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Numerous qualitative studies, mostly with English speaking Westerners, have shown the important role of storytelling and values in promoting resilience. However, this quantitative study helps fill the gaps in the research, by investigating the mediator effects of storytelling on values and resilience of American, German, Chinese, and Vietnamese prospective teachers. The study, using path analysis, investigated how cultural differences influenced perceptions about storytelling, resilience and values. Open to change values of stimulation, self-direction, hedonism and universalism had the largest associations in the Final Model. The results of the multiple group analyses showed that the Final Model path estimates were invariant across cultural groups, but the error variances of the mean values were not invariant. Individual differences accounted for the variance more than cultural differences. The implications for educators, desiring to leverage literacy instruction with storytelling, are discussed.

This article reviews five works on the Sino-Vietnamese War, also referred to as the Third Indochina War. Although many have considered the Vietnamese to have been the victors in that conflict, a closer observation reveals that while China might have suffered disproportionate casualties, they did achieve many of their goals. The ultimate determination of winner or loser rests with the participants of the struggle, not with an outside observer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we attempt to study the diminutive word con 'offspring' in Vietnamese based on the grammaticalization and phonological cycle involving the diminutive words in Min dialects. The original meaning of con is 'offspring' (con trai 'sons', con gai 'daughters'); then its use was generalized to cover the young of an animal (heo con ' a little pig', bo con 'a calf', ca con 'a small fish' ) and then it was further expanded to cover some small-sized plants (con rati 'a tender shoot'). From the above meanings, con continued to expand its use as a diminutive word to refer to small-sized things, the relatives, and finally it becomes a noun-marker. Along the way, some diminutive words marked by con also picked up attitudinal meanings such as liking or disliking. Phonetically, con just has the first two stages. The affix can be reduced to [oη] or [η] just like its counterpart in some of Min dialects. For example, in southern and middle Vietnam, when people say Nhin con heo con kia de thuong chua kia 'Look! The little pig is so cute,' the noun marker (prefix) is often reduced from [koη] to [oη] or [η]. Through concrete examples of Vietnamese con, we would demonstrate preliminarily that the notion of grammaticalization cycle with some modification can be applied in the description of the changes that took place in the evolution of the diminutive marker con in Vietnamese [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Asian Americans are at least 4% of the US population, but there are very few studies about the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among this group. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death among Asian Americans in the United States. Limited research that studied cardiovascular risks among Asian Americans were available, therefore, more information is urgently needed. Cross-sectional surveys and blood tests were conducted at community-based health fairs in southeastern Michigan. A total of 388 Asian participants provided data for this analysis. The results showed that four Asian groups differ in the level of specific risk factors; in particular, the most urgent hypertension and cholesterol problems were found among Chinese and Filipino participants, while the risk of diabetes may be highest among the Hmong participants. The results from the multivariate analysis showed that after controlling for demographic and medical care-related factors in the model, ethnicity is still a significant predictor that contributed to the differences in CVD risks. The results show that cardiovascular and diabetes risks are high in the Asian American populations studied. Attention needs to be paid to the extent and nature of ethnic-specific health problems because each culture's health-related habits and beliefs affect their entry into preventive care so that strategies can be designed and implemented to effectively reduce and ultimately eliminate health disparities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Primarily because of immigration, Asian Americans are one of the fastest growing and most ethnically diverse minority groups in the United States. However, little is known about their perspectives on health care quality.Objective: To examine factors contributing to quality of care from the perspective of Chinese- and Vietnamese-American patients with limited English language skills.Design: Qualitative study using focus groups and content analysis to determine domains of quality of care.Setting: Four community health centers in Massachusetts.Participants: A total of 122 Chinese- and Vietnamese-American patients were interviewed in focus groups by bilingual interviewers using a standardized, translated moderator guide.Main Outcome Measures: Domains of quality of care mentioned by patients in verbatim transcripts.Results: In addition to dimensions of health care quality commonly expressed by Caucasian, English-speaking patients in the United States, Chinese- and Vietnamese-American patients with limited English proficiency wanted to discuss the use of non-Western medical practices with their providers, but encountered significant barriers. They viewed providers' knowledge, inquiry, and nonjudgmental acceptance of traditional Asian medical beliefs and practices as part of quality care. Patients also considered the quality of interpreter services to be very important. They preferred using professional interpreters rather than family members, and preferred gender-concordant translators. Furthermore, they expressed the need for help in navigating health care systems and obtaining support services.Conclusions: Cultural and linguistically appropriate health care services may lead to improved health care quality for Asian-American patients who have limited English language skills. Important aspects of quality include providers' respect for traditional health beliefs and practices, access to professional interpreters, and assistance in obtaining social services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies show that carers of people with mental illness experience a negative impact on their wellbeing. Given the growing number of people relocating to Australia every year, there are limited studies examining the experience of carers of people with mental illness from culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Australia. Using cultural safety as a conceptual framework, this exploratory study recruited 14 carers of Chinese and Vietnamese heritage who were attending culturally and linguistically oriented support groups in Sydney, Australia. Standardised, validated scales were administered to measure carers' wellbeing and knowledge of recovery. Structured interviews were conducted to understand carers' perceived needs. Descriptive statistical and qualitative thematic analysis were used. Findings show that carers experienced social isolation and psychological distress, had multiple diverse needs and had a reasonably good understanding of recovery. Six themes were identified: i) obtaining information in own language; ii) attaining emotional support from support groups; iii) needing respite services to cope with caregiving responsibilities; iv) involvement in planning of treatment and care; v) migration process influencing caregiving, and; vi) cultural and transcultural factors influencing caregiving experience. Findings indicate that some carers might be experiencing some level of culturally unsafe practices in mainstream mental health services. Implications for support groups and mental health services are discussed.

