Understanding the Rates and Distribution of Mental Disorders

Abstract

The increasing diversity of the American public has challenged mental health professionals to expand their knowledge base to include issues of race, culture, and ethnicity. A fundamental issue is whether or not the rates and distribution of mental disorder in the community vary by ethnic group. Unfortunately, this deceptively simple question has not been satisfactorily answered. Critical methodological and conceptual problems have complicated understanding and assessment of ethnic differences and highlight the need for improvements in research methods and assessment practices. This chapter reviews the available community prevalence data for Asian Americans compared to other groups and discusses the conceptual and methodological issues that have influenced the state of the field. In addition, within-group variables that influence the prevalence of mental disorders are also discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)