ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the assumption that understanding help-seeking behavior and empowerment issues for Black families will enhance overall service effectiveness. It discusses the factors that affect service utilization by Black families. It is evident from these help-seeking patterns that gender, age, and problem type directly influence the help-seeking behavior of Black families. Within the context of these six help-seeking behaviors, it is important to identify and discuss those factors influencing overall service utilization among Black families. Additionally, many Black families still maintain the view that the primary goals of public social services are to disrupt families and remove children from their families. However, it is also evident that Black families across the socioeconomic strata continue to experience increasing amounts of stress and hardship as a result of the social, economic, and political climate of the country. The chapter concludes with guiding principles in the form of implications for effective practice with Black families.