The genetic polymorphisms of 20 autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) loci included in the PowerPlex® 21 kit were evaluated in 522 healthy unrelated Vietnamese from Yunnan, China. All of the loci reached the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. These loci were examined to determine allele frequencies and forensic statistical parameters. The combined discrimination power and probability of excluding paternity of the 20 STR loci were 0.999999999999999999999991 26 and 0.999999975, respectively. Results suggested that the 20 STR loci are highly polymorphic, which is suitable for forensic personal identification and paternity testing.

This study used the 2010 Health of Houston Survey to examine the physical activity of Asian American adults living in Houston, Texas. Multivariate regression models were conducted to examine the number of moderate leisure physical activity days in the past week and likelihood of having sufficient levels of physical activity. The results showed that Asians were among the least physically active of the major racial/ethnic groups. Most notably, Asians were less likely than whites to have sufficient levels of physical activity and had similarly lower expected numbers of physical activity minutes and days. Within the Asian American population, Vietnamese adults had more physical activity minutes and days than their Chinese counterparts-after controlling for other sociodemographic and health factors. Age- and gender-adjusted rates suggested a significant gender disparity among the Vietnamese and South Asian adults (less so for the Chinese adults), but this varied across different age groups. Several factors emerged as significant predictors of physical activity for Asian Americans, including age, immigration status, speaking a non-English language at home, marital status, and neighborhood incivilities. Findings highlight the need for targeted, culturally appropriate interventions to promote physical activity in Asian American communities.

Asian Americans are now the most rapidly growing minority group in the USA. Over 60 % of Asian Americans in the USA are immigrants. Cancer has been the leading cause of death among Asian Americans since 1980. Understanding the barriers to screening is essential to reduce the unnecessary burden of cancer. Little is known about colorectal cancer screening behavior among foreign-born Asian Americans and how socio-demographic factors may influence the behavior. Even less is known about disaggregated Asian subgroups. Using data from the Chicago Asian Community Survey, a local health assessment survey of three Asian subgroups in Chicago, Chinese, Cambodian, and Vietnamese, this study found that the colorectal cancer screening rate were much lower among foreign-born Asian Americans in Chicago (30 %) than the national rate for the general population (59 %). Furthermore, we studied disaggregated data to determine colorectal cancer screening differences between communities. Findings from this study provide a critical evidence base to inform future research and intervention designs.