ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses immigration status, mental health stressors, and treatment implications for older South Asian Americans. In addition to the migration process, the time and age of migration also impact the cultural adjustment and adaptation for South Asians. For instance, the first and second wave of immigrants in the 1990s constituted South Asian immigrants from the northern part of rural India while those who arrived in the US post 1965 were professionals from urban areas and with an educational background. South Asians Americans follow a diversity of religious practices such as Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism, Judaism, and many other religious and spiritual practices. South Asian American older adults have a wide-range of presenting concerns, and there are a variety of factors that can impact their psychological well-being. Research has shown that abuse, and neglect, isolation, and acculturative stress are predictors of depression in the South Asian older adult population.
