Asian Americans: Personality Patterns, Identity, and Mental Health

This widely adopted text synthesizes an extensive body of research on Asian American personality development, identity, and mental health. Uba focuses on how ethnocultural factors interact with minority group status to shape the experiences of members of diverse Asian American groups. Cultural values and norms shared by many Asian Americans are examined and common sources of stress described, including racial discrimination and immigrant and refugee experiences. Rates of mental health problems in Asian American communities are reviewed, as are predictors and manifestations of specific disorders. The volume also explores patterns in usage of available mental health services and considers ways that service delivery models might be adapted to better meet the needs of Asian American clients.

Laura Uba, PhD, a lecturer in the Asian American Studies Department at California State University, Northridge, is the recipient of two postdoctoral fellowships dealing with issues in Asian American communities: One from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) at the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies, and the other from the Institute of American Cultures at the UCLA Asian American Studies Center.