"Too blessed to be stressed": a rural faith community's views of African-American males and depression.

Abstract

Among African-Americans, the faith community has a long history of providing support to its members. Because African-American men tend to delay and decline traditional depression treatment, the faith community may be an effective source of support. The aim of this study was to determine how a rural African-American faith community describes and perceives experiences of depression among African-American males. A convenience sample of 24 men and women participated in focus groups and interview. Four themes were identified: defining depression, etiology of depression, denial of depression, and effect of masculine roles on depression experience.