Stigmas are cues that elicit stereotypes about a particular social group ( Corrigan, 2000). High levels of cultural mistrust have been associated with mental illness stigma in the African American community. Cultural mistrust is defined as “paranoia, in the form of mistrust, of whites due to past and present experiences with racism and oppression” ( Terrell & Terrell, 1981). For African Americans, sociopolitical history might play a large role in fostering cultural mistrust toward the United States health care system ( Whaley, 2001). We also examined whether beliefs and coping behaviors varied by age.Īttitudes and Beliefs About Mental IllnessĮvents like the Tuskegee Experiments ( Rusert, 2009) are hypothesized as contributing to many African Americans' negative attitudes about seeking health care services. To address this gap, we employed the Common Sense Model (CSM) to guide us as we queried African American women's beliefs about mental illness, their coping behaviors in response to mental illness, and the barriers to their seeking mental health services. Qualitative studies based on a comprehensive theoretical framework are virtually nonexistent and critically needed ( Moodley, 2000). To date, little research has examined how individual beliefs and attitudes influence coping behaviors and treatment seeking specific to African American women ( Mays et al., 1996). Matthews and Hughes (2001) found African American women over age 50 were less likely to participate in therapy than those under age 50. Low rates of service use also hold true for older African American women. Another study examined treatment seeking among adult African American women with panic disorders, and found that only 13% sought treatment ( Neal-Barnett & Crowther, 2000). Department of Health and Human Services, 2001). Even so, the use of outpatient mental health services is lower for African American women compared to White women and African American men ( Breslau, Kendler, Su, Gaxiola-Aguilar, & Kessler, 2005 Mays, Caldwell, & Jackson, 1996 U.S.
Older African American women might be at an additional risk because of the high prevalence of chronic disease in this population, and the demonstrated correlations between chronic disease and mental health issues such as depression ( Artinian, Washington, Flack, Hockman, & Jen, 2006 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2004).Ī national study conducted by the California Black Women's Health Project (2003) revealed that 60% of African American women experience symptoms of depression. Risk factors include lower income, poor health, multiple role strain, and the “double minority status” of race and gender ( Neufeld, Harrison, Steward, & Hughes, 2008 Schneider, Hitlan, & Radhakrishnan, 2000). African American women might be overrepresented in this population as they are at a higher risk for developing mental illness.
Unfortunately, almost 25%-or 7.5 million-African Americans have been diagnosed with a mental illness ( Davis, 2005). In 2000 there were 34.7 million African Americans in the United States, making up approximately 13% of the population ( U.S. Practice and research implications are discussed. Few age differences were found in beliefs, coping behaviors, and barriers. Treatment-seeking barriers included poor access to care, stigma, and lack of awareness of mental illness. Participants endorsed the use of prayer and counseling as coping strategies, but were ambivalent about the use of medications. They believed mental illness is chronic, with negative health outcomes. Dimensional analysis, guided by the CSM, showed that participants believed general, culturally specific, and age-related factors can cause mental illness. Fifteen community-dwelling African American women participated in individual interviews. In this qualitative study we employed the Common Sense Model (CSM) to examine African American women's beliefs about mental illness, coping behaviors, barriers to treatment seeking, and variations in beliefs, coping, and barriers associated with aging.
Little is known about African American women's beliefs about mental illness.
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