Investigating Arab American perspectives on barriers to mental health treatment

Purpose: Compared to the general population, Arab Americans experience higher rates of mental illness and lower rates of mental health treatment. While some causes of this discrepancy have been suggested, there are many gaps in the literature since Arab Americans are not recognized as an ethnic group in the United States. This study aims to analyze Arab-Americans’ outlook on mental health by identifying and addressing the barriers to receiving mental health treatment. Methods: An anonymous bilingual Qualtrics survey was conducted and responses were collected from Arab and non-Arab participants (n=294, ages 18+). The participants’ viewpoints on barriers between Arabs and non-Arabs, as well as among Arabs (i.e gender and religion) were assessed. Results: Arabs were less likely than non-Arabs to seek mental health treatment from a primary care provider or therapist. Cultural stigmas unique to the Arab community were found. For example, Arabs were more likely to endorse the fear of being labeled as crazy as an obstacle in seeking treatment. Treatment cost was another barrier Arabs and non-Arabs faced. Conclusion: The results provide unique understandings into Arab-American perspectives on mental health, especially relating to treatment barriers. This study also provides a new facet on the mental health preferences of subgroups, such as gender, religion, and age, within the Arab population. This study’s goal is to magnify the importance of identifying the Arab American population as a distinct group and show the value in conducting future studies for a deeper understanding of Arab American cultural effects on health

Exploring Arab Americans’ Preferences Towards Telemedicine as a Mental Health Treatment

Introduction Arab Americans—a large minority group in the United States—experience higher rates of mental illness and relatively lower rates of treatment compared to the general population. While some factors leading to this disparity have been proposed, data in the literature remains lacking. This study aims to explore Arab-American mental health perspectives with regards to their preferences towards telemental health as a treatment option. Methods Responses were collected through an anonymous bilingual Qualtrics survey from both Arab and non-Arab participants (n=294, ages 18+). Participants’ perceptions towards telemental health and mental illness stigma were assessed, performing comparisons between Arabs and non-Arabs, as well as among Arab subgroups. Data analysis was conducted in SPSS using Chi-squared tests, ANCOVA, and t-tests. Results Arabs were less likely than non-Arabs to prefer telemental health, although that was not statistically significant (p=0.090), and having a private environment was the most frequently listed cause by Arabs for choosing telemental health. When correlating stigma towards mental illness to telemental health, stigma was positively and significantly correlated with preference towards telemental health in the entire sample (p=0.010). Within the Arab sample, males were significantly more likely than females (p=0.036) and older Muslims were significantly more likely than older Christians (p=0.032) to prefer telemedicine. Conclusions Our results provide unique insights into Arab-American mental health perspectives pertaining to telemental health preferences, adding a novel perspective on the mental health preferences of subgroups within the populations especially regarding gender and age differences. Use of telemedicine as a treatment option has been shown to be potentially beneficial in previous studies in Arab countries and with Arab Australians, noting that the virtual setting might be destigmatizing. To our knowledge, this is the first study exploring telemental health preferences of Arab-Americans and might offer important preliminary results. This study highlights the Arab-American population as a nuanced and diverse group, emphasizing the importance of future studies to show a more complete picture of Arab-American mental health

Mental Health Attitudes and Perspectives of Arab Americans: Beliefs Associated with Stigma, Treatment, and the Origins of Pathology

Purpose: Arab Americans are one of the largest ethnic groups in the United States. Despite elevated incidence of mental illness and diminished rates of treatment within this community, the mental health of Arab Americans, along with their attitudes towards mental health, has not received adequate study. Unique cultural interpretations of mental illness may engender stigma, exacerbating disparities in treatment. This study aimed to assess the attitudes and perspectives of Arab Americans concerning mental illness, with the goal of identifying and addressing barriers to treatment. Methods: Using an anonymous bilingual Qualtrics survey, we assessed Arab and non-Arab participants (n = 294; ages 18+) on their conceptualizations of the causes of mental illness and on their stigma towards mental illness and mental health treatments. Comparisons were performed between Arabs and non-Arabs, as well as among Arabs. Results: Compared to non-Arabs, Arabs reported higher average mental illness stigma and were more likely to rate psychiatric medications as addictive and unhelpful. Among Arabs, being Christian, male, and older (\u3e29 years old) were each associated with higher stigma. Arabs were less likely than non-Arabs to believe in a biological explanation for mental illness. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate higher levels of stigma towards mental illness among Arab Americans, especially Christian, male, and older Arabs, potentially related to a weaker belief in a biomedical model for mental illness. These are among the first findings describing mental illness stigma and beliefs about mental health in the Arab American population, offering potential guidance for forthcoming community interventions to deliver culturally competent care