women's Health
keywords: Acculturative stress; Depressive symptoms; Family functioning; Health immigrant effect; Immigrant