Arab American Women's Health Following Sexual Victimization: An Exploratory Study of the Moderating Effects of Bicultural Identity Harmony and Social Constraints

Objective: In this exploratory study, we sought to understand the effect of sexual victimization on the health of an understudied population-Arab American women-and the potential moderating effects of cultural and social factors on the relationship between sexual victimization and health. Method: In a cross-sectional study, a sample of 120 Arab American women were interviewed, and they completed measures of sexual experience, health, and potential moderator variables. two third (n = 40) of the women reported at least 1 experience of sexual victimization; two thirds (n = 80) did not. We tested the main effects of sexual victimization on somatic and psychological symptoms, then examined whether bicultural identity harmony, bicultural identity blendedness, and social constraints moderated the relationship between sexual victimization and symptoms. Results: Sexual victimization was associated with greater somatic (r = .31) and psychological (r = .33) symptoms. Significant moderators revealed that victimization was associated with greater symptoms for women with low/moderate bicultural identity harmony or high/moderate social constraints. Bicultural identity blendedness did not moderate these relationships. Conclusion: Findings of this exploratory study suggest that sexual victimization is associated with poorer health in Arab American women, but especially for women who have low bicultural identity harmony or high social constraints. Assessing for sexual victimization, bicultural identity conflict, and social constraints is important, and disclosure and processing of victimization experiences may be beneficial. This study highlights the value of studying Arab Americans and provides a theoretical framework and preliminary findings that should be evaluated rigorously in future research in this population.