Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Challenge of Understanding the Mental Health of African Americans: The Risks and Rewards of Segregation, Support, and John Henryism

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Handbook of Race and Development in Mental Health

Abstract

The educational, employment, and financial status of African Americans differs from that of other US race/ethnic groups, particularly White Americans. For example, in July 2006, it was estimated that 23.8 million Americans aged between 18 and 64 years, or 12.6% of the total US population, were African American. Of the African American noninstitutionalized, civilian population, 11.3 million (47.5%) were male, and 12.5 million (52.5%) were female (US Census Bureau 2006d). According to the 2004 Current Population Survey, the majority of African American adults (54%) reside in the South. In 2006, 8.2 million African American adults aged 18–64 years (36.1%) earned a high school diploma, while 2.7 million (11.9%) earned a bachelor’s degree compared to 30.3 and 20.4% of non-Hispanic White Americans who earned a high school diploma or bachelor’s degree, respectively (US Census Bureau 2006b). The average African-American family median income in 2006 was US$ 32,372 in comparison to US$ 52,375 for non-Hispanic White families (US Census Bureau 2006a). In 2006, the US Census Bureau reported that 25.3% of African Americans were living at or below the poverty level, compared to 9.3% for White Americans. Forty-eight percent of African Americans owned their own home, while over three-quarters of White Americans were homeowners in 2006 (US Census Bureau 2006c). As of July 2007, the unemployment rate for African Americans (8%) was twice that of White Americans (4%) (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics Survey 2007). One-third (33%) of African-American adults aged 19–64 years were uninsured or experiencing a gap in coverage during 2005 compared to 20% for their White American counterparts(Doty and Holmgren 2006). It is not difficult to conclude that many of the benefits derived from improved socioeconomic standing vary by racial group membership (Conley 1999; Krieger et al. 1997; Oliver and Shapiro 1995; Shapiro 2004; Williams and Collins 1995).

