‘For us, we call it resistance’- conceptualizing resilience and its pathways among Arab Canadians: The CAN-HEAL study

There has been growing interest in the concept of resilience for promoting people's health and well-being and to mitigate inequities. There are various definitions of the concept in the literature, yet there have still been repeated calls for a more culturally sensitive, context-oriented conceptualization of resilience. This is particularly critical for racialized populations, given the rise in racism and the 'othering' that this group faces. This paper explored resilience and its pathways among Arab Canadians. A collaborative, community-based participatory research and integrated knowledge translation approach was employed in this project. Qualitative interviews and Photovoice sessions were conducted with 50 and 26 participants , respectively, all aged ≥18 years and recruited throughout October 2021-June 2022. This research is guided by a social and cultural ecologies perspective of resilience theory. Arab Canadian participants conceptualized resilience as resistance to structural barriers and adversities, which operated at both collective and individual levels. Faith and religious practices were major pathways to enable both collective and individual resilience among Arab Canadian participants. Findings from this research also indicated that collective resilience can be developed through culturally responsive and community-based initiatives. This study contributes to the wider theoretical discourse regarding resilience by advancing beyond individual-focused models to consider socio-cultural factors and collective, community-situated dimensions. Findings from our research show that cultural resistance can function as part of a practice of resilience, where diasporic communities transform struggles into collective perseverance under conditions of displacement and oppression. Our theoretical contribution holds practical significance for policy and practice that promote the well-being of Arab diaspora communities and other racialized communities.