An Exploration of Mental Health Literacy Among African American Clergy

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore African American clergy's mental health literacy with older congregants 60 years of age and older. Using a grounded theory approach, we recruited a purposive sample of 9 African American clergy representing diverse ages, denominations, locales, and educational levels. Data was coded and classified according to Kevin's (1976) typology of pastoral counseling and Jorm et al.'s (1997) conceptual model of mental health literacy. Findings from data analysis revealed study respondents were adherents of Kevin's Religious-Community (R-C) model. Additionally, the following themes emerged: loss of cognitive functioning, psychosocial stressors, religiosity, and appreciation for professional assistance, cultural barriers, and key informants/familiarity with formal mental health providers which partially maps onto Jorm et al.'s conceptual model of mental health literacy.

Mental health literacy in korean older adults: A cross‐sectional survey

“…It has been more common for mental health literacy studies on adults to include participants of all ages. Studies in Australia (Farrer et al., ; Jorm, Christensen, & Griffiths, ; Jorm et al., ) and India (Kermode et al., ) included participants 18 and older, a study in Sweden included individuals 20 to 64 years old (Dahlberg et al., ), and a study in the United States included participants aged 28 to 56 (Stansbury & Schumacher, ). Other studies in the United States assessed mental health literacy of older adult African Americans (Stansbury, Peterson, & Beecher, ) and Hmong and Cambodian refugees (Lee et al., ).…”

“…This study also expands the scope of prior research on mental health literacy among adults. Previous studies investigated knowledge and recognition of mental health conditions such as depression, psychosis and schizophrenia, as well as attitudes and beliefs towards treatment (Dahlberg et al., ; Farrer et al., ; Jorm et al., , ; Kermode et al., ; Stansbury & Schumacher, ; Stansbury et al., ). The present study assessed overall mental health literacy including recognition, preventive and management factors and identified enabling and need factors associated with mental health literacy among older adults.…”

African American Clergy's Perceptions of Mental Health and Pastoral Care to Elder Congregants

“…African American clergy, as servants of the Church, are in a unique position to support elders in their efforts to achieve and maintain optimal mental health (Blasi, Husaini, & Drumwright, 1998;Lyles, 1992;Stansbury, Harley, & Brown-Hughes, 2009;Stansbury & Schumacher, 2008). Efforts to better understand how clergy provide pastoral care to support elder congregant's mental health is essential given the likely demographic shift.…”

Perceptions of African American Christians' Attitudes Toward Religious Help-Seeking: Results of an Exploratory Study

“…An increasing area of interest in social work practice and research focuses on the meaningful exploration of a client's faith as one of the protective factors that can be accessed in times of personal crisis (Adksion-Bradley, Johnson, Sanders, Duncan, & Holcomb-McCoy, 2005;Berkel, Armstrong, & Cokley, 2004;Canda, 2008;Chatters, Levin, & Ellison, 1998;Chatters, 2000;Ellison & Taylor, 1996;Farris, 2006;Hardy, 2011;Perdue, Johnson, Singley, & Jackson, 2006;Sheridan, 2009;Stansbury & Schumacher, 2008; …”