Dr. Kai McKeever Bullard’s contribution was made while completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Michigan.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Adelman, R. (2004). Neighborhood opportunities, race, and class: The Black middle class and residential segregation. City and Community, 3, 43–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Airhihenbuwa, C. O., & Liburd, L. (2006). Eliminating health disparities in the African American population: The interface of culture, gender, and power. Health Education & Behavior, 33(4), 488–501.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychological Association (APA). (2004), The Road to Resilience, American Psychological Association, Arlington, VA. http://apahelpcenter.org/featuredtopics/feature.php?id=6ch=2. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • Baum, A., Garofalo, J. P., & Yali, A. M. (1999). Socioeconomic status and chronic stress. Does stress account for SES effects on health? Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 896, 131–144.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, G. G., Merritt, M. M., Sollers, J. J., Edwards, C. L., Whitfield, K. E., Brandon, D. T., & Tucker, R. D. (2004). Stress, coping, and health outcomes among African Americans: A review of the John Henryism hypothesis, Psychology & Health, 19(3), 369–383.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blazer, D. G., Kessler, R. C., McGonagle, K. A., & Swartz, M. S. (1994). The prevalence and distribution of major depression in a national community sample: The national comorbidity survey. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 151(7), 979–986.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bonham, V. L., Sellers, S. L., & Neighbors, H. W. (2004). John Henryism and self-reported physical health among high-socioeconomic status African American men. American Journal of Public Health, 94(5), 737–738.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2007). Current Employment Statistics Survey. http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • Cannon, M. S., & Locke, B. Z. (1977). Being Black is detrimental to one’s mental health: Myth or reality? Phylon, 38(4), 408–428.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cashin, S. (2004). The failures of integration: How race and class are undermining the American dream. New York: Public Affairs.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cassel, J. (1976). The contribution of the social environment to host resistance. American Journal of Epidemiology, 104(2), 107–123.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Charles, C. Z. (2003). The dynamics of racial residential segregation. Annual Review of Sociology, 29, 167–207.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charles, C. Z., Dinwiddie, G., & Massey, D. S. (2004). The continuing consequences of segregation: Family stress and college academic performance. Social Science Quarterly, 85(5), 1353–1373.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chatters, L. M. (1989). Subjective well-being among older Black adults: Past trends and current perspectives. In J. S. Jackson (Ed.), Aging research on Black populations. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chatters, L. M, Taylor, R. J., Lincoln, K. D., & Schroepfer, T. (2002). Patterns of informal support from family and church members among African Americans, Journal of Black Studies, 33(1), 66–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, R., Anderson, N. B., Clark, V. R., & Williams, D. R. (2002). Racism as a stressor for African Americans: A biopsychosocial model. In T. LaVeist (Ed.), Race, ethnicity, and health. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, F. (1987). Measurement of coping. In S. V. Kasl & C. L. Cooper (Eds.), Stress and health: Issues in research methodology. Chichester: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), 310–357.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, E. R., & Omari, S. R. (2003). Race, class and the dilemmas of upward mobility for African Americans. Journal of Social Issues, 59(4), 785–802.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Colen, C. G., Geronimus, A. T., & Phipps, M. G. (2006). Getting a piece of the pie? The economic boom of the 1990s and declining teen birth rates in the United States. Social Science & Medicine, 63(6), 1531–1545.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conley, D. (1999). Being Black, living in the Red. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cose, E. (Ed.). (1993). Rage of a privileged class. New York: Harper Perennial.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darden, J. T. & Kamel, S. M. (2000). Black residential segregation in the city and suburbs of Detroit: Does socioeconomic status matter? Journal of Urban Affairs, 22(1), 1–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diez Roux, A. V., Stein Merkin, S., Arnett, D., Chambless, L., Massing, M., Nieto, F. J., et al. (2001). Neighborhood of residence and incidence of coronary heart disease. New England Journal of Medicine, 345, 99–106.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Din-Dzietham, R., Nembhard, W. N., Collins, R., & Davis, S. K. (2004). Perceived stress following race-based discrimination at work is associated with hypertension in African-Americans. The Metro Atlanta Heart Disease Study, 1999–2001. Social Science & Medicine, 58(3), 449–461.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dohrenwend, B. P., Levav, I., Shrout, P. E., et al. (1992). Socioeconomic status and psychiatric disorders: The causation-selection issue. Science, 255, 946–952.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Doty, M. M., & Holmgren, A. L. (2006). Health Care Disconnect: Gaps in Coverage and Care for Minority Adults, The Commonwealth Fund, August 2006.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dressler, W. W., Bindon, J. R., & Neggers, Y. H. (1998). John Henryism, gender, and arterial blood pressure in an African American community. Psychosomatic Medicine, 60(5), 620–624.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Farley, R., & Frey, W. H. (1994). Changes in the segregation of Whites from Blacks during the 1980s: Small steps toward a more integrated society. American Sociological Review, 59, 23–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Feagin, J. R., & McKinney, K. D. (2003). The many costs of racism. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fischer A. R. & Shaw C. M. (1999). African Americans’ mental health and perceptions of racist discrimination: the moderating effects of racial socialization experiences and self-esteem. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 46, 395–407.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Forman, T. A., Williams, D. R., & Jackson, J. S. (1997). Race, place, and discrimination. In C. Gardner (Ed.), Perspectives on social problems (pp. 9, 231–261). New York: JAI Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fulwood, Sam. (1996). Waking from the dream. New York: Anchor Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garmezy, N. (1991). Resiliency and vulnerability to adverse developmental outcomes associated with poverty. American Behavioral Scientist 34(4), 416–430.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Geronimus, A. T. (2001). Understanding and eliminating racial inequalities in women’s health in the United States: The role of the weathering conceptual framework. Journal of the American Medical Women’s Association, 56(4), 133–136, 149–150.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Geronimus, A. T., & Thompson, J. P. (2004). To denigrate, ignore, or disrupt: Racial inequality in health and the impact of a policy-induced breakdown of African American communities. Du Bois Review, 1(2), 247–279.

