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Jennifer Abe-Kim, PhD, David T. Takeuchi, PhD, Seunghye Hong, MA, Nolan Zane, PhD, Stanley Sue, PhD, Michael S. Spencer, PhD, Hoa Appel, PhD, Ethel Nicdao, PhD and Margarita Alegría, PhD

Jennifer Abe-Kim is with Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, Calif. David T. Takeuchi, Seunghye Hong, Hoa Appel, and Ethel Nicdao are with the University of Washington, Seattle. Nolan Zane and Stanley Sue are with the University of California, Davis. Michael S. Spencer is with the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Margarita Alegría is with the Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, Mass, and the Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Jennifer Abe-Kim, PhD, Loyola Marymount University, One LMU Drive, Suite 4600, Los Angeles, CA, 90045–2659 (e-mail: jabekim{at}lmu.edu)

ABSTRACT

Objectives. We examined rates of mental health–related service use (i.e., any, general medical, and specialty mental health services) as well as subjective satisfaction with and perceived helpfulness of care in a national sample of Asian Americans, with a particular focus on immigration-related factors.

Methods. Data were derived from the National Latino and Asian American Study (2002–2003).

Results. About 8.6% of the total sample (n=2095) sought any mental health–related services; 34.1% of individuals who had a probable diagnosis sought any services. Rates of mental health–related service use, subjective satisfaction, and perceived helpfulness varied by birthplace and by generation. US-born Asian Americans demonstrated higher rates of service use than did their immigrant counterparts. Third-generation or later individuals who had a probable diagnosis had high (62.6%) rates of service use in the previous 12 months.

Conclusions. Asian Americans demonstrated lower rates of any type of mental health–related service use than did the general population, although there are important exceptions to this pattern according to nativity status and generation status. Our results underscore the importance of immigration-related factors in understanding service use among Asian Americans.

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