IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/socpsy/v59y2013i6p535-544.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

‘Our community is the worst’: The influence of cultural beliefs on stigma, relationships with family and help-seeking in three ethnic communities in London

Author

Listed:
  • Guy Shefer
  • Diana Rose
  • Laura Nellums
  • Graham Thornicroft
  • Claire Henderson
  • Sara Evans-Lacko

Abstract

Background: Existing knowledge about the cultural beliefs of black and minority ethnic (BME) communities in the UK regarding stigma and mental illness is limited. Material: Data were collected in 10 focus groups, five with service users and five with laypersons, from BME communities in London. Discussion: Thematic analysis identified that cultural beliefs regarding mental illness reflect four different voices present within the BME communities. Conclusion: The study revealed that cultural beliefs influencing both relationships with family and, consequently, help-seeking for individuals with mental illness must be considered in the development of anti-stigma interventions and when engaging communities around mental health.

Suggested Citation

  • Guy Shefer & Diana Rose & Laura Nellums & Graham Thornicroft & Claire Henderson & Sara Evans-Lacko, 2013. "‘Our community is the worst’: The influence of cultural beliefs on stigma, relationships with family and help-seeking in three ethnic communities in London," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 59(6), pages 535-544, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:socpsy:v:59:y:2013:i:6:p:535-544
    DOI: 10.1177/0020764012443759
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0020764012443759
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/0020764012443759?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mclean, Carl & Campbell, Catherine & Cornish, Flora, 2003. "African-Caribbean interactions with mental health services in the UK: experiences and expectations of exclusion as (re)productive of health inequalities," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 56(3), pages 657-669, February.
    2. Link, B.G. & Phelan, J.C. & Bresnahan, M. & Stueve, A. & Pescosolido, B.A., 1999. "Public conceptions of mental illness: Labels, causes, dangerousness, and social distance," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 89(9), pages 1328-1333.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Louise Tanner & Sarah Sowden & Madeleine Still & Katie Thomson & Clare Bambra & Josephine Wildman, 2021. "Which Non-Pharmaceutical Primary Care Interventions Reduce Inequalities in Common Mental Health Disorders? A Protocol for a Systematic Review of Quantitative and Qualitative Studies," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-12, December.
    2. Omar Hegazi & Samer Alalalmeh & Ahmad Alfaresi & Soheil Dashtinezhad & Ahmed Bahada & Moyad Shahwan & Ammar Abdulrahman Jairoun & Tesleem K. Babalola & Haya Yasin, 2022. "Development, Validation, and Utilization of a Social Media Use and Mental Health Questionnaire among Middle Eastern and Western Adults: A Pilot Study from the UAE," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(23), pages 1-18, November.
    3. Wright, Annemarie & Jorm, Anthony F. & Mackinnon, Andrew J., 2011. "Labeling of mental disorders and stigma in young people," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 73(4), pages 498-506, August.
    4. Alyssia Rossetto & Anthony F. Jorm & Nicola J. Reavley, 2014. "Examining Predictors of Help Giving Toward People With a Mental Illness," SAGE Open, , vol. 4(2), pages 21582440145, May.
    5. Jacobs, Susan & Quinn, Joseph, 2022. "Cultural reproduction of mental illness stigma and stereotypes," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 292(C).
    6. Kathy Knox & Jasmina Fejzic & Amary Mey & Jane L Fowler & Fiona Kelly & Denise McConnell & Laetitia Hattingh & Amanda J Wheeler, 2014. "Mental health consumer and caregiver perceptions of stigma in Australian community pharmacies," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 60(6), pages 533-543, September.
    7. Scott, Penelope, 2014. "Black African asylum seekers’ experiences of health care access in an eastern German state," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 10(3), pages 134-147.
