Latino Farmworkers and Under-Detection of Depression: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

The history of Latino farmworkers in the United States is long and complex. Economic forces and often-contradictory immigration policies have given rise to patterns of undocumented immigration from Mexico and Central America by individuals and families looking for work. This review uses a Critical Multiculturalism lens to explore the incidence of depression in Latino farmworkers; the link between depression symptoms and the experience of migration, acculturation, poverty, and agricultural work; and the role of culture, structural issues, primary care providers’ inadequate training in mental health issues, and work conditions in the under-detection of depression in this population. Recommendations for clinicians and researchers are offered to improve detection of depression in Latino farmworkers.