Abstract
This chapter includes current scientific information about African Americans’ experience of oppression and prejudice. This chapter also critically examines the ways in which the profession of psychology has responded to the oppression and prejudice that African Americans experience. Further, the ways in which clinical psychologists ought to conceptualize and respond to the prejudice and oppression that African American (clients) experience will be explored. Moreover, an examination of the possible role of prejudice and oppression in our institutional structures such as the DSM and our professional organizations as it pertains to African Americans will be shared as it relates to its possible impact on the role of prejudice and oppression in the mental health status of African Americans. Finally, this chapter includes a discussion on African Americans in the profession of psychology and the ways in which prejudice and oppression can also impact the treating professional.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Alvidrez, J., Snowden, L. R., & Kaiser, D. M. (2008). The experience of stigma among black mental health consumers. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 19, 874–893.
Barnes, P., & Lightsey, O. (2005). Perceived racist discrimination, coping, stress, and life satisfaction. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 33, 48–71. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-1912.2005.tb00004.x
Boston College. Retrieved 6 Aug from https://www.bc.edu/content/dam/files/schools/lsoe_sites/isprc/jpg/infographic.jpg
Braveman, P., Egerter, S., & Williams, D. R. (2011). The social determinants of health: Coming of age. Annual Review of Public Health, 32, 381–398.
Breslau, J., Aguilar-Gaxiola, S., Kendler, K. S., Su, M., Williams, D., & Kessler, R. C. (2006). Specifying race-ethnic differences in risk for psychiatric disorders in a USA national sample. Psychological Medicine, 36, 57–68.
Breslau, J., Kendler, K. S., Su, M., Gaxiola-Aguilar, S., & Kessler, R. C. (2005). Lifetime risk and persistence of psychiatric disorders across ethnic groups in the United States. Psychological Medicine, 35, 317–327.
Broman, C. L. (1997). Race-related factors and life satisfaction among African Americans. Journal of Black Psychology, 23, 36–49.
Bronfenbrenner, U., & Evans, G. W. (2000). Developmental science in the 21st century: Emerging questions, theoretical models, research designs and empirical findings. Social Development, 9, 115–125.
Bryant-Davis, T., & Ocampo, C. (2005). Racist-incident-based trauma. The Counseling Psychologist, 33(4), 479–500.
Carter, R. (1991). Racial identity attitudes and psychological functioning. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 19, 105–114. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-1912.1991.tb00547.x
Carter, R. T. (2007). Racism and psychological and emotional injury: Recognizing and assessing race-based traumatic stress. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(1), 13–105.
Clark, R., Anderson, N. B., Clark, V. R., & Williams, D. R. (1999). Racism as a stressor for African Americans: A biopsychosocial model. American Psychologist, 54, 805–816.
CNN. Retrieved 22 Mar from http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/07/22/gates.arrest.reaction/index.html?iref=newssearch
CNN. Retrieved 24 Mar from http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/07/09/philly.pool/index.html
CNN. Retrieved 26 Mar from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTixCXmrezY
CNN/Essence Magazine/Opinion Research Corporation poll. Retrieved 26 Mar 2017 from http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/03/poll.black.president/index.html
Cross, W., Parham, T., & Helms, J. (1991). The stages of Black identity development: Nigrescence models. In R. Jones (Ed.), Black psychology (3rd ed., pp. 319–388). Berkeley, CA: Cobb & Henry Publishers.
Diala, C., Muntaner, C., Walrath, C., Nickerson, K. J., LaVeist, T. A., & Leaf, P. J. (2001). Racial/ethnic differences in attitudes toward seeking professional mental health services. American Journal of Public Health, 91, 455–464.
Donovan, R., Galban, D., Grace, R., Bennett, J., & Felicie, S. (2012). Impact of racial macro- and microaggressions in Black women’s lives: A preliminary analysis. Journal of Black Psychology, 39, 185–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798412443259
Dovidio, J. F., Gaertner, S. L., Kawakami, K., & Hodson, G. (2002). Why can’t we all just get along? Interpersonal biases and interracial distrust. Cultural Diversity and Ethnicity Minority Psychology, 8, 88–102.