    8. Ben Butlin & Keith Laws & Rebecca Read & Matthew D Broome & Shivani Sharma, 2019. "Concepts of mental disorders in the United Kingdom: Similarities and differences between the lay public and psychiatrists," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 65(6), pages 507-514, September.
    9. Lorenza Magliano & Andrea Fiorillo & Heidegret Del Vecchio & Claudio Malangone & Corrado De Rosa & Carla Bachelet & Giampiero Cesari & Rosa D'Ambrogio & Francesca Fulgosi Cigala & Franco Veltro & Paol, 2009. "Development and Validation of a Self-Reported Questionnaire On Users’ Opinions About Schizophrenia: a Participatory Research," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 55(5), pages 425-441, September.
    10. Ying Ying Lee & Wei Ler Koo & Yi Fong Tan & Vanessa Seet & Mythily Subramaniam & Suying Ang & Charmaine Tang, 2022. "A Mixed-Methods Outcomes Evaluation Protocol for a Co-Produced Psychoeducation Workshop Series on Recovery from Psychosis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(23), pages 1-15, November.
    11. Gert Scheerder & Chantal Van Audenhove & Ella Arensman & Barbara Bernik & Giancarlo Giupponi & Anne-Claire Horel & Margaret Maxwell & Merike Sisask & Andras Szekely & Airi Värnik & Ulrich Hegerl, 2011. "Community and Health Professionals’ Attitude Toward Depression: a Pilot Study in Nine Eaad Countries," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 57(4), pages 387-401, July.
    12. Yang, Lawrence H. & Purdie-Vaughns, Valerie & Kotabe, Hiroki & Link, Bruce G. & Saw, Anne & Wong, Gloria & Phelan, Jo C., 2013. "Culture, threat, and mental illness stigma: Identifying culture-specific threat among Chinese-American groups," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 56-67.
    13. Ahmed El Missiry & Marwa Abd El Meguid & Ahmed Abourayah & Marwa El Missiry & Mohamed Hossam & Hussien Elkholy & Afaf H Khalil, 2019. "Rates and profile of victimization in a sample of Egyptian patients with major mental illness," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 65(3), pages 183-193, May.
    14. Sadler, Melody S. & Meagor, Elizabeth L. & Kaye, Kimberly E., 2012. "Stereotypes of mental disorders differ in competence and warmth," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 74(6), pages 915-922.
    15. Carpiano, Richard M. & Fitz, Nicholas S., 2017. "Public attitudes toward child undervaccination: A randomized experiment on evaluations, stigmatizing orientations, and support for policies," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 185(C), pages 127-136.
    16. Dobransky, Kerry, 2009. "The good, the bad, and the severely mentally ill: Official and informal labels as organizational resources in community mental health services," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 69(5), pages 722-728, September.
    17. Kate Bernard & Josephine M. Wildman & Louise M. Tanner & Akvile Stoniute & Madeleine Still & Rhiannon Green & Claire Eastaugh & Sarah Sowden & Katie H. Thomson, 2023. "Experiences of Non-Pharmaceutical Primary Care Interventions for Common Mental Health Disorders in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Groups: A Systematic Review of Qualitative Studies," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(7), pages 1-23, March.
    18. Adrian Furnham & Anuli Igboaka, 2007. "Young People's Recognition and Understanding of Schizophrenia: a Cross-Cultural Study of Young People From Britain and Nigeria," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 53(5), pages 430-446, September.
    19. Xiao Yu Zhuang & Daniel Fu Keung Wong & Chi-Wei Cheng & Shu-Man Pan, 2017. "Mental health literacy, stigma and perception of causation of mental illness among Chinese people in Taiwan," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 63(6), pages 498-507, September.
    20. Sikorski, Claudia & Luppa, Melanie & Angermeyer, Matthias C. & Schomerus, Georg & Link, Bruce & Riedel-Heller, Steffi G., 2015. "The association of BMI and social distance towards obese individuals is mediated by sympathy and understanding," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 25-30.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:socpsy:v:59:y:2013:i:6:p:535-544. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.