Understanding Well-Being Isaac Prilleltensky [email protected] .
Well-Being, Justice and Power in the Lives of Immigrants Isaac Prilleltensky University of Miami...
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Transcript of Well-Being, Justice and Power in the Lives of Immigrants Isaac Prilleltensky University of Miami...
Well-Being, Justice and Power in the Lives of Immigrants
Isaac PrilleltenskyIsaac PrilleltenskyUniversity of MiamiUniversity of [email protected]@miami.edu
http://www.education.miami.edu/isaac
Migrants Today
100 million of international migrants First quarter of 2005: 81,900 asylum applications
to UNHCR Dominant movement of asylum seekers is from
eastern Europe and former Soviet Union into Western Europe and North America
“The social injustice experienced by civilians who eventually become refugees, internally displaced person….has often had a direct impact on their health status” (Michael Toole, 2006, p. 190).
The Social Ecology of Well BeingStokols’ view
“The healthfulness of a situation and the well-being of its participants are assumed to be influenced by multiple facets of both the physical environment (e.g., geography, architecture, and technology) and the social environment (e.g., culture, economics, and politics). Moreover, the health status of individuals and groups is influenced not only by environmental factors but also by a variety of personal attributes, including genetic heritage, psychological dispositions, and behavioral patterns.”
Stokols continues…..
“Thus, efforts to promote human well-being should be based on an understanding of the dynamic interplay among diverse environmental and personal factors rather than on analyses that focus exclusively on environmental, biological, or behavioral factors. (Stokols, 2000, p. 27)”
Seligman’s Authentic Happiness (2002, pp. 61) “If you want to lastingly raise your level of
happiness by changing the external circumstances of your life, you should do the following: Live in a wealthy democracy, not in an
impoverished dictatorship Get married Avoid negative events and negative emotion Acquire a rich social network Get religion”
Seligman’s Authentic Happiness (2002, pp. 61) “As far as happiness and life satisfaction are
concerned, however, you needn’t bother to do the following Make more money Stay healthy Get as much education as possible (no effect) Change your race or move to a sunnier climate (no
effect)”
Seligman concludes….
“Even if you could alter all of these external circumstances, it would not do much for you, since together they probably account for no more than between 8 and 15 percent of the variance in happiness” (Authentic Happiness, 2002, p. 61).
Really?
Is happiness really an inherited phenomenon? Lykken and Tellegen (1996, Psychological Science). In the Minnesota twins study, authors report, “Neither socioeconomic status, educational
attainment, family income, marital status, not an indicant of religious commitment could account for more than about 3% of the variance in WB” (in monozygotic twins)
“We estimate that the heritability of the stable component of subjective well-being approaches 80%”
Let’s examine opposing evidence…….
Change in life satisfaction over the years(Inglehart, 2004)
Russia’s happiness and satisfaction plunges
Place Matters
Place and class in infant mortality
Income Matters for Well-Being
Wealth matters for life expectancy
Income is not everything though
Education Matters
Relative deprivation matters in Sweden
Relative deprivation matters in UK
Inequality and male mortality
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
GINI 24.5 GINI 31.5 GINI 35.5 GINI 40
Sweden and Japan
Canada and France
UK
USA
Chinese happiness and democracy
Lessons for Well-Being
Subjective well-being goes up and down depending on social circumstances (Russia, Belgium, Switzerland)
It is highly unlikely that gene pool of countries varies in a few years
Absolute poverty predicts low levels of physical and mental well-being, within and across countries (Kleinman, Eisenberg, etc.)
Lessons for Well-Being
Absolute poverty predicts low levels of physical and mental well-being, within and across countries (Kleinman, Eisenberg, etc.)
Relative deprivation predicts social gradient in physical and mental well-being within countries (Marmot, Wilkinson)
Freedom is important in subjective well-being, but there are exceptions like China
Wealth does not necessarily lead to a happy or meaningful life (Adams, Cushman, Sloan, Ryan)
What is Well-Being?
