A Preliminary Examination of the Cultural Dimensions of Mental Health Beliefs and Help Seeking: Perspectives from Chinese American Youths, Adults, and Service Providers

2017 ◽  
pp. 193-208
Author(s):  
Miwa Yasui
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Beliefs ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Chinese American ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Preliminary Examination ◽  
Mental Health Beliefs

scholarly journals A qualitative investigation of mental health in women of refugee background resettled in Tasmania, Australia

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Hawkes ◽  
Kimberley Norris ◽  
Janine Joyce ◽  
Douglas Paton
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mental Distress ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Regional Location ◽  
Services And Supports

Abstract Background Women of Refugee Background (WoRB) are a highly vulnerable population with complex going mental health needs following resettlement. In Australia, there has been a substantial increase in WoRB being resettled in rural and regional locations. Despite this, no research to date has specifically focused on factors contributing to mental distress in WoRB in regional resettlement locations. The current study aimed to address this gap in literature. Methods 21 semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with WoRB and service providers in regional locations of Tasmania, Australia. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were analysed utilising Braun and Clarke (Qual Res Psychol 3(2):77–101, 2006) framework for conducting thematic analysis. Results Thematic analysis revealed that WoRB conceptualised mental health as a pathogenic entity, which significantly influenced their mental health help-seeking behaviours. The findings also highlighted how resettlement to a rural and regional location of Australia may exacerbate many of the factors which contribute to ongoing mental distress in WoRB. Conclusions The findings of the current study build upon existing research which indicates the adverse impacts post-migrations stressors can have on the mental health of individuals of refugee background. Furthermore, this study suggests that the current services and supports available to WoRB resettled in regional locations of Australia are inadequate, and under-resources. These findings are discussed in regard to practical and policy implications which should be addressed to better support the mental health of WoRB resettled in rural and regional locations of Australia.

Parents’ Perspectives of their Children's Reactions to an Australian Military Deployment

2014 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Siebler ◽  
Christopher Goddard
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Military Families ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Military Deployment ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Parent Relationships ◽  
Australian Defence Force ◽  
Prevention Programmes ◽  
Depth Interviews

This article reports on a qualitative study of Australian parents’ perceptions of their children's reactions to a military deployment as well as their help-seeking behaviours. Thirty-eight in-depth interviews were conducted with 34 Australian Defence Force (ADF) parents and 33 non-deployed parents (67 participants). Twenty-nine interviews were with couples and nine were with individuals. The findings revealed that this group of children generally fared poorly in terms of physical and mental health, and behavioural outcomes. Children and adolescents had a number of needs which were not identified, assessed or treated, and prevention programmes were reported to be limited. Factors that are associated with positive and negative outcomes from the families’ perspective are outlined. The data showed how developing a deeper understanding of military families’ needs, as well as positive worker–parent relationships, would enhance the therapeutic alliance between parents and service providers. Implications for prevention and intervention approaches in relation to both policy and service delivery are outlined.

scholarly journals Indigenous and faith healing for mental health in Ghana: An examination of the literature on reported beliefs, practices and use of alternative mental health care in Ghana

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lily Kpobi ◽  
Leslie Swartz
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Mental Health Care ◽  
Health Beliefs ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Faith Healing ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Health Seeking ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Mental Health Beliefs

Background: For many people in African countries, various forms of health care are utilised for the treatment of illness. This pluralistic nature of health seeking includes the use of indigenous, faith and allopathic medicines for care.Aim: In this article, our aim was to gain insight into the existing knowledge on indigenous and faith healing in Ghana, with a particular focus on mental health care. We first examine the reported mental health beliefs and practices of Ghanaian alternative healers. Following this, we look at the use and purported preference for non-biomedical mental health care by patients.Methods: Relevant literature was examined to explore the beliefs, practices and use of non-biomedical mental health care systems in GhanaResults: Evidence for the use and preference for non-biomedical mental health care is largely anecdotal. Similarly, the mental health beliefs of alternative healers have been documented in various small-scale studies. However, such information is important if mental health services in Ghana are to be improved.Conclusion: Integration of the different healthcare systems must be built on knowledge of beliefs and methods. A clearer understanding of the work of non-biomedical healers is important if appropriate recommendations are to be made for collaboration between biomedical and non-biomedical systems in Ghana.

Cognitive-Behavioural Assessment and Treatment of Maladaptive Help-Seeking Behaviour in a Patient with Schizophrenia

2000 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 688-691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gus Norris ◽  
Roy Laube
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Public Mental Health ◽  
Chronic Schizophrenia ◽  
Cognitive Behavioural ◽  
Public Mental Health Services ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour

Objective: Maladaptive help-seeking behaviour in psychiatric patients is a significant problem for public mental health services, yet it is not addressed in the mainstream literature. We present a report on the successful treatment of a person with schizophrenia who displayed this common dilemma for patients and clinicians. Clinical picture: A 31-year-old man with borderline intellectual functioning had a 10-year history of schizophrenia marked by negative features. He frequently presented in crisis to public mental health services, the local hospital, and his general practitioner; this resulted in excessive use of services, including admissions. Treatment: The patient was reassessed from a cognitive-behavioural perspective rather than a syndromal perspective. Specific behaviours were modified, cognitions were identified, challenged and restructured, and other service providers were provided with an alternative to admission or acute community care. Outcome: At 24 months the maladaptive behaviour remains in remission. Conclusions: Behavioural problems in persons with chronic schizophrenia may be effectively treated by reconceptualising the behaviour as distinct from the major diagnosis.

scholarly journals Understanding Family Connections and Help Seeking Behavior in Chinese American Immigrant Adults who Attempt Suicide

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rose Wong ◽  
Dong Li Hou ◽  
Evaon Wong-Kim
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Chinese American ◽  
Comparative Approach ◽  
Chinese Family ◽  
Suicidal Behaviors ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviors ◽  
Family Culture ◽  
American Immigrant ◽  
Study Participants

Aim: This study explores the influence of beliefs, values and norms in Chinese family culture as they relate to attitudes and beliefs about mental health and mental health services. It examines family and acculturative stressors occurring in the immigrant’s social context on attitudes about suicidal distress and help-seeking behaviors, and focuses on appropriate forms of services for suicidal behaviors among adult immigrants experiencing suicidal behaviors. Methods: The study design is descriptive, using a qualitative approach. Six Chinese American immigrant adults who had attempted suicide participated in semi-structured interviews in Mandarin or Cantonese. The content was analyzed using a constant comparative approach. Results: Study participants exhibited various reactions to suicidal distress, attitudes about needing help and usefulness and relevance of existing intervention strategies and services that reflected influences of Chinese family culture. Interactions with family members negatively impacted study participants’ attitudes about using services and hindered pathways to care. Acculturative stressors, along with weak family ties and the absence of strong community networks exacerbated the strategies for effective services. Conclusion: This study raises the question of the efficacy of several Western-culture based service delivery models on help-seeking behaviors on such populations. Furthermore, the study discusses ethnic sensitive approaches with core roles for family, peers and community for supporting those at risk of attempting suicide and linking them to appropriate community-based services.

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