A very telling indication of the mental health disparities and lack of access is that only 33% of Black Americans are receiving the proper mental healthcare they need (SAMHSA, 2015). In college populations, this evidence gets bleaker, with only 25% of Black students and 33% of Asian students receiving the needed treatment for mental illness, as opposed to the 50% of White students (Lipson et al., 2018). Not only are fewer BIPOC individuals receiving treatment, research conduced on 33 university counseling centers at PWIs found that White students had better therapy outcomes than BIPOC students (Owen et al., 2021). Including statistics of mental health disparities on college campuses is intended to intrigue our intended audience of college students and focus the analysis of disparities to a specific age group.

Citations:
Lipson S. K., Kern A., Eisenberg D., Breland-Noble A. M. (2018). Mental Health Disparities Among College Students of Color. J Adolesc Health, 63(3), 348-356.
doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2018.04.014. PMID: 30237000.

Owen, J., Coleman, J., Drinane, J., Tao, K., Imel, Z., Wampold, B., & Kopta, M. (2021). Psychotherapy racial/ethnic disparities in treatment outcomes: The role of university racial/ethnic composition. Journal of Counseling Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/cou0000548

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (2015). Racial/Ethnic Differences in Mental Health Service Use among Adults. HHS, Publication No. SMA-15-4906. 1-44.
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/MHServicesUseAmongAdults/MHServicesUseAmongAdults.pdf

In this study, researchers examined racially-biased callback responses in the mental health field by leaving voicemails soliciting services with practicing counselors and psychologists, using names to manipulate perceived race. Findings demonstrate that the caller with the stereotypically white-sounding name (Allison) received call-backs from the mental health specialists that promoted the potential for services at a 12% higher rate than the caller with the stereotypically black-sounding name (Lakisha). This means that Allison had a 12% greater chance of having a therapist open the door to potential health services by returning her initial phone call and offering the opportunity for further treatment. These results provide evidence to suggest the existence of systematic racial discrimination at the entry point of mental health treatment, from trained professional counselors and psychologists.

Citation:

Shin, R. Q., Smith, L. C., Welch, J. C., & Ezeofor, I. (2016). Is Allison More Likely Than Lakisha to Receive a Callback From Counseling Professionals? A Racism Audit Study. The Counseling Psychologist, 44(8), 1187–1211. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000016668814

Countless psychological studies have found racial differences in the treatment and diagnosis of mental health disorders like depression, schizophrenia, and anorexia nervosa. One study in particular found that, in individuals already diagnosed with schizophrenia, Black Americans were more likely than White Americans to screen positive for depression (Gara et al., 2018). This finding is significant because it suggests that diagnoses of schizophrenia in Black individuals may actually be misdiagnoses, meaning that many Black individuals are not receiving the proper care to treat their mental illnesses.

Historically, research has been conducted on different mental illnesses by White researchers for the treatment of white individuals. Therefore, many clinicians lack an understanding of the differential presentation of various mental illnesses in different cultural or racial groups (APA, 2017). It is vital to continue research on misdiagnoses and symptom presentation for diverse patient populations.

Citations:

American Psychiatric Association (APA). (2017). Mental Health Facts for African Americans. https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/cultural-competency/education/mental-health-facts

Gara, M., Minsky, S., Silverstein, S., Miskimen, T., Strakowski, S. (2019). A Naturalistic Study of Racial Disparities in Diagnoses at an Outpatient Behavioral Health Clinic. Psychiatric Services, 70(2), 130-134. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201800223

When conversations are more verbally dominated by the physician and less centered on the patient, there is a higher likelihood of misdiagnosis and misunderstanding.

Citation:
Johnson, R. L., Roter, D., Powe, N. R., & Cooper, L. A. (2004). Patient race/ethnicity and quality of patient-physician communication during medical visits. American journal of public health, 94(12), 2084–2090. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.94.12.2084

This is an important fact to take note of when considering mental health disparities in treatment options on the basis of race. Black individuals, along with all minority individuals who are discriminated against in the United States, are at greater risk for health issues and thus should be able to receive necessary treatment to prevent adverse outcomes. Alas, persisting racism along with many other factors act as barriers for minorities when it comes to receiving adequate treatment and support.

A research paper conducted by Berry et. al (2021) looked specifically into studies and sources focusing on the impact of racism on mental health for children in early childhood from 2016 to 2021. Longitudinal studies provide evidence that very young children are highly influenced by exposure to multiple and interconnecting levels of racism and discrimination. Findings show that recent literature indicates that racism is a social determinant of health that adversely impacts infant and early childhood socioemotional, and behavioral development

A meta-analysis conducted by Paradies et. al (2015) reviewed the literature focusing on the relationship between reported racism and mental and physical health outcomes. Studies show that racism was associated with poorer mental health including depression, anxiety, psychological stress AND racism was associated with poorer general health and physical health. 

Citations:

Berry, O., Londoño Tobón, A., & Njoroge, W. (2021). Social Determinants of Health: the Impact of Racism on Early Childhood Mental Health. Current Psychiatry Reports, 23(5), 23–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-021-01240-0 

Paradies, Y., Ben, J., Denson, N., Elias, A., Priest, N., Pieterse, A., Gupta, A., Kelaher, M., & Gee, G. (2015). Racism as a Determinant of Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PloS One, 10(9), e0138511–e0138511. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0138511

NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. If you want to hear more about what they have to say about mental health disparities, check out this link!
https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/July-2017/Disparities-Within-Minority-Mental-Health-Care

I would also love to hear your take on these steps, and any other input you may have on how we can help with racial disparities in the mental health department!

The infographic was strategically organized to be visually appealing, easy to read, and informational. We slowly built upon evidence to provide an understanding of the current racial disparities in mental health care. After establishing evidence for the existence of a disparity, we addressed deeper questions such as, “What are the long term health effects of racism on BIPOC?”, “Why do these disparities exist in the first place?”, and “How can we help?”

The organization of our project was an attempt to spark a call to action for our White readers, rather than activate a defensive or dismissive response. As Knowles et al. (2014) posits, White individuals can feel threatened by discussions of racial inequalities because it questions their “meritocratic” view of society. Specifically, many individuals will deny their White privilege or distance themselves from the White category in an attempt to validate their societal standing (Knowles et al., 2014). Rather than drafting our project in an accusatory tone, i.e. blaming disparities on racially biased White psychology professionals, we comprehensively discussed the existence of disparities before proposing the variable causes.

The goal of our infographic is to inform and engage, so that, after learning about disparities, readers will begin to think about what they can do in their community to combat racial discrimination in mental health care.

Citation:
Knowles, E. D., Lowery, S. B., Chow M. R., Unzueta, M. M. (2014). Deny, Distance, or Dismantle? How White Americans Manage a Privileged Identity. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 9(6), 594–609. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691614554658