Well-being is a positive state of affairs in individuals, relationships, organizations, communities, and the natural environment, brought about by the simultaneous and balanced satisfaction of material and psychological needs; and by the behavioral manifestation of material and psychological justice in these five ecological domains.
Well-Being in the Lives of Migrants: Protective Factors
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Environmental healthEmploymentJusticeSafety netsMulticulturalismQuality education
Child careAdequate housingCohesion and supportAccess to health careLanguage preparation
Good parentingMutual SupportGood mental health
Psychological preparationPhysical healthMigration by choiceFriendshipsLanguage knowledge
Well-Being in the Lives of Migrants: Risk Factors
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
Values, ResourcesPrograms, Policies
PovertyToxins Air qualityForced migrationInjusticeExclusionDiscrimination
Acculturation stressLoss of social networkMarginalityBigotryIatrogenic morbidityRole strainUnemployment and Underemployment
Absence of familyFamily expectationsMarital conflictIsolationIntergenerational
conflict
Loss and griefGuilt and shameStatus inconsistencyLife change eventsHomesicknessPTSD
Ecological, Material, Psychological, Axiological Model of Well-Being
Sites of Well-Being
Individual Relational Organizational Communal Environmental
Material/
physical signs
health networks resources social capital
low emissions
Psychological signs
efficacy voice support belonging safety
Values as source and strategy
autonomy caring participation diversity protection of resources
Justice as source and strategy
My due Your due
Its due Their due
Nature’s due
Model of Migrant Well-Being:Some positive and negative factors
Sites of Well-Being
Individual Relational Organizational Communal Environmental
Material/
physical signs
+health
- illness
+networks
-isolation
+resources
- lack of resources
-social capital
-lack of trust
+clean air
-pollution
Psychological signs
+efficacy
-lack of control
+voice
-repression
+support
-isolation
+belonging
-rejection
+safety
-fear
Values as source and strategy
+autonomy
-lack of power
+caring
-neglect
+participation
-marginality
+diversity
-discrimination
+protection of resources
-depletion of resources
Justice as source and strategy
My due Your due Its due Their due Nature’s due
Martha Nussbaum
“ In this increasingly interdependent world, we need to consider issues of justice raised by inequalities between rich and poor nations that affect the life chances of their citizens” (2006, p. 18)
The issue involves a “serious asymmetry of power and capacity” between one national group and “some dominant group” (2006, p. 22)
What Is Justice?
General well-being depends on justice Migrant well-being depends on justice Individual, relational, organizational, communal
and environmental well-being depend on justice An understanding of justice is crucial Dominant definition of justice is
To Each According to His or Her Due
Sedgwick’s definition in 1922
Cardinal question of justice is whether there are
“any clear principles from which we may work out an ideally just distribution of rights and privileges, burdens and pains, among human beings as such” (p. 274).
Miller’s 1999 condensed version
To each his or her due Isaac’s four questions
First Question: Who Or What Is Each? Second Question: How Do We Decide What Is
Due A Person, Family, Or Group? Third Question: Who or What is Responsible
for Distributing Resources and Obligations? Fourth Question: How Do We Decide what is
Due From a Person, Family, Group, or Institution?
First Question: Who Or What Is Each?
Dominant ideology Individual
Alternative ideology IndividualFamilyCommunity GovernmentEnvironmentAnimals
Second Question: How Do We Decide What Is Due A
Person, Family, Or Group?
Dominant ideologyAbilityEffort
Alternative ideologyAbilityEffortNeedsRightsOpportunitiesPower
Third Question: Who or What is Responsible for
Distributing Resources and Obligations?
Dominant ideology Individual
employer, Government, with
little popular participation, and great influence from power players
Alternative ideology IndividualFamilyCommunity Participatory
mechanisms to influence government
Fourth Question: How Do We Decide what is Due
From a Person, Family, Group, or Institution?
Dominant ideology
Needs Ability Charity
Alternative ideology
needs, ability, obligation, duties, opportunity and privilege.
Revised Definition
To each (individual, family, community, government, animals and environment) according to their needs, ability, effort, opportunities, rights and power, and
From each (individual, family, community, or government) according to their needs, ability, obligation, duties, opportunity and privilege.
