Ethnicity, social status, and families' experiences of caring for a mentally ill family member

• Published in: Community mental health journal Vol. 32; no. 3; pp. 243 - 260
• Main Authors: GUARNACCIA, P. J, PARRA, P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Springer 01-06-1996; Behavioral Publications, etc; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: African Americans; Attitude towards mental illness; Biological and medical sciences; Caregivers; Caregivers - psychology; Carers; Comparison; Cost of Illness; Culture; Ethnicity; European Continental Ancestry Group; Experiences; Families; Families & family life; Family; Family Relations; Female; Health services; Hispanic Americans; Humans; Interviews as Topic; Male; Medical sciences; Mental disorders; Mental Disorders - ethnology; Mental health; Mental health care; Mental Illness; Mentally ill people; Middle Aged; Minority & ethnic groups; Multiculturalism & pluralism; New Jersey; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Relationship; Social Class; Social psychiatry. Ethnopsychiatry; Social research; Social Status; Social Support; Socioeconomic Factors; USA; Whites; Social environment; Human; Demography; Attitude; Caregiver; Negroid; Latinamerican; Ethnic group; Care; Social status; Cultural environment; Family environment; Mental disorder; Black American; Caucasoid; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0010-3853; 1573-2789
• DOI: 10.1007/BF02249426

There is growing attention to the role of families nas caregivers of family members with serious mental illness. This paper presents presents data from a multicultural sample of 90 family caregivers from diverse ethnic backgrounds. The paper examines families' experiences with mental health services; their support networks and family burdens; and their conceptions of mental illness. The paper both provides one of the first comparative studies of family caregivers from different ethnic groups and suggests an agenda for future research in this area.