African-American Adjustment Disorder Awareness Association (AAADAA): Racism Related Stress

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Racism Related Stress

According to Utsey (1998), race-related stress is the discomfort experienced by African Americans who observe or directly experience racial discrimination in their daily lives at the individual, cultural, or institutional level.

Harrell (2000) utilized the term ‘racism-related stress’ (rather than race-related stress) to emphasize the link between stress and racism, thereby focusing on the environmental experience of racism rather than just on the racial group membership of an individual.

The multidimensional layers of racism (individual, institutional, and cultural), as described by Jones (1997), is a basis for much of the literature on race-related stress.

Individual racism typically occurs on the personal level, where racial prejudice is acted out, either consciously or unconsciously within some interpersonal interaction.

Institutional racism is an institutionalized version of the individual act of racism in which institutional practices and policies are based in the belief of racial superiority of one group over another.

Cultural racism is demonstrated through the assertion of the dominant group's cultural heritage and values (i.e., traditions, language, arts, values) over the values, beliefs, and traditions of all other groups. These levels of racism are both insidious and chronic and likely test the individual and collective resources and resolve of Black people.

Racism-related stress, perceived discrimination, and racism have been linked with many psychological and health related variables such as negative self-esteem, concentration difficulties, intrusive thoughts about specific racism encounters, and increased risk for mental and physical illness such as depression, anxiety, hypertension, or headaches (Clark, Anderson, Clark, & Williams, 1999; Essed, 1990; Landrine & Klonoff, 1996; Lopez, 2005; Outlaw, 1993; Utsey, Ponterotto, Reynolds, & Cancelli, 2000).

The cumulative effect of the stress and strain of daily racism has been shown to negatively affect the health and well-being of Black people and diminish their quality of life (Ponterotto, Utsey, & Pedersen, 2006).

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African-American Adjustment Disorder Awareness Association (AAADAA)

African-American Adjustment Disorder Awareness Association (AAADAA) was founded by Kenny Anderson (Pontiac, MI) in 2008. Anderson a community wellness advocate had been exposing the negative impact of racist stress on Black health for years.

AAADAA is a group of Blacks whose purpose is to educate Black communities nationally about Adjustment Disorder, what we believe is the foundational mental health problem affecting Blacks in America.

A psychological Adjustment Disorder is characterized by the development of emotional and behavioral symptoms in response to a specific stressor or stressors within your environment. Adjustment Disorder interferes with our ability to cope with ongoing life issues and responsibilities.

According to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM IV) there are different types of Adjustment Disorders based on the symptoms that develop. These include: with depressed mood; with anxiety; with mixed emotional response; with conduct disturbance; with mixed emotional problems and conduct disturbance; and unspecified.

We at AAADAA believe that Adjustment Disorder is the most common foundational mental health issue impacting our communities due to the fact that Blacks are the most stressed population in the U.S. Just living under the stressor of racism alone takes a tremendous psychological toll on so many Black people.

In her book, ‘Environmental Stress and African-Americans’, author Grace Carroll states that race is brought to the consciousness of African Americans every day through interaction with employers, service providers, landlords, the police, and the media.

She says the stress experienced by Blacks merely as a result of being African American causes micro-aggressions that include experiences such as being denied service, being falsely accused, being negatively singled out on account of one's race.

Carroll labels the stress that results from such micro-aggressions as Mundane Extreme Environmental Stress (MEES) - which she says is a daily experience, has a significant impact on one's psychological well being and world view, is environmentally induced, and is detracting and energy consuming.

Arline Geronimus a professor of health behavior and health education at the University of Michigan echoes Carroll by stating the stress of living and working in a race conscious society slowly wears down Black people from all walks of life.

From Geronimus perspective racist stress, coupled with poverty, eventually erodes Blacks mental and physical health, a gradual process that she calls ‘weathering’. This daily weathering results in depression, substance abuse, suicide, strained relationships, and frustration that leads to misplaced Black-on-Black violence.

Those of us at AAADAA understand that in order for Black to address Adjustment Disorders in our lives we must become aware of the negative impact of stress and get a handle on it.

Our Blog will be a source of information and dialogue on Black mental health issues