Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Human Services

Advisor

Douglas McCoy

Abstract

Help-seeking for depression, as with other mental illnesses is contingent upon stigmas that one perceives. Although causes for depression differ among indigenous populations, native Hawaiians suffer from the Western acculturation and colonization of their homeland. With lack of trust in the U.S. healthcare system, many native Hawaiians are reluctant to seek help for depression. Furthermore, research has shown that most studies on native Hawaiians are conducted in their native environment when many Hawaiians relocate to the U.S. mainland. Because of the current depression crisis, it is critical to explore depression among native Hawaiians, particularly women on the mainland to see how different environments influence help-seeking behaviors. Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior was used to predict and explain behavior in specific contexts in this qualitative basic design study. Data were gathered from the semi-structured interviews of six female native Hawaