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Dina Birman, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
Office:1062A BSB
Phone: (312)-413-2637
Email: dbirman@uic.edu
Mailing Address:
1007 W. Harrison St. (MC 285)
Chicago, IL 60607-7137
Community and Prevention Research Division
Department of Psychology, UIC
Resume
Research Interests:
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Ph
I have three major programs of research: (a) Acculturation and
adjustment of refugee and immigrant adolescents, adults, elderly, and families;
(b) Mutual accommodation of newly arrived refugee students and schools, and the development
of school-based interventions; and (c) Refugee mental health services for
diverse refugee children, adults, and families. Although much of my prior research has
used quantitative measures, I am currently conducting a qualitative study, and am interested
in ultimately combining quantitative and qualitative methodologies.
My approach to these varied research projects is rooted in
Community
Psychology in several ways. First, I am
interested in understanding the topics I study from an ecological perspective, studying not
only individual and family level variables, but also how communities and institutions shape
the lives of the people within them. Second, I believe that community research can be
conducted in ways that empower and support communities and institutions through long-term
collaborations with individuals and institutions we study. In this way research projects
can not only contribute to general knowledge but also support and enhance the settings where
data are collected. Third, mental health interventions can serve preventive functions that
enhance general adaptation of immigrants and refugees as well as provide intensive treatment
to those who need it.
Acculturation and Adjustment:
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Ph
One broad area of research focuses on the process of acculturation
and adjustment of refugee and immigrant children, youth, and families as they resettle
in a new country. Acculturation refers to the psychological process that individual go
through as they encounter another culture. I am fascinated by the profound transformation
that immigrant and refugees experience as they enter the culture of their resettlement
country. Examining how this process unfolds in families for parents and children is also
of particular interest.
Studies on acculturation have traditionally examined the extent
to which someone’s acculturative style is related to different indices of adaptation,
such as psychological adjustment, school success for children or economic adjustment for
adults, family adjustment, and others. However my work suggests that the question of
whether acculturation is has positive or negative consequences cannot be answered
a-contextually. Thus different settings in the children’s lives place different cultural
expectations and pressures on them. Holding on to aspects of their native culture, and
learning about the new culture may have a positive or negative impact, depending on the
life domain considered. Schools in particular can help shape the students’ experiences of
acculturation and adaptation, and can structure programs and classrooms in ways that can
reduce or exacerbate conflicts and problems.
Recent papers on acculturation and adjustment:
Ph
Birman, D., & Tran, N. (2008). The impact of pre- and post-migration factors on
psychological distress and adjustment of Vietnamese refugees in the U.S.
American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 78, 109-120
Birman, D., & Ritzler, T. (2007). Acculturation and psychological distress of
adolescent immigrants from the Former Soviet Union: Exploring the mediating effect of
perceived family context using structural equation modeling. Cultural Diversity and
Ethnic Minority Psychology, 22, 152-166.
Birman, D. (2006). Acculturation gap and family adjustment:
Findings with Soviet Jewish refugees in the U.S. and implications for measurement.
Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 37 (5), 1-22.
Persky, I. & Birman, D.(2005). “Ethnic” identity in
acculturation research: A study of multiple identities of Jewish refugees from the
Former Soviet Union. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology. 36 (5), 1-16.
Birman, D., Trickett, E. & Buchanan, R. (2005). A Tale of
Two Cities: Replication of a Study on the Acculturation and Adaptation of Immigrant
Adolescents from the former Soviet Union in a Different Community Context. American
Journal of Community Psychology, 35 (1-2), 87-101.
Zea, M.C., Asner-Self, K, Birman, D., & Buki, L. (2003).
The abbreviated multidimensional acculturation scale: Empirical validation with two
Latino/Latina samples. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, 9
(2), 107 – 126. [Abstract]
Refugee Students in Schools and School-Based Interventions:
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Ph
I am currently focusing on understanding the dynamics for newly
arrived refugee students and schools. When seen from the perspective of schools, it is
important to understand how to work with refugee and immigrant children from a wide range
of cultural backgrounds. Therefore, I am studying the adjustment
of refugee students in a multicultural school, and understanding the experience form the
school’s perspective as well.