Fang, C. Y., & Myers, H. F. (2001). The effects of racial stressors and hostility on cardiovascular reactivity in African American and Caucasian men. Health Psychology, 20, 64–70.
Fuchs, C., West, L. M., Graham, J. R., Sullivan Kalill, K., Moran, L., Hayes-Skelton, S., … Roemer, L. (2016). Reactions to an acceptance-based behavior therapy for GAD: Giving voice to the experiences of clients from marginalized backgrounds. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 23, 473–484. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpra.2015.09.004
Gaertner, S. L., & Dovidio, J. F. (1986). The aversive form of racism. In J. F. Dovidio & S. L. Gaertner (Eds.), Prejudice, discrimination, and racism. Orlando, FL: Academic.
Giscombé, C. L., & Lobel, M. (2005). Explaining disproportionately high rates of adverse birth outcomes among African Americans. The impact of stress, racism, and related factors in pregnancy. Psychological Bulletin, 131, 662–683.
Graham, J. R., Martinez, J., West, L. M., & Roemer, L. (2016). The mediating role of internalized racism in the relationship between racist experiences and anxiety symptoms in a Black American sample. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 22(3), 369–376. https://doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000073
Graham, J. R., West, L. M., & Roemer, L. (2015). A preliminary exploration of the moderating role of valued living in the relationships between racist experiences and anxious and depressive symptoms. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 4, 48–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2014.11.001
Hall, S., & Carter, R. (2006). The relationship between racial identity ethnic identity, and perceptions of racial discrimination in an Afro-Caribbean descent sample. Journal of Black Psychology, 32, 155–175. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798406287071
Harrell, J. P., Hall, S., & Taliaferro, J. (2003). Physiological responses to racism and discrimination: An assessment of the evidence. American Journal of Public Health, 93, 243–248.
Harrell, S. P. (2000). A multidimensional conceptualization of racism-related stress: Implications for well-being of people of color. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 70, 42–54.
Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K. G. (2012). Acceptance and commitment therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change. New York: Guilford Press.
Hays, P. (2009). Integrating evidence-based practice, Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, and Multicultural Therapy: Ten steps for culturally competent practice. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 40, 354–360.
Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K. G. (1999). Acceptance and commitment therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Helms, J. E., Nicolas, G., & Green, C. E. (2012). Racism and ethnoviolence as trauma: Enhancing professional and research training. Traumatology, 18, 65–74.
Herbert, J., & Cardaciotto, L. (2005). An acceptance and mindfulness-based perspective on social anxiety disorder. In S. Orsillo & L. Roemer (Eds.), Acceptance and mindfulness-based approaches to anxiety: Conceptualization and treatment (pp. 189–212). New York, NY: Springer.
Hill, L., Kobayashi, I., & Hughes, J. (2007). Perceived racism and ambulatory blood pressure in African American college students. Journal of Black Psychology, 33, 404–421. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798407307042
Hill, L. B. K., Hoggard, L. S., Richmond, A. S., Gray, D. L. L., Williams, D. P., & Thayer, J. F. (2017). Examining the association between perceived discrimination and heart rate variability in African Americans. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 23(1), 5–14.
Hofmann, S. (2000). Self-focused attention before and after treatment of social phobia. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 38, 717–725. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7967(99)00105-9
Jackson, J. S., Brown, T. N., Williams, D. R., Torres, M., Sellers, S. L., & Brown, K. (1995). Racism and the physical and mental health status of African Americans: A thirteen year national panel study. Unpublished manuscript. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan.
Jones, C. (2000). Levels of racism: A theoretic framework and a gardener’s tale. American Journal of Public Health, 90, 1212–1215.
Jones, J. M. (1997). Prejudice and racism (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Kessler, R. C., McGonagle, K. A., Zhao, S., Nelson, C. B., Hughes, M., Eshleman, S., … Kendler, K. S. (1994). Lifetime and 12-month prevalence of DSM-III-R psychiatric disorders in the United States: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey. Archives of General Psychiatry, 51, 8–19.
