From Survival to Success: Exploring Resilience & The Immigrant Experience

Original Air Date Wednesday, June 8, 2022

Moving residences, whether elective or forced, is known to be one of the most stressful things humans can do. Dealing with the trauma of new places and new faces can be difficult for both parents and children. Why do some people bounce back after a change and others sink into themselves? What about when a family moves into a different culture? How do individuals maintain a sense of well-being in the face of a 180-degree life change?

To determine the role genetics and environment have in calculating survival or success, Harvesting Happiness Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with three women about the resilience across cultures and the immigrant experience.

Justine Gatt is the Lead Scientist at Gatt Wellbeing and Resilience group. She describes the multiple studies she has been a part of that measure wellbeing and resilience in various cultures and with varying stressors.

Mother, Lan Cao and Daughter, Harlan Lan Cao, co-authored Family in Six Tones: A Refugee Mother, An American Daughter. Each describes how her experience differed from the other in school, society, and when writing the book.

Tune in:

Lisa Cypers Kamen · From Survival to Success: Exploring Resilience & The Immigrant Experience

Meet Our Guests:

From Survival to Success: Exploring Resilience & The Immigrant Experience with Justine Gatt Ph.D., Lan Cao & Harlan Lan Cao

Associate Professor Justine Gatt is Lead Scientist of the Gatt Wellbeing & Resilience Group at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) and the School of Psychology at the University of New South Wales. She obtained her Ph.D. in Psychology at the University of Sydney. Professor Gatt currently leads several national and international projects in resilience and well-being.

Her work has been recognized by multiple awards including the Worldwide University Network (WUN) Success Story, the Commonwealth Health Minister’s Award for Excellence in Health and Medical Research (2014), and the NHMRC Excellence Award for Top Ranked CDF Applicant (2014). Professor Gatt also serves as an Editorial Member for several scientific journals.

Justine Gatt Ph.D. — Exploring Resilience:

Justine is involved in a 10-year study on the resiliency trajectories of 1600 healthy adult twins in Australia. {2:21}
A key outcome of the study was the creation of a new scale to measure well-being. {4:44}
Justine defines hedonia and eudaimonia, the two measures of well-being in the study. {7:35}
The Stress Inoculation effect is a phenomenon that helps some cope and adapt to controllable stressors. {10:21}
Justine describes another study that compared wellbeing and resilience across cultures and evaluated the impact of migration as a stressor. {16:05}
The six dimensions to better well-being and resilience. {21:45}

Follow Justine Gatt:

Lan Cao is the author of Monkey Bridge and The Lotus and the Storm, and most recently of the scholarly work Culture in Law and Development: Nurturing Positive Change. She is a professor of law at the Chapman University School of Law, and an internationally recognized expert specializing in international business and trade, international law, and development. She has taught at Brooklyn Law School, Duke University School of Law, University of Michigan Law School, and William & Mary Law School.

Harlan Margaret Van Cao graduated from high school in June 2020 and will be attending UCLA. She was born in Williamsburg, Virginia, and moved to Southern California when she was ten.

Book: Family in Six Tones: A Refugee Mother, An American Daughter

Lan Cao & Harlan Lan Cao — The Immigrant Experience:

A StoryCorps interview led to the creation of the book, Family in Six Tones: A Refugee Mother, An American Daughter. {28:52}
Lan and Harlan worked on their chapters separately due to the very personal content. {33:49}
Lan and Harlan had different views about how things happened but to tell the full story required both voices to be heard. {36:26}
Lan describes what it was like to be one of the first post-war Asian immigrants in Virginia. {43:11}
Harlan’s experience integrating into a U.S. school was much different than her mother’s. {47:11}

Follow Lan Cao:

Shareables:

“The Six Tones is just a very subtle pointer toward how her refugee status impacted parenting.” @LanCaoWrites on @HHTalkRadio Share on X “We basically wrote in parallel universes and when it was done as a first draft we then went back.” @LanCaoWrites on @HHTalkRadio Share on X “I think we can learn at any age.” @NeuraAustralia on @HHTalkRadio Share on X “Childhood trauma impacts the brain.” @NeuraAustralia on @HHTalkRadio Share on X

Grab More Joy Below:

Are We Happy Yet? Eight Keys to Unlocking a Joyful Life — A boot camp manual for greater emotional fitness. Happiness waits for no one and sometimes we all need support. What is getting in the way of your happiness right now?

H–Factor: Where is Your Heart? — Lisa’s documentary film explores the journey of human happiness. Emotions are contagious and happiness is a universally desired state. We tend to forget we all have the freedom to be happy or the liberty to be miserable each day.