Psychology of Immigration in the New Century

Course Level: Intermediate

Course By: Alden Hori, PhD

Dr. Hori earned a PhD in psychology from the University of California at Riverside. He was an Associate-In Professor and Research Assistant at the University of California at Riverside, where he supervised the completion of over 50 research projects in psychology. He is credited with three publications in peer-reviewed journals.

Content By: Carola Suárez-Orozco, PhD, Dina Birman, PhD, J. Manuel Casas, PhD, Nadine Nakamura, PhD, Pratyusha Tummala-Narra, PhD, Michael Zárate, PhD, and Melba Vasquez, PhD
About the Authors: APA Presidential Task Force on Immigration
Carola Suárez-Orozco, PhD (New York University)
Dina Birman, PhD (University of Illinois at Chicago)
J. Manuel Casas, PhD (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Nadine Nakamura, PhD (University of La Verne)
Pratyusha Tummala-Narra, PhD (Boston College)
Michael Zárate, PhD (University of Texas, El Paso)
Melba Vasquez, PhD [ex officio] (2011 APA President, Vasquez & Associates Mental Health Services)

Course Delivery: Online, Self-Paced

Course Description:
This course begins by providing an overview of the new wave of immigration, briefly considering the principal motivations that propel migration as well as demographic profiles of the U.S. immigrant population based on multidisciplinary research from demography, sociology, and economics. Recognizing the significance of the receiving social context to psychological functioning, the report next considers the role of social attitudes toward immigrants, discrimination, and neighborhood contexts in immigrant adaptation.

Next it examines acculturation and identity formation as they relate to immigration research in the field of psychology and then considers challenges relevant to several vulnerable populations and specific developmental challenges across the life span. Issues of assessment and testing with immigrants and second-language learners, central to the field of psychology, are addressed in educational, clinical, forensic, and legal contexts. The educational setting, a context critical for the well-being and future success of the children of immigrants, is then examined, followed by a discussion of the critical mental health challenges of immigrants in clinical settings, addressing classic presenting problems as well as issues pertinent to diagnosis, assessment, treatment, and intervention.

The final section reviews the demographic imperative of attending to issues related to immigrant-origin individuals and their families, considers the current implications of the evidence, and draws conclusions about where psychology should be going as a field to better serve immigrant populations. The report provides bulleted recommendations for culturally and developmentally informed services and supports, research, education and training, and collaboration and advocacy

Learning Objectives:

1. Gain knowledge about the increasing immigrant population in the United States
2. Delineate evidence-informed recommendations for the provision of mental health services to immigrants
3. Evaluate recommendations to improve education, research, practice and policy affecting immigrants of all ages and backgrounds

Course Format:

Course materials can be downloaded or read online. To receive a certificate of completion, you must complete an online multiple-choice post-test with a score of 75% or better and complete an online course evaluation. 

Approvals: