African Americans Perceptions of Mental Health and the Implications for Health Service Delivery

Statistics state that mental illness is estimated to be higher in blacks than in whites. One of the contributing factors to why blacks aren’t being cared for when they have a mental illness is because of the stigma that mental illness doesn’t exist within the community. According to Plowden (2006), “ African American men often differ in their presentation of depression and are often misdiagnosed. African American men are at greater risk for depression, but they are less likely to participate in mental health care.” This is due to the

This article is a great article that relates to African Americans seeking mental health treatment at lower rates than whites. The article states that this disparity can be attributed to attitudes toward services, alternate coping, and differences in care. This article also illuminates biases in counseling.

The Diagnostic Statistical Manual is used to diagnosis persons that are getting assessed with mental health disorders. The manual contains criteria the clinician can use to diagnosis a client. If the client meets a certain number of markers then they are given a diagnosis of a particular disorder. But, what if it’s not that easy? For African Americans, there has been a history of getting misdiagnosis by clinicians which has led to some mistrust. The cultural differences between African Americans and their white clinicians can possibly lead to the misdiagnosis of the clients. An article on clinician race states, “African Americans are less likely to be diagnosed with mood disorders and more likely to be be diagnosed with schizophrenia” (Adebimpe, 1981; Neighbors, 1997). Within this review, we will explore research conducted by scholars that examine the relationships between the diagnoses of African Americans by White Clinicians.

A mental illness is one one of many different disorders or conditions that affect one's mood thinking and behavior. Approximately 1 in 5 U.S. adults reports suffering from some form of mental illness. ANd about 20% of us youth are affected by some type of mental illness in their life. African Americans are 20% more likely to report significant mental distress but less likely than white counterparts to seek mental health care. For black people mental illness is surrounded by a stigma of weakness and religious disconnect.

The internal wall that often keeps black men away from psychotherapy goes along with external barriers built just as high, if not higher. Mental health practitioners are overwhelmingly white, with the proportion of black psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychoanalysts estimated at less than three percent of the nation 's total. This would mean that even if black men were to break through the self-imposed barriers and seek professional help for mental issues, it may be difficult to find someone with whom they can build a rapport, and whom they feel can relate to them, and they can trust. This feeling of comfort is what allows a patient to reveal his most intimate secrets. As Dr. Richard Mouzon, a prominent black clinical psychologist puts it, "Many of us grow up feeling that it is dangerous to give up too much of yourself to the white man." There 's no denying that access to mental health care is restricted for Americans in general. In private health insurance policies and government medical assistance programs, psychotherapy is too often considered a luxury rather than a necessity. It has been said often times that the only people with a guaranteed

Forget all the stereotypes of mental illness. It has no face. It has no particular victim. Mental illness can affect an individual from any background and the black community is no exception. African Americans sometimes experience even more severe forms of mental health conditions because of unmet needs and barriers to treatment. According to the Office of Minority Health, African Americans are 20 percent more likely to experience serious mental health problems than the general population. That’s why UGA third year Majenneh Sengbe is taking action as the co-founder of her upcoming organization Black Minds Daily.

Health care for mental illness is an issue in the African American community for Men, Women and Adolescents due to the underserving and lack of mental healthcare providers, the cultural stigma of having mental illness and

Per Vaterlaus, Skogrand, & Chaney (2015) studies have shown that African Americans reaching out for mental health services are perceived to be powerless or weak, and are often humiliated and feel embarrassed. In a study performed by (Ward, Wiltshire, Detry & Brown (2013) African Americans were found to be hesitant to confess any mental health problems and were more likely to cope using religious practices. In my opinion, African Americans are connected to

The lack of mental health care services for minorities is a long-standing problem in the United States. The first time the issue received attention was in 1985, when the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a report that described serious health discrepancies that minority populations were enduring. In 1986, because of this report, the Office of Minority Health was formed to assist in the reduction of the health care shortages for

13.2% of the United States population identifies themselves as Black as African Americans, and of those over 16% had an mental illness that was diagnosable. The socio economic impact of a history of slavery, sharecropping and race-based exclusion from health, racism, spiritual beliefs, social and economic resources, education and other factors are key factors that contribute to African American disparities today. Many of these things are linked to mental health. According to the US department of health, African Americans are 20% more likely to report having serious psychological distress than in non-Hispanic whites (. Despite knowing this, African Americans are less likely to seek mental health services than white Americans.

Conner, K. O., Copeland, V. C., Grote, N. K., Rosen, D., Albert, S., McMurray, M. L., Koeske, G. (2010).

People of different ethnic backgrounds are treated differently due to many kinds of social and multicultural differences people and society. African-Americans within society are treated with prejudice and are stereotyped into negative connotations that can increase distress and impairments such as depression. Behavioral disorders as well as mental illnesses that African-Americans develop throughout their lifespan can show implications on how racism can be a cause of depression when African-Americans are faced with situations that can involve racist views or altercations. This article will provide an overview of how racism towards African-Americans can contribute towards mental health issues within African-American community as

Conversations regarding mental health can often be a difficult topic to discuss openly. The Huffington Post provided readers with the opportunity to understand mental illness and intersectionality in the article, 4 Black Women Writers Get Honest About Mental Illness and Race. This article provides a different perspective on mental health as it looks at mental illness through the intersectionality of race and gender. In the article, four black women participate in an interview to discuss their experience with depression, bi-polar disorder, and ADHD and how it affects their lives as both black and woman identified beings. Discussions of mental health in the black community are rare as there is a negative view of mental illness. Hearing

Ramseur says a healthy mental state for an African-American is based on high self-esteem, positive racial identity, and adapting coping styles. Both articles talk about the different things that have set African-Americans back such as family, income, and psychical health. Throughout the years African-Americans have made progress in the way society views them but still have ways to go.

They hypothesized that African Americans would have more negative attitudes towards seeking help for a mental illness even though they are more prevalent to suffer from a mental illness because of socioeconomic status and their limited availability to a mental health professionals. White and African American who suffered from major depression (n=427), any psychiatric disorder (n=1892), a severe disorder (n=855), or if they were general population (n=5877) were asked the probability that they would seek help for emotional health, their level of comfort talking to a professional, and the level of embarrassment they would feel if their friends knew. The study found that African Americans had more positive attitudes in all questions among all