2004/04/01 by Albert Yeung, Doris Chang, Doris F. Chang +3 · 2 citations
Psychology · Medicine · #Mental Health Treatment and Access #Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments #Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
paper · doi:10.1097/01.nmd.0000120892.96624.00
This study investigated the illness beliefs of 40 depressed Chinese Americans in a primary care setting using the Exploratory Model Interview Catalogue (EMIC). Twenty-two depressed Chinese Americans (76%) complained of somatic symptoms; 4 (14%) reported psychological symptoms including irritability, rumination, and poor memory. No patients reported depressed mood spontaneously. Yet, 93% endorsed depressed mood when they filled out the CBDI. Twenty-one patients (72%) did not know the name of their illness or did not consider it a diagnosable medical illness, and five patients (17%) attributed their symptoms to pre-existing medical problems. Only three patients (10%) labeled their illness as psychiatric conditions. The patients generally sought help from general hospital (69%), lay help (62%), and alternative treatment (55%) but rarely from mental health professionals (3.5%) for their depressive symptoms. The results suggest that many Chinese Americans do not consider depressed mood a symptom to report to their physicians, and many are unfamiliar with depression as a treatable psychiatric disorder.