Socioeconomic status, ethnicity, psychological distress, and readiness to utilize a mental health facility

Article Abstract:

The use of professional mental health services has been shown to vary significantly by ethnic and socioeconomic groups. These individuals tend not to use these services, or professional services of any kind, except under extreme circumstances. One stereotypical characteristic that has been attributed to Mexican-Americans, as well as other underclass populations, is a fatalistic outlook on life. Some feel this characteristic is culturally based; others believe that socioeconomic factors give rise to this attitude. The impact of cultural factors and socioeconomic conditions in a population of Mexican-Americans was examined using a theoretical path model, which considered a number of variables that relate to the utilization of professional mental health services. Interviews were conducted with 446 Mexican-Americans and 227 Anglo-Americans, and test responses were evaluated to determined the subjects' readiness for self-referral. The sequence of factors predicted in the analytic path model included ethnicity, socioeconomic status, depression, and amount of social and institutional support available to the individual. No predisposition to depression was found the Mexican-American group. Life stress was the strongest single factor that resulted in depression, but it also resulted in the utilization of services. In general, the data obtained from this study group supported the validity of the model. These results reenforce the value of considering a multifactorial approach in evaluating the causes of mental disorders and self-referral behavior in the Mexican-American population. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Social aspects, Usage, Economic aspects, Demographic aspects, Depression, Mental, Depression (Mood disorder), Hispanic Americans, Psychiatric facilities

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Psychiatry of old age is coming of age

Article Abstract:

Researches indicate that old age has a positive effect on physical and mental health as shown by the improved functioning of the brain and other organs of the body. The fact that the risks posed by neuroleptic-induced acute dystonia on younger adults is greater than the elderly is an example of the positive aspects of aging. A fine example is the case of John F. Nash who was awarded the Nobel prize for a game theory in mathematics after 25 years of being treated for paranoid schizophrenia.

Psychological aspects, Aged, Elderly, Editorial, Analysis, Psychiatric research

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