    Google Scholar 

  • Geronimus, A. T., Bound, J., Waidmann, T. A., Hillemeier, M. M., & Burns, P. B. (1996). Excess mortality among Blacks and Whites in the United States. The New England Journal of Medicine, 335(21), 1552–1558.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Geronimus, A. T., Hicken, M., Keene, D., & Bound, J. (2006). “Weathering” and age patterns of allostatic load scores among Blacks and Whites in the United States. American Journal of Public Health, 96(5), 826–833.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gilman, S. E., Kawachi, I., Fitzmaurice, G. M., & Buka, S. L. (2002). Socioeconomic status in childhood and the lifetime risk of major depression. International Journal of Epidemiology, 31, 359–367.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Glaeser, Edward L., & Vigdor, J. L. (2001). Racial segregation in the 2000 census: Promising news. Census 2000 series. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution, Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heflin, C. M., & Patillo, M. (2002). Crossing class boundaries: Race, siblings, and socioeconomic heterogeneity. Northwestern University/University of Chicago: Chicago: Joint Center for Poverty Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Higginbotham, E., & Weber, L. (1992). Moving up with kin and community: Upward social mobility for Black and White women. Gender and Society, 6(3), 416–440.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hochschild, J. L. (1995). Facing up to the American dream: Race, class, and the soul of the nation. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • House, J. S., Landis, K. R., & Umberson, D. (1988). Social relationships and health. Science, 241(4865), 540–545.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Israel, B. A., Farquhar, S. A., Schulz, A. J., James, S. A., & Parker, E. A. (2002). The relationship between social support, stress, and health among women on Detroit’s East Side. Health Education and Behavior, 29(3), 342–360.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, J. S. (1991). Life in Black America. Newbury Park: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, J. S., & Knight, K. M. (2006). Race and self-regulatory health behaviors: The role of the stress response and the HPA axis in physical and mental health disparities. In L. L. Cartensen & K. W. Schaie (Eds.). Social structure, aging and self-regulation in the elderly. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • James, S. A. (1994). John Henryism and the health of African-Americans. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry, 18(2), 163–182.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • James, S. A. (2002). John Henryism and the health of African Americans. In T. A. LaVeist (Ed.), Race, ethnicity, and health. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • James, S. A., Hartnett, S. A., & Kalsbeek, W. D. (1983). John Henryism and blood pressure differences among Black men. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 6(3), 259–278.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • James, S. A., Keenan, N. L., Strogatz, D. S., Browning, S. R., & Garrett, J. M. (1992). Socioeconomic status, John Henryism, and blood pressure in Black adults. The Pitt County study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 135(1), 59–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Karlsen, S., & Nazroo, J. Y. (2002). Relation between racial discrimination, social class, and health among ethnic minority groups. American Journal of Public Health, 92(4), 624–631.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., Chiu, W. T., Demler, O., & Walters, E. E. (2005). Prevalence, severity, and of 12 month DSM-IV disorders in the national comorbidity survey replication. Archives of General Psychiatry, 62, 617–627.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., McGonagle, K. A., Swartz, M., Blazer, D. G., & Nelson, C. B. (1993). Sex and depression in the national comorbidity survey I: Lifetime prevalence, chronicity, and recurrence. Journal of Affective Disorders, 29, 85–96.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., Mickelson, K., & Williams, D. (1999). The prevalence, distribution, and mental health correlates of perceived discrimination in the United States. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 40, 208–230.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kling, J. R., Liebman, J. B., Katz, L. F., & Sanbonmatsu, L. (2004). Moving to opportunity and tranquility: Neighborhood effects on adult economic self-sufficiency and health from a randomized housing voucher experiment. http://www.wws.princeton.edu/~kling/mto/481.pdf. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • Krieger, N., & Sidney, S. (1996). Racial discrimination and blood pressure: The CARDIA study of young Black and White adults. American Journal of Public Health, 86(10), 1370–1378.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Krieger, N., Williams, D. R., & Moss, N. E. (1997). Measuring social class in US public health research: Concepts, methodologies, and guidelines. Annual Review of Public Health, 18, 341–378.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lacy, K. R. (2004). Black spaces, black places: Strategic assimilation and identity construction in middle-class suburbia. Ethnic and Racial Studies 27(6), 908–930.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Landry, B. (1987). The new Black middle class. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lareau, A. (2003). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • LaVeist, T. A. (Ed.). (2002). Race, ethnicity, and health. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, K. D. (2000). Social support, negative social interactions and psychological well-being. Social Service Review, 74(2), 231–252.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, K. D., Chatters, L. M., & Taylor, R. J. (2005). Social support, traumatic events and depressive symptoms among African Americans. Journal of Marriage and Family, 67(3), 754–766.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, K. D., Taylor, R. J., & Chatters, L. M. (2003a). Correlates of emotional support and negative interaction among Black Americans. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences 58B(4), S225–S233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, K. D., Chatters, L. M., & Taylor, R. J. (2003b). Psychological distress among Black and White Americans: Differential effects of social support, negative interaction and personal control. Journal of Health and Social Behavior 44(3), 390–407.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Massey, D., & Denton. N. (1993). American apartheid, segregation and the making of the underclass. Cambridge: The President and Fellows of the Harvard College.