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.
Landrine, H., & Klonoff, E. A. (1996). The schedule of racist events: A measure of racial discrimination and a study of its negative physical and mental health consequences. Journal of Black Psychology, 22, 144–168.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York, NY: Springer.
Lee, J. K., Fuchs, C., Roemer, L., & Orsillo, S. M. (2009). Cultural considerations inacceptance-based behavior therapy. In L. Roemer & S. M. Orsillo (Eds.), Mindfulness and acceptance-based behavioral therapies in practice (pp. 215–228). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Lewis, T. T., Aiello, A. E., Leurgans, S., Kelly, J., & Barnes, L. L. (2010). Self-reported experiences of everyday discrimination are associated with elevated C-reactive protein levels in older African American adults. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 24, 438–443.
Linehan, M. (2014). DBT skills training manual (2nd ed.). New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Masuda, A., Hill, M. L., Morgan, J., & Cohen, L. L. (2012). A psychological flexibility-based intervention for modulating the impact of stigma and prejudice: A descriptive review of empirical evidence. Psychology, Society, & Education, 4(2), 211–223.
McConahay, J. B. (1986). Modern racism, ambivalence, and the Modern Racism Scale. In J. F. Dovidio & S. L. Gaertner (Eds.), Prejudice, discrimination, and racism (pp. 91–125). Orlando, FL: Academic Press.
Merritt, M. M., McCallum, T. J., & Fritsch, T. (2011). How much striving is too much? John Henryism active coping predicts worse daily cortisol responses in African American but not White female dementia family caregivers. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 19, 451–460.
Mishra, S. I., Lucksted, A., Gioia, D., Barnet, B., & Baquet, C. R. (2009). Needs and preferences for receiving mental health information in an African American focus group sample. Community Mental Health Journal, 45(2), 117–126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-008-9157-4
Mother Jones Magazine. Retrieved 22 Mar 2017 from http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/02/black-lives-matter-versus-trump
Nadal, K. L., Griffin, K. E., Wong, Y., Hamit, S., & Rasmus, M. (2014). Racial microaggressions and mental health: Counseling clients of color. Journal of Counseling and Development, 92(1), 57–66.
Ong, A. D., Williams, D. R., Nwizu, U., & Gruenewald, T. L. (2017). Everyday unfair treatment and multisystem biological dysregulation in African American adults. Culture and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 23(1), 15–26. https://doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000111
Paradies, Y. (2006). Defining, conceptualizing and characterizing racism in health research. Critical Public Health, 16, 143–157.
Parham, T., & Helms, J. (1985). Attitudes of racial identity and self-esteem of Black students: An exploratory investigation. Journal of College Student Personnel, 26, 143–147.
Pew Research Study. (2013). Retrieved 22 Mar 2017 from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/06/28/for-african-americans-discrimination-is-not-dead/
Pierce, C., Carew, J., Pierce-Gonzalez, D., & Willis, D. (1978). An experiment in racism: TV commercials. In C. Pierce (Ed.), Television and education (pp. 62–88). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
Pieterse, A. L., & Carter, R. T. (2007). An examination of the relationship between general stress, racism-related stress, and psychological health among Black men. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 54, 101–109.
Rapee, R. M., & Heimberg, R. G. (1997). A cognitive-behavioral model of anxiety in social phobia. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 35, 741–756. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7967(97)00022-3
Roemer, L., & Orsillo, S. M. (2009). Mindfulness-and acceptance-based behavioral therapies in practice. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Rucker, L., West, L. M., & Roemer, L. (2009). Worry, racial stress, intolerance of uncertainty: A meditational model in a Black sample. Behavior Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2009.04.001
Schneider, S. J. (2004). The psychology of stereotyping. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Sears, D. O. (1988). Symbolic racism. In P. A. Katz & D. A. Taylor (Eds.), Eliminating racism: Profiles in controversy (pp. 53–84). New York, NY: Plenum.
