Abstracts of the WASAD Congress 2021

Autor(en): Stefanie Hirsch, Anja C. Feneberg, Ricarda Nater-Mewes, Urs Markus Nater
Abstrakt: Research Context. The experience of unfair treatment because of one’s ethnicity, i.e., so-called perceived ethnic discrimination, is not a marginal problem. While both men and women are affected by this phenomenon, women may be additionally confronted with intersectional stigmata, i.e., both ethnic-related and gender-related, and thus constitute a particularly vulnerable group. Repeated exposure to such stressors, i.e., chronic discrimination, might lead
to dysregulations in psychobiological stress systems. Considering the resulting negative health consequences, it is of great importance to provide adequate interventions. With regard to the occurrence of discrimination in everyday life and the acute psychobiological reactions to it, interventions need to be applied as early as possible. Recognizing this necessity, the pilot study investigates the feasibility and the effectiveness of a music-based ecological momentary intervention to reduce stress as a low-threshold strategy in the everyday lives of affected individuals.
Methods. 20 Turkish immigrant women who experience chronic ethnic discrimination take part. The whole study consists of a baseline period (week 1), an intervention period (weeks 2, 3, 4), and a post period (week 5). Using a smartphone-based app, participants are signaled 3 times a day (i.e., time contingent data entries) to report their momentary stress levels and perceived discrimination. Additionally, participants initiate event-based data entries after the occurrence of every discriminatory or other stressful event. Subsequently, two additional data entries are triggered automatically after 20 and 35 minutes. Every data entry is accompanied by the collection of a saliva sample for the analysis of biological stress markers (cortisol, alphaamylase). The described sampling protocol is maintained during the whole study period. Additionally, during the intervention period, participants are randomly assigned (50:50) to either the intervention condition (i.e., listening to self-selected, personally relaxing music for 20 minutes) or the control condition (i.e., no music-listening for 20 minutes) after every selfinitiated event-based data entry. Using this intraindividual-randomized design, the immediate effects of music-listening on psychobiological stress parameters can be determined comparing psychological and biological data across different measurement time points (before vs. after music-listening, intervention-event vs. control-event). The intermediate effect of the whole intervention on psychobiological stress parameters can be examined comparing psychological and biological data from baseline vs. post period. Data will be analyzed using multilevel modeling. To investigate the feasibility of the intervention, qualitative data from semistructured interviews on user experience, burden, and satisfaction with the intervention will be gathered. Therefore, participants are invited into the laboratory after completion of the whole study period.
Results. By the time of the congress, information on the current progress of the project will be available.
Implications. This study aims to promote health by empowering immigrant women to cope with discriminatory and stressful events in their everyday life. Additionally, significant input will be provided concerning the feasibility and effectiveness of a music-based ecological momentary intervention to reduce stress due to perceived ethnic discrimination in everyday life.
Keywords: Alpha-amylase, cortisol, ecological momentary intervention, ethnic discrimination, immigration, music, stress reduction
Organisation(en): Forschungs-, Lehr- und Praxisambulanz, Forschungsplattform The Stress of Life - Processes and Mechanisms underlying Everyday Life Stress, Institut für Klinische und Gesundheitspsychologie
Journal: Journal of Neural Transmission
Band: 128
Seiten: 1767-1812
ISSN: 0300-9564
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-021-02422-z
Publikationsdatum: 10-2021
Peer-reviewed: Ja
ÖFOS 2012: 501010 Klinische Psychologie
Schlagwörter
ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete: Clinical Neurology, Neurology, Psychiatry and Mental health, Biological Psychiatry
Sustainable Development Goals: SDG 10 – Weniger Ungleichheiten
Link zum Portal: https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/de/publications/91d17b79-d034-4d5e-bb84-215790876720