    Google Scholar 

  • Masten, A. S. (1994). Resilience in individual development: Successful adaptation despite risk and adversity. In M. Wang & E. Gordon (Eds.), Risk and resilience in inner city America: Challenges and prospects. (pp. 3–25). Hillsdale: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mattlin, J. A., Wethington, E., & Kessler, R. C. (1990). Situational determinants of coping effectiveness. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 31, 103–122.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McAdoo, H. P. (1978). Factors related to stability in upwardly mobile Black families. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 40, 226–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mullings, L. (2002). The Sojourner syndrome: Race, class, and gender in health and illness. Voices, 6(1), 32–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mullings, L., & Wali, A. (2001). Stress and resilience: The social context of reproduction in central Harlem. New York: Plenum.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Muntaner, C., Eaton, W. W., Diala, C., Kessler, R. C., & Sorlie, P. D. (1998). Social class, assets, organizational control and the prevalence of common groups of psychiatric disorders. Social Science & Medicine, 47, 2043–2053.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy J. M., Olivier D. C., Monson R. R., Sobol A. M., Federman E. B., & Leighton A. H. (1991). Depression and anxiety in relation to social status. Archives of General Psychiatry, 48, 223–229.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W. (1997). Husbands, wives, family, and friends: Sources of stress, sources of support. In R. J. Taylor, J. S. Jackson, L. M. Chatters (Eds.), Family life in Black America (pp. 277–299). Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., & LaVeist, T. A. (1989). Socioeconomic status and psychological distress: The impact of financial aid on economic problem severity. Journal of Primary Prevention, 10(2), 149–165.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., & Williams, D. R. (2001). The epidemiology of mental disorder. In R. L. Braithwaite & S. E. Taylor (Eds.), Health issues in the Black community (pp. 99–128). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H., Braithwaite, R., & Thompson, E. (1995). Health promotion and African Americans: From personal empowerment to community action. American Journal of Health Promotion, 9(4), 281–287.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., Elliott, K. A., & Gant, L. M. (1990). Self-help and Black Americans: A strategy for empowerment. In T. J. Powell (Ed.), Working with self-help (pp. 189–217). Silver Spring: National Association of Social Workers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., Jackson, J. S., Campbell, L., & Williams, D. (1989). Racial influences on psychiatricdiagnosis: A review and suggestions for research. Community Mental Health Journal, 25(4), 301–311.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., & Lumpkin, S. (1990). The epidemiology of mental disorder in the Black population. In D. S. Ruiz & J. P. Comer (Eds.), Handbook of mental health and mental disorder among Black Americans (pp. 55–70). New York: Greenwood.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., Jackson, J. S., Broman, C., & Thompson, E. L. (1996). Racism and the mental health of African Americans: The role of self and system blame. Ethnicity and Disease, 6, 167–175.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., Njai, R., & Jackson, J. S. (2007). Research in Human Development, 4(1–2), 71–87.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors, H. W., Trierweiler, S. J., Ford, B. C., & Muroff, J. R. (2003). Racial differences in DSM diagnosis using a semi-structured instrument: The importance of clinical judgment in the diagnosis of African Americans. Journal of Health & Social Behavior, 44, 237–256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Newman, K. S. (1999). No shame in my game. New York: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2001). Gender differences in depression. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10(5), 173–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oliver, M., & Shapiro. T. (1995). Black wealth/White wealth. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ondrich, J., Ross, S., & Yinger, J. (2003). Now you sSee It, Now you don’t: Why do real estate agents withhold available houses from Black customers? The Review of Economics and Statistics, 85(4), 854–873.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parker, S., & Kleiner, R. J. (1966). Mental illness in the urban Negro community. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patillo-McCoy, M. (1999). Black Picket Fences: Privilege and Peril Among the Black Middle Class. