African American males have a low participation rate in therapy. The author discusses how cultural, socialization, gender-related, and psychohistorical issues—specifically the “invisibility” of this population—contribute to African American males' resistance to therapy. Suggestions for how clinicians may bridge the gap of distrust between patient and therapist are offered.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
BlyR. (1990). Iron John: A book about men.Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
2.
Boyd-FranklinN. (1989). Black families in therapy: A multisystems approach.New York: Guilford.
3.
BraithwaiteR. L. (1981). Interpersonal relations between black males and black females. In GaryL. E. (Ed.), Black men.Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.
4.
FranklinA. J. (1992). Therapeutic support groups for African American males. Unpublished manuscript, Department of Psychology, City College of City University of New York.
5.
FranklinA. J.CarterR. T., & GraceC. (in press). The integrative approach to psychotherapy with black/African Americans. In StrickerG., & GoldJ. (Eds.), The comprehensive handbook of psychotherapy integration.New York: Plenum.
6.
GrierW. H., & CobbsP. M. (1968). Black rage.New York: Basic Books.
7.
GuthrieR. V. (1976). Even the rat was white: A historical view of psychology.New York: Harper & Row.
8.
HallG. C., & MalonyH. N. (1983). Cultural control in psychotherapy with minority clients. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 20(2), 131–142.
9.
HigginbothamA. L.Jr. (1978). In the matter of color: Race and the American legal process—the Colonial period.New York: Oxford University Press.
10.
JewellK. S. (1988). Survival of the black family: The institutional impact of U.S. social policy.New York: Praeger.
11.
KovelJ. (1970). White racism: A psychohistory.New York: Pantheon Books.
12.
KunjufuJ. (1985). Countering the conspiracy to destroy black boys (vol. 1). Chicago: African American Images.
13.
KunjufuJ. (1986). Countering the conspiracy to destroy black boys (vol. 2). Chicago: African American Images.
14.
Landrum-BrownJ. (1990). Black mental health and racial oppression. In RuizD. S. (Ed.), Handbook of mental health and mental disorder among black Americans.New York: Greenwood Press.
15.
LeashoreB. R. (1981). Social services and black men. In GaryL. E. (Ed.), Black men.Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.
16.
MadhubutiH. R. (1990). Black men: Obsolete, single, dangerous?Chicago: Third World Press.
17.
MannixD. P., & CowleyM. (1962). Black cargoes: A history of the Atlantic slave trade.New York: Viking Press.
18.
MethR. L., & PasickR. S. (Eds). (1990). Men in therapy: The challenge of change.New York: Guilford.
19.
PinderhughesE. (1989). Understanding race, ethnicity, and power: The key to efficacy in clinical practice.New York: Free Press.
20.
RuizD. S. (Ed.). (1990). Handbook of mental health and mental disorder among black Americans.New York: Greenwood Press.
21.
WatsonW. H. (1984). Black folk medicine: The therapeutic significance of faith and trust.New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books.
22.
WhiteJ., & ParhamT. (1990). The psychology of blacks (2nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
