313394 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Stolen Generations, Health Professional, Hypervigilance
WEEK 6: The Significance of Identity
The nature of identity
The concept of self plays a large part in most Western societies. The notion of justice and civil
responsibility is based on a Western intellectual tradition in which people are seen are seen as discrete
and separate entities. Other cultures do not necessarily see people this way and therefore an
intervention, treatment or prevention program requires to be developed with informants from the
specific culture.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people develop identities based on both Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander culture and on interacting and engaging in non-Indigenous cultures. Many walk in two
worlds – black and white. Their sense of themselves has been influenced by the past and present
policies that governments enact.
Stereotypes prevail. How a non-Indigenous health professional sees ‘identity’ will have a big impact on
how they, as a service provider, relate to Aboriginal clients
Factors that influence identity
What formed your identity at a personal level, local level, state and national level?
For example:
• At a personal level: Are you tall or short, outgoing or reserved?
• At a local level: Are you a Perth Glory or Eagles supporter? Are you a migrant, child of a
migrant or are you a member of a family born locally?
• At a state level: How is your identity connected to WA?
• At a national level: What factors do you think identifies you as Australian?
With regards to cultural identity it is important to recognise the importance that many Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander people place on a sense of belonging at the community level and connection to
country. During Workshop 5 you were introduced to colonisation and past policies that have acted and
continue to act as major ‘stressors’ for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. This
workshop discussed the ‘Stolen Generations’ that resulted from Assimilation policies. The stress that
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities endured and the intergenerational
stress that resulted has, along with other daily ‘stressors’ impacted identity, social, emotional and
physical wellbeing today.
Section 3 offers an introduction to what stress is, coping mechanisms and makes the connection
between stress, identity and social, emotional wellbeing and physical health.
Stress and coping
What is stress?
Stress is a condition or feeling experienced when a person perceives that the demands placed upon
them exceeds their personal ability to deal with them
It relates to the process of appraisal and coping with environmental threats and challenges (Myers,
2007). In less formal terms, we feel stressed when we feel that ‘things are out of control’.
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Can stress be beneficial?
When short lived or if perceived as a challenge stress can be beneficial. If perceived as a threat or
experienced over a long period of time it can be detrimental to health.
Coping with stress
We all cope differently to stressful situations. Our strategies for coping are also dependent on the type
of stressor we are experiencing.
Adaptive and Maladaptive strategies
Both adaptive and maladaptive strategies can be adopted as ways of coping.
Adaptive strategies
Meditation, talking to someone about the problem, physical activity, listening to music
Maladaptive strategies
Drinking alcohol, eating comfort food, smoking, ignoring the problem…
The issue of control
People who perceive that they have more control over a ‘stressor’. For example, a traffic jam when you
are running late for an exam.
Adaptive strategy: deep breathing, meditation.
Maladaptive strategy: road rage, yelling at the driver in front of you, worrying about being
late… (will increase blood pressure, increase distress…)
These strategies may at times be adaptive/maladaptive when the situation is controllable.
How is a stressor perceived?
People react to stressors in different ways. It could be perceived as a threat/challenge.
The less perceived control a person believes they have the more vulnerable they become to poor
health.
How we cope with stressors depends on:
Predictability and control
o What are the consequences to your health of multiples stressors and low control?
o Events that are unpredictable & out of our control are often considered particularly
stressful e.g. terrorist attack…
o Together with unhealthy behaviours, the accumulation of stressors, a lack of control can
increase our risk for today’s top four leading causes of serious illness and death: Heart
disease, cancer, stoke, chronic lung disease.
Coping resources and coping methods
o We all utilise different strategies, some lean towards emotional type strategies, that is,
try to see the positive side to things, while others use active coping strategies, that is,
talking to someone, make changes to fix the problem.
o Our coping resources are important to consider also - if our car breaks down on the way
to work… we’ll cope better if we have enough money to get it fixed and have the ability
to take the day off to organise it… compared to if we have no money and an important
meeting to get to…
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The concept of self plays a large part in most western societies. The notion of justice and civil responsibility is based on a western intellectual tradition in which people are seen are seen as discrete and separate entities. Other cultures do not necessarily see people this way and therefore an intervention, treatment or prevention program requires to be developed with informants from the specific culture. Aboriginal and torres strait islander people develop identities based on both aboriginal and torres. Strait islander culture and on interacting and engaging in non-indigenous cultures. Many walk in two worlds black and white. Their sense of themselves has been influenced by the past and present policies that governments enact. How a non-indigenous health professional sees identity" will have a big impact on how they, as a service provider, relate to aboriginal clients. With regards to cultural identity it is important to recognise the importance that many aboriginal and.
