Defense styles, well‐being, and functional disability in the African context: A structured interview‐based study

Objective We investigated the defense styles in the African context by exploring their internal structure in Burkinabé individuals. Moreover, we explored how defense styles were related to sociocultural variables. Finally, we tested whether defense styles could mediate the relationship between socio...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of personality 2024-10, Vol.92 (5), p.1464-1476
Main Authors: Marchetti, Igor, Micheli, Ilaria, Grassi, Michele
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Burkina Faso
cross‐cultural
Defense Mechanisms
defense styles
Disability
Disabled Persons
Female
Humans
Interviews
Male
Mental Health
Middle Aged
Personal Satisfaction
Principal components analysis
Sociocultural factors
Traditions
Variables
well‐being
Young Adult
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Summary:Objective We investigated the defense styles in the African context by exploring their internal structure in Burkinabé individuals. Moreover, we explored how defense styles were related to sociocultural variables. Finally, we tested whether defense styles could mediate the relationship between sociocultural variables and mental well‐being as well as functional disability. Method The study recruited 998 individuals (66.9% male; age = 25.50 ± 7.8 years) living in Burkina Faso. Standard measures for defense mechanisms, mental well‐being, and functional disability were administered as a structured interview in the local vehicular language, that is, Dyula. Results Principal component analysis identified three major defense styles—mature, neurotic, and immature. Gender, formal education, living area, and believing in traditional practices were associated with any of the three defense styles. Moreover, the immature style mediated the impact of sociocultural variables on specific outcomes, such as higher functional disability and lower mental well‐being. The neurotic style was associated with lower functional disability, while the mature style was not associated with any of the outcome variables. Conclusion Our study provided preliminary support to the notion that defense styles may function similarly across cultures and they are likely reactive to the sociocultural context.
ISSN:0022-3506
1467-6494
1467-6494
DOI:10.1111/jopy.12903