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patterson, O. (1997). The ordeal of integration: Progress and resentment in America’s “Racial”crisis. Washington, DC: Counterpoint/Civitas.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I., & Schooler, C. (1978). The structure of coping. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 19(1), 2–21.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ross, S. L., & Turner M. A. (2005). Housing discrimination in metropolitan America: Explaining changes between 1989 and 2000. Social Problems, 52(2), 152–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sadowski, H., Ugarte, B., Kolvin, I., Kaplan, C., & Barnes, J. (1999). Early life family disadvantages and major depression in adulthood. British Journal of Psychiatry, 174, 112–120.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schulz R., O’Brien A. T., Bookwala J., & Fleissner K. (1995). Psychiatric and physical morbidity effects of dementia caregiving: Prevalence, correlates, and causes. Gerontologist, 35, 771–791.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sellers, S. L., Bonham, V., Neighbors, H. W., & Amell, J. W. (2006). Health Education & Behavior.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro, T. M. (2004). The hidden cost of being African American: How wealth perpetuates inequality. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Snowden, L. R. (2003). Bias in mental health assessment and intervention: Theory and evidence. American Journal of Public Health, 93(2), 239–243.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stack, C. (1974). All our kin: Strategies for survival in a black community. New York: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steele, S. (1991). The Content of our character: A new vision of Race in America. New York: HarperPerennial.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steele, S. (1998). A dream deferred. New York: Harper Collins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Szreter, S., & Woolcock, M. (2004). Health by association? Social capital, social theory, and the political economy of public health. International Journal of Epidemiology, 33(4), 650–667.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, R. J. (1986). Receipt of support from family among Black Americans: Demographic and familial differences. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 48, 67–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, R. J., & Chatters, L. M. (1986). Patterns of informal support to elderly Black adults: Family, friends, and church members. Social Work, 31(6), 432–438.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, R., & Chatters, L. (1991). Religious life. In J. Jackson (Ed.), Life in Black America (pp. 105–123). Newbury: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, R. J., Chatters, L. M., & Jackson, J. S. (1993). A profile of familial relations among three-generation Black families. Family Relations, 42(3), 332–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, R. J., Chatters, L. M., & Jackson, J. S. (1997). ‘Changes over time in support network involvement among Black Americans.’ In R. J. Taylor, J. S. Jackson, & L. M. Chatters (Eds.), Family life in Black America (pp. 293–316). Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, R. J., Chatters, L. M., Jayakody, R., & Levin, J. S. (1996). Black and White differences in religious participation: A multi-sample comparison. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 35(4), 403–410.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thoits, P. A. (1995). Stress, coping, and social support processes: Where are we? What next? Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Spec No, 53–79.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • US Census Bureau (2006a). American Community Study. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/DTSubjectShowTablesServlet?_ts=209417510212. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/STTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S1701&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-redoLog=false. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • US Census Bureau. (2006b). Current Population Survey. http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/education/cps2006/tab01-03.xls. http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/education/cps2006/tab01-04.xls. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • US Census Bureau. (2006c). Housing and Household Economic Statistics Division. Housing Vacancies and Homeownership Annual Statistics. http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/housing/hvs/annual06/ann06t20.html. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • US Census Bureau. (2006d). Population Division. http://www.census.gov/popest/national/asrh/NC-EST2006/NC-EST2006-04-BA.xls. Accessed Oct 1 2007.

