Journeys of immigration among young adult Russian Jews: Story of personal change.
Item
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Title
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Journeys of immigration among young adult Russian Jews: Story of personal change.
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Identifier
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AAI3063884
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identifier
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3063884
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Creator
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Simakhodskaya, Zoya.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Jeffrey J. Rosen
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Date
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2002
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Clinical | Psychology, Developmental
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Abstract
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This study explored the subjective experience of the immigration process among young adult Russian Jews and what it reveals about their sense of self. Goals of the study were to describe patterns of personal change associated with immigration, and develop a description of Jewishness for this population and the impact of immigration on Jewishness. Eleven Russian Jews who immigrated to the US as adults five to eleven years ago were interviewed using a semi-structured interview. The data were analyzed using qualitative methodology, informed by psychodynamic theory. Participants conveyed a multiplicity of affective experiences related to their immigration process, including depression, uncertainty, fear, loneliness, excitement, embarrassment, anger, and nostalgia. The inherent quality of uprootedness associated with immigration experience presented a challenge to the participants, which expressed itself in the process of managing rapid, unanticipated pressures to change while trying to preserve the sameness and continuity of self over time. Positive changes in sense of self included increased confidence in abilities, increased independence, and self-actualization. For some participants, changes came at a cost of depression, feelings of instability, and a tendency to become emotionally harsh. Jewishness was an important part of the participants' identities and is a changing rather than static construct. The study revealed multiple and coexisting meanings of Jewishness, such as a sense of being different and belonging to a group or a nation. The immigration process challenged participants by forcing them to reflect on their Jewishness, engage in the process of exploring its meanings, and find a way to express their Jewishness such that it conforms with their self-concept. This occurs in the same way that immigrants negotiate the meanings of Russianness and Americanness. More generally, each person's story indicated a close relationship between the dominating affects they reported and their general defensive style and identity. While the psychoanalytic literature on immigration and its impact on sense of self has typically focused on trauma, the current study revealed a more normative process of coping with significant life transition. Factors that promoted or impaired participants' ability to manage the difficulties of immigration journey are discussed.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