The role of context
context should determine what criterion or criteria must be preferred in each case
In social conditions of inequality, we must accord preference to needs over ability
Under conditions of relative equality, where the gap between classes is not very pronounced, it is possible to favor effort over needs.
Context of Plenty of Opportunities
In a context of plenty of opportunities for everyone, it is possible that ability and effort will be the preferred choice.
Justice Out of Context
Societies aspiring to justice must seek equilibrium among all criteria
When context of inequality calls for need and equality, but culture favors effort, it’s because privileged groups benefit.
As a result, group interests that influence the choice of allocation pattern often disregard the context-specific situation.
Well-Being Justice
Well-Being is enhanced by
Justice is enhanced, and contributes to well-being, by the power, capacity, and opportunity to
Self-determination Experience voice and choice, participate in decision making
Caring and compassion
Experience nurturing relationships free of abuse
Equality and freedom
Benefit from fair and equitable distribution of resources and burdens
Experiences of Poor Migrants:Injustice Leads to Suffering
Material deprivation Exclusion Insecurity
Humiliation Sickness Helplessness Powerlessness
The Role of Power in Justice and Well-Being Power is an essential component of justice and
well-being Power is an essential component of the context in
immigrants’ lives Experiences of powerlessness Experiences of exclusion and marginalization Experiences of economic insecurity
Power should be taken into account when analyzing and partnering with immigrants to promote their well-being
The Concept of Psychopolitical Validity can help to incorporate power in practice Psychopolitical validity derives from the
consideration of power dynamics in psychological and political domains of health.
The main objective of psychopolitical validity is to infuse in community psychology an awareness of the role of power in wellness, oppression, and liberation at the personal, relational, and collective domains.
Psychopolitical validity
In order to attain psychopolitical validity, investigations and interventions would have to meet certain criteria. These criteria have to do with the extent to which research and action incorporate lessons about psychological and political power.
Psychopolitical Validity I: Epistemic
This type of validity is achieved by the systematic account of the role of power in political and psychological dynamics affecting phenomena of interest
Such account needs to consider the role of power in the psychology and politics of wellness, oppression and liberation, at the personal, relational, and collective domains.
Table 1Guidelines for Epistemic Psychopolitical Validity in Community Psychology
Concerns Domains
Collective Relational Personal
Wellness Accounts for role of political and economic power in economic prosperity and in creation of institutions that promote equality and public health
Studies the role of power in creating and sustaining egalitarian relationships, social cohesion, social support, respect for diversity and democratic participation in communities, groups, and families
Studies role of psychological and political power in achieving self-determination, empowerment, health, personal growth, meaning and spirituality
Oppression Explores role of globalization, colonization and exploitation in illness and suffering of nations and communities
Examines the role of political and psychological power in exclusion and discrimination based on class, gender, age, race, education and ability.Studies conditions leading to lack of support, horizontal violence and fragmentation within oppressed groups
Studies role of powerlessness in learned helplessness, hopelessness, self-deprecation, internalized oppression, shame, physical and mental health problems and addictions
Liberation Deconstructs ideological norms that lead to acquiescence and studies effective psychopolitical factors in resistance to norms that cause illness
Studies acts of solidarity and compassion with others who suffer from oppression and illness
Examines sources of health, strength, resilience, solidarity and development of activism and leadership
Psychopolitical Validity II: Transformational Transformational validity derives from the
potential of our actions to promote personal, relational, and collective wellness by reducing power inequalities and increasing political action
Table 2Guidelines for Transformational Psychopolitical Validity
Concerns Domains
Collective Relational Personal
Well-being Contributes to institutions that support health, emancipation, human development, peace, protection of environment, and social justice
Contributes to power equalization in relationships and communities. Enriches awareness of subjective and psychological forces preventing solidarity. Builds trust, connection and participation in groups that support social cohesion, health and social justice
