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African Americans have historically turned to the Black Church in times of trouble and/or need, including when experiencing mental health problems. The purpose of this study was to better understand what the helping relationship between the Black Church and African Americans around mental health. Surveys were administered online to members of a Midwestern church and included questions about respondents' mental health and service use histories and thoughts about church-based mental health services. A thematic analysis was performed on qualitative responses from 393 participants explaining why they supported a church-based counseling center. Findings suggest that the Black Church is seen as being well-positioned to address the unmet mental health needs of Black Americans, reduce mental health stigma in Black and/or Christian communities, and deliver culturally appropriate, community-based mental health services to these groups.
Keywords: The Black Church; mental health; community-based service delivery; stigma
The Black Church has been considered the most important institution in the African American community, both throughout history and today (Gaines, 2010; Lincoln & Mamiya, 1990; McKinney, 1971). When it was formed in the late 1700s, the Black Church not only provided African Americans a safe space to worship away from the control of whites and to cope with the conditions of slavery and discrimination, but it also became a center of spiritual and social life (Adkison-Bradley et al., 2005; Allen, Davey,& Davey 2010; Gaines, 2010; McKinney, 1971). Since the inception of the Black Church, preachers were looked to for guidance, not only for religious or spiritual matters but in all aspects of life (McKinney, 1971). Because African Americans were shut out of many traditional medical and/or social services or these services were not designed to appreciate or understand their needs, the Black Church has funded and provided social services for their communities, addressing issues like homelessness and parenting (Hankerson, Svob, & Jones, 2018; Harrison, Wubbenhorst, Waits, & Hurt, 2006; Scott, 2003).
Given that the Black Church is seen as the place, often first, that African Americans turn in times of trouble or when in need of counsel, it no surprise that African Americans would seek out the Black Church if they were experiencing mental, emotional, and/or behavioral health issues (Hankerson, Svob, & Jones, 2018; Mattis, et al., 2007; Taylor, et al.,...