Slavin, L. A., Rainer, K. L., McCreary, M. L., & Gowda, K. K. (1991). Toward a multicultural model of the stress process. Journal of Counseling Development, 70, 156–163.
Smedley, B. D., Stith, A. Y., & Nelson, A. R. (2002). Unequal treatment: Confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Sobczak, L. R., & West, L. M. (2013). Clinical considerations in using mindfulness- and acceptance-based approaches with diverse populations: Addressing challenges in service-delivery in diverse community settings [Special series]. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 20, 13–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpra.2011.08.005
Soto, J. A., Dawson-Andoh, N. A., & BeLue, R. (2011). The relationship between perceived racial discrimination and generalized anxiety disorder among African Americans, Afro Caribbeans and non-hispanic whites. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 25, 258–265.
Steffen, P. R., McNeilly, M., Anderson, N., & Sherwood, A. (2003). Effects of perceived racism and anger inhibition on ambulatory blood pressure in African Americans. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65, 746–750.
Sternthal, M. J., Slopen, N., & Williams, D. R. (2011). Racial disparities in health: How much does stress really matter? Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race, 8, 95–113.
Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., & Holder, A. M. B. (2008). Racial microaggressions in the life experiences of Black Americans. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 19, 329–336.
Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., Torino, G. C., Bucceri, J. M., Holder, A. M. B., Nadal, K. L., et al. (2007). Racial microaggressions in everyday life. American Psychologist, 62, 271–286.
Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., & Holder, A. M. B. (2008). Racial microaggressions in the life experiences of black Americans. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 19, 329–336.
Szymanski, D., & Gupta, A. (2009). Examining the relationship between multiple internalized oppression and African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning persons’ self-esteem and psychological distress. The Counseling Psychologist, 36, 510–524. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013317
The Atlantic. (2016). Not white, not rich, and seeking therapy. Retrieved 31 Mar from https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/06/the-struggle-of-seeking-therapy-while-poor/484970/
Utsey, S. O., Ponterotto, J. G., Reynolds, A. L., & Cancelli, A. A. (2000). Racial discrimination, coping, life satisfaction, and self-esteem among African Americans. Journal of Counseling and Development, 78, 72–80.
Watson, N. N., Black, A. R., & Hunter, C. D. (2016). African American women’s perceptions of mindfulness meditation training and gendered race-related stress. Mindfulness, 7, 1034–1043. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-016-0539-3
Wells, A., Clark, D., Salkovskis, P., Ludgate, J., Hackmann, A., & Gelder, M. (1995). Social phobia: The role of in-situation safety behaviors in maintaining anxiety and negative beliefs. Behaviour Therapy, 26, 153–161. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7894(05)80088-7
West, L. M., Graham, J., & Roemer, L. (2013). Functioning in the face of racism: The potential buffering role of values clarification in a Black sample. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 2, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2013.03.003
Williams, D., & Williams-Morris, R. (2000). Racism and mental health: The African American experience. Ethnicity & Health, 5, 243–268. https://doi.org/10.1080/713667453
Williams, D. R., Mohammed, S. A., Leavell, J., & Collins, C. (2010). Race, socioeconomic status, and health: Complexities, ongoing challenges, and research opportunities. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1186, 69–101.
Yoo, H., & Lee, R. (2008). Does ethnic identity buffer or exacerbate the effects of frequent racial discrimination on situational well-being of Asian Americans? Journal of Counseling Psychology, 55(1), 63–74. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.55.1.63
Woods-Giscombé, C. L., & Gaylord, S. A. (2014). The cultural relevance of mindfulness meditation as a health intervention for African Americans. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 32(3), 147–160. https://doi.org/10.1177/0898010113519010
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
West, L.M. (2020). Prejudice, Stigma, Privilege, and Oppression Regarding African Americans. In: Benuto, L., Duckworth, M., Masuda, A., O'Donohue, W. (eds) Prejudice, Stigma, Privilege, and Oppression. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35517-3_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35517-3_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-35516-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-35517-3
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)