I am currently conducting participant observation and interviews
in a K-6 Chicago school. We are studying children from Vietnam, Bosnia, and Somalia.
The study involves conducting participant observation in classrooms assisting teachers
who work with these students, and interviews with teachers and school personnel as well
as refugee families.
Ultimately, the purpose of this research project is to inform
the development of a school-based mental health intervention for traumatized refugee
children. To learn about school-based mental health I am collaborating with
Marc Atkins who studies
school-based interventions for children in poverty in Chicago Public Schools.
Recent papers on school-based interventions:
Ph
Birman, D. & Chan, W. (2008, May). Screening and assessing
immigrant and refugee youth in school based mental health programs. Issue Brief #1,
Center for Health and Health Care in Schools, George Washington University,
http://www.rwjf.org/files/research/3320.32211.0508issuebriefno.1.pdf.
Birman, D., Weinstein, T., Beehler, S. & Chan, W. (2007). Immigrant youth in U.S.
schools: Opportunities for prevention. The Prevention Researcher, 14, 14-17.
Atkins, M.S., Frazier, S. L., Birman, D., Adil, J.A., Jackson,
M., Graczyk, P. A., Talbott, E., Farmer, D., Bell, C., & McKay, M. (2006).
School-based mental health services for children living in high poverty urban
communities. Administration and Policy in Mental Health Services Research, 33 (2),
146-159.
Birman, D. & Ryerson-Espino, S. (2007). The relationship of parental
practices and knowledge to school adaptation for immigrant and non-immigrant high school
students. Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 22, 152-166.
Birman, D. (2002) Refugee mental health in the classroom:
A guide for the ESL teacher. Denver , CO: Spring Institute for Intercultural Learning,
http://www.spring-institute.org 51 pp.
Birman, D., Trickett, E., & Bacchus, N. (2001). Somali
Refugee Youth in Maryland: Needs Assessment.
http://63.236.98.116/mona/pdf/somali.pdf
Refugee Mental Health Services:
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Ph
I am interested in studying how to provide accessible and
effective mental health services for refugee children who need them. Currently, no
evidence-based mental health interventions for refugee children have been identified
in the literature. For this reason, I am trying to learn from “practice-based evidence”,
by studying existing practices at a mental health agency that is finding ways to serve
this high-risk population.
I have been collaborating with several programs funded through
the National Child Traumatic Stress Network
by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA),
and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s School Based Interventions for Immigrants Program.
Recent publications on refugee mental health Services:
Ph
Birman, D., Beehler, S., Pulley, E.., Everson, M.L., Batia, K., Frazier,
S., Atkins, M., Liautaud, J., Buwalda, J., Fogg, L., Capella, E., & Blanton, S. (2008).
International Family Adult and Child Enhancement Services: A community-based comprehensive
services model for refugee children in resettlement. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 78, 121-132.
Batia, K., Beehler, S., & Birman, D. (in press). An Application
of a Human Rights Approach to Mental Health and Social Services: Heartland Alliance for
Human Needs and Human Rights. The Community Psychologist.
Birman, D. Ho, J., Pulley, E., Batia, K., Everson, M. L., Ellis, H., Stichick Betancourt,
T., Gonzalez, A. (2005). Mental Health Interventions for refugee children in resettlement.
White Paper II, Refugee Trauma Task Force, National Child Traumatic Stress Network, Chicago,
IL
Lustig, S. L., Kia-Keating, M., Grant-Knight, W., Geltman, P., Ellis, H., Birman, D.,
Kinzie, D., Keane, T., & Saxe, G. (2003). Review of child and adolescent refugee mental
health. White Paper, National Child Traumatic Stress Network, Refugee Trauma Task Force.
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