Black Caribbean Immigrants: A Qualitative Study of Experiences in Mental Health Therapy

Black Caribbeans seeking mental health treatment in the United States may be mistakenly identified as African American because of their shared skin tone and features. This racial consolidation does not take into account their distinct histories, immigrant experiences, and cultural separateness and may be particularly problematic in therapy. We explored the mental health therapy experiences of eight Black Caribbeans in the United States in this phenomenological qualitative study. We highlight themes that bring to life the client experiences and reveal if and how the counselors addressed the client’s cultural distinctiveness. Implications for mental health counselors include the importance of respectful inquisitiveness about cultural identities and immigration experiences and the importance of inviting Black Caribbean clients by mentioning knowledge of Caribbean cultures in one’s practice information.

Racial Identity and the Political Ideologies of Afro-Caribbean Immigrants

Although the number of Black immigrants in the United States is increasing, few studies have examined whether they assimilate into the liberal ideologies with which U.S.-born Blacks are typically affiliated. Using data from the National Survey on American Life, this study examines how identity formation and generational status among Black Caribbean immigrants moderate their ideological differences with U.S.-born Blacks. It shows that Black Caribbean immigrants are more likely to identify with more conservative ideologies as generational status increases. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that the adoption of a Black American racial identity is not by itself associated with an ideological convergence between Black Caribbean immigrants and U.S.-born Blacks. More assimilated Black immigrants who prefer Black American rather than non-Black identities are still more likely to be conservative compared with U.S.-born Blacks. The analysis further provides a nuanced understanding of the relationship between Black racial solidarity and the political ideologies of Caribbean immigrants. It finds that immigrants who both embrace a Black American identity and are members of Black advancement organizations are more likely to have similar political ideologies as U.S.-born Blacks. However, these similarities disappear as assimilation increases.