  • United States Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS). (2001). Mental health: Culture, race, and ethnicity: A supplement to mental health: A report of the surgeon general- executive summary. Rockville: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Office of the Surgeon General.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wenzel, L., Glanz, K., & Lerman, C. (2002). Stress, coping and health behavior. In K. Glanz, B. K. Rimer, & F. M. Lewis (Eds.), Health behavior and health education: Theory research and practice (3rd ed). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wheaton, B. (1985). Models for the stress-buffering functions of coping resources. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 26(4), 352–364.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • WHO World Mental Health Survey Consortium. (2004). Prevalence, severity, and unmet need for treatment of mental disorders in the World Health Organization world mental health surveys. Journal of the American Medical Association, 291(21), 2581–2590.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R. (1999). Race, socioeconomic status, and health. The added effects of racism and discrimination. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 896, 173–188.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., & Collins, C. (1995). US socioeconomic and racial differences in health: Patterns and explanations. Annual Review of Sociology, 21, 349–386.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., & Collins, C. (2001). Racial residential segregation: A fundamental cause of racial disparities in health. Public Health Reports, 116(5), 404–416.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., & Collins, C. (2004). Reparations: A viable strategy to address the enigma of African American health. American Behavioral Scientist, 47(7), 977–1000.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., & Lawler, K. A. (2001). Stress and illness in low-income women: The roles of hardiness, John Henryism, and race. Women & Health, 32(4), 61–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., & Williams-Morris, R. (2000). Racism and mental health: the African American experience. Ethnicity and Health, 5, 243–268.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., Gonzalez, H. M., Neighbors, H., Nesse, R., Abelson, J. M., Sweetman, J., et al. (2007). Prevalence and distribution of major depressive disorder in African Americans, Caribbean Blacks, and non-Hispanic Whites: Results from the National Survey of American Life. Archives of General Psychiatry, 64(3), 305–315.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., Neighbors, H. W., & Jackson, J. S. (2003). Racial/ethnic discrimination and health: Findings from community studies. American Journal of Public Health, 93(2), 200–208.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., Takeuchi, D., & Adair, R. (1992). Socioeconomic status and psychiatric disorder and African Americans and Whites. Social Forces, 71(1), 179–194.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, D. R., Yu, Y., Jackson, J. S., & Anderson, N. B. (1997). Racial differences in physical and mental health: Socioeconomic status, stress and discrimination. Journal of Health Psychology, 2, 335–351.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, W. J. (1978). The declining significance of race. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, W. J. (1996). When work disappears: The world of the new urban poor. New York: Knopf.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yinger, J. (1986). Measuring discrimination with fair housing tests: Caught in the act. American Economic Review, 76, 881–893.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Research on Ethnicity, Culture and Health, School of Public Health and the Program for Research on Black Americans, Institute for Social Research, The University of Michigan, 109 South Observatory Drive, 48109-2029, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Harold W. Neighbors

  2. George Warren Brown School of Social Work & Institute for Public Health, Washington University, Brown Hall 211 One Brookings Drive, 63130, Campus Box 1196, St. Louis, MO, USA

    Darrell L. Hudson

  3. Division of Diabetes Translation Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Highway, NE Mailstop K-10, 30341, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Kai McKeever Bullard

Authors
  1. Harold W. Neighbors
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Darrell L. Hudson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Kai McKeever Bullard
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Harold W. Neighbors .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Church St. 530, Ann Arbor, 48109, Michigan, USA

    Edward C. Chang

  2. , Department of Psychology, Indiana University Kokomo, 2300 S. Washington St., Kokomo, 46904, Indiana, USA

    Christina A. Downey

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Neighbors, H.W., Hudson, D.L., McKeever Bullard, K. (2012). The Challenge of Understanding the Mental Health of African Americans: The Risks and Rewards of Segregation, Support, and John Henryism. In: Chang, E., Downey, C. (eds) Handbook of Race and Development in Mental Health. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0424-8_4

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation