Showing papers by "Harold W. Neighbors published in 1987"

Sex differences in professional help seeking among adult black Americans.

Abstract: This paper provides baseline data on sex differences in the use of professional help for serious personal problems in a nationally representative sample of adult black Americans. Bivariate analyses revealed that women had higher levels of psychological distress and were significantly more likely to seek professional help than were men. They were also more likely to utilize physicians and social service agencies. The relationship of gender to these help resources remained significant even when the effects of problem severity and differential problem definition were taken into account. Controlling for income, however, eliminated the sex difference for social services use but not for physician use. The purpose of this paper was to provide baseline data on sex differences in help-seeking behavior among black adults. Seeking professional help can be conceptualized as a series of decisions: the recognition of a problem, the decision to seek some form of professional assistance, and the choice of a particular help source. This study was concerned with the last two decisions. That is, given the recognition of a serious personal problem, we asked whether black men and women differ in the decision to seek professional help as well as in their choices of which specific help sources to utilize. This

Improving the mental health of black Americans: Lessons from the community mental health movement

Abstract: The ideology of the community mental health movement in the 1960s--that psychological distress among black Americans could be prevented if policies moved away from clinical models to a focus on social-structural change--still has much to offer. Agendas for both epidemiologic and intervention research will have to address the antecedents of psychopathology and assess the strategies of adjustment to social mobility and expectancy problems. Long-term preventive programs aimed at preschool and elementary school and at job training offer the greatest promise.

Barriers to medical care among adult blacks: what happens to the uninsured?

Abstract: This article examines perceived barriers to the utilization of medical care among the uninsured in a national sample of adult (18 years and older) black Americans. Uninsured respondents were more likely to feel that it was difficult for them to receive medical care, and that they needed more care than they were obtaining. The uninsured in comparison with insured respondents were less likely to utilize private, office-based physicians. Insurance coverage, however, made no difference in hospital emergency room use for health care. The results suggest that the lack of health insurance places large numbers of blacks at a severe disadvantage in obtaining needed health care.