Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Oct;62(5):3414-3429.
doi: 10.1007/s10943-023-01824-5. Epub 2023 May 3.

Identifying Systemic Factors when Counseling Black Women of Christian Faith in the USA

Keyona Harper  1 , Lynn Bohecker  2 , Tamika Lewis  2 , Margaret Lee  2 , Nivischi Edwards  2 , Wendy Celoria  2 , Denise Moore  2
Affiliations

Identifying Systemic Factors when Counseling Black Women of Christian Faith in the USA

Keyona Harper et al. J Relig Health. 2023 Oct.

Abstract

When Black women of Christian faith in the USA receive secular help for psychological symptoms, their spiritual and religious communities often view the decision negatively. The women may feel shamed, ostracized, and condemned. They often experience emotional, physical, and spiritual trauma from the rejection that increases the frequency, duration, and intensity of their psychological symptoms. This article identifies specific community-based and systemic factors that exacerbate mental health issues in Black women of Christian faith. The authors discuss the influence of such factors on mental health and provide evidence-based practices for mental health clinicians working with Black women of Christian faith.

Keywords: Black women; Faith; Mental health; Trauma.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Adams, K. S., Tost, J. R., Whatley, M. A., Brown, M. C., Dochney, B. J., Taylor, J. M., & Neal, M. H. (2018). Relationship of Christian beliefs to attitudes toward people with mental illness. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 71(3), 104–109. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20180022 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Altemeyer, B., & Hunsberger, B. (1992). Authoritarianism, religious fundamentalism, quest, and prejudice. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 2(2), 113–133. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327582ijpr0202_5 - DOI
    1. American Counseling Association. (2014). 2014 ACA code of ethics. https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/default-document-library/...
    1. Avent Harris, J. R. (2019). The black superwoman in spiritual bypass: Black women’s use of religious coping and implications for mental health professionals. Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health, 23(2), 180–196. https://doi.org/10.1080/19349637.2019.1685925 - DOI
    1. Avent Harris, J. R., Haskins, N., Parker, J., & Lee, A. (2021). Womanist theology and relational cultural theory: Counseling religious black women. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.1080/15401383.2021.1999359 - DOI

LinkOut - more resources