ABSTRACT
Psychiatric epidemiology and psychological studies indicate that Mexican Americans in general experience a significant amount of mental health problems as a result of psychological stressors. Research examining Mexican American's utilization of mental health services has focused primarily on barriers to access. This chapter identifies strengths in the Mexican American culture that Mexican Americans bring to counseling. It reviews early research on barriers to mental health access and utilization for Mexican Americans in order to provide a historical perspective. The chapter also reviews current research and the direction it has taken toward addressing help-seeking intentions and counseling process. Institutional barriers were considered agency policies, availability, or structural incongruities that served as obstacles to mental health services for Mexican Americans. The chapter concludes with recommendation for clinicians that outline ways to conceptualize Mexican American culture as strength to inform clinical practice, clinical training, development of social policy, and future research.
