Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Mental Health: A National Study of Unmet Need

Award Year: 2003	Investigator: Harold Neighbors	Budget: $274,999	Categories: Health Disparities, Mental Health
Abstract: Despite improved treatments for many mental disorders, profound racial and ethnic disparities continue in access to and use of mental health services in the United States. Social psychologist Harold W. Neighbors, Ph.D. has spent more than 20 years conducting research on mental health disparities. For his Investigator Award project, Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Mental Health: A National Study of Unmet Need, Dr. Neighbors analyzes differences in the prevalence of serious mental disorders, levels of impairment, and help-seeking behavior. He explores why African Americans seek professional help less frequently than white Americans. He also looks at how reliance upon help from social support networks and ministers, common in African American communities, can impede access to professional treatment. By integrating this new information with his past work, Dr. Neighbors plans to produce a comprehensive book that explains disparities in help-seeking and explores policy options for reducing them.