Supports personal empowerment, health, sociopolitical development, leadership training and solidarity. Contributes to personal and social responsibility and awareness of subjective forces preventing commitment to justice and personal depowerment when in position of privilege
Oppression Opposes economic colonialism and denial of cultural rights. Decries and resists role of own reference group or nation in oppression of others and deterioration of health in other groups
Contributes to struggle against in-group and out-group domination and discrimination, sexism and norms of violence. Builds awareness of own prejudice and participation in horizontal violence
Helps to prevent acting out of own oppression on others. Builds awareness of internalized oppression and role of dominant ideology in victim-blaming. Contributes to personal depowerment of people in position of privilege
Liberation Supports networks of resistance and social change movements that pursue health and wellness. Contributes to structural depowerment of privileged people
Supports resistance against objectification of others. Develops processes of mutual accountability
Helps to resists complacency and collusion with exploitative and illness producing system. Contributes to struggle to recover personal health and political identity
There are many ways to advance the transformative impulse Creating awareness among colleagues about
how power differentials get enacted in interactions with immigrants seeking health related advice
Forming research and action groups in the workplace to explore how practices may be more empowering of immigrants
There are many ways to advance the transformative impulse Increasing political literacy of immigrants to
empower them to scrutinize the practices of health and helping professionals
Establishing practices that enable participation of immigrants in management of human services
Promoting Migrant Well-Being: From DRAIN to SPECFrom Deficits-based Reactive Arrogance Individual blame
To Strengths-based Primary Prevention Empowerment Community Change
Strategies: Time and Place
Collective
Individual
Reactive ProactiveX
9/7/1854…Removing the Handle
Big wake up call!!!
No mass disorder, afflicting humankind, has ever been eliminated, or brought under control, by treating the affected individual
HIV/AIDS, poverty, child abuse, powerlessness are not eliminated one person at a time.
It’s like Venice…..
Venice’s Lesson
“The psychotherapist, social worker or social reformer, concerned only with his own clients and their grievance against society, perhaps takes a view comparable to the private citizen of Venice who concerns himself only with the safety of his own dwelling and his own ability to get about the city. But if the entire republic is slowly being submerged, individual citizens cannot afford to ignore their collective fate, because, in the end, they all drown together if nothing is done” (Badcock, 1982)
Quadrant III
Examples:Crisis work, therapy, medications, symptom containment, case management
Quadrant I
Examples:Community development, inclusive policies, multiculturalism, high quality schools and health services for migrants
Quadrant II
Examples:Skill building, emotional literacy, language programs, fitness programs, personal improvement plans, work through identity issues
Quadrant IV
Examples:Food banks, shelters for homeless people, charities, prison industrial complex
Collective
Proactive
Individual
Reactive
Strategies: Time and Place
Strategies: Abilities and Participation
Strengths
Deficits
Detachment EmpowermentX
The
Grameen Bank
Quadrant IExamples:Voice and choice in celebrating and building competencies, recognition of personal and collective resilience of migrants
Quadrant IIExamples:Voice and choice in deficit reduction approaches, participation in decisions how to treat affective disorders or physical disorders
Strength
Empowerment
Deficit
Detachment
Strategies: Ability and Participation
Quadrant IIIExamples:Labeling and diagnosis, “patienthood” and clienthood,” citizens in passive role
Quadrant IVExamples:Just say no! You can do it! Cheerleading approaches, Make nice approaches
Nussbaum’s Principles for the Global Structure Nations have responsibility to their citizens National sovereignty should be respected, within
the constraints of promoting human capabilities Prosperous nations have a responsibility to give a
substantial portion of their GDPs to poorer nations
Multinational corporations have responsibilities for promoting human capabilities in the regions in which they operate
Nussbaum’s Principles for the Global Structure The main structures of the global economic order
must be designed to be fair to poor and developing countries
We should cultivate a forceful global sphere All institutions and most individuals should focus
on the problems of the disadvantaged in each nation and region
Care for the ill, the elderly, children, and the disabled should be a prominent focus of the world community
Nussbaum’s Principles for the Global Structure The family should be
treated as a sphere that is precious but not private
All institutions and individuals have a responsibility to support education, as key to the empowerment of currently disadvantaged people.