“What Makes an Appalachian?”: An Intersectional Psychological Investigation of Appalachian Identity and Protective Factors

The purpose of the current study was to apply an intersectional and strengths-based perspective to understand who endorses an Appalachian identity. Specifically, we explored the relationships among Appalachian identity endorsement, race and ethnicity endorsement, and positive childhood experiences (PCEs). We utilized intersectional techniques suggesting that psychologists should consider that (1) participants are multidimensional, (2) participants’ social group memberships are dynamic, (3) power is a feature of participant's intersectional positions, and (4) participants’ intersectional positions create outcomes of systemic advantage and disadvantage. Our exploratory analysis revealed two key factors related to Appalachian identity. First, those who are white are approximately 5.4 times more likely to self-identify as Appalachian. Individuals who already hold a marginalized or stereotyped social identity may be reluctant to self-identify as Appalachian, due to the stereotypes attributed to Appalachians. Second, women who have more positive childhood experiences are approximately 1.12 times more likely to self-identify as Appalachian. One potential explanation for this is that people who identify with the experience of Appalachia may have close kinship networks. In the present study, we began to answer questions related to Appalachian identity and its relationship to protective factors.