Patterns of Mental Health Service Use among Asian Americans: Focus on Depression

It has been well-established that Asian Americans under-utilize mental health services, but few data has been available on specific patterns and barriers for Asian Americans with mental disorder in accessing mental health services.   Based on analysis of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions Survey (NESARC), we found that AAs with mood disorders underutilize mental health services in comparison to other ethnic groups.  Among the depressed AAs, those with “cognitive” subtype of depression significantly underused mental health services compared to AAs with “psychosomatic” subtype of depression, Also, AA sub-ethnic groups vary in terms of prevalence of mental disorders and use of mental health service use.   Data underscores need for future studies of culture-specific attitudes, correlates, and barriers to mental health service that accounts for cultural and ethnic heterogeneity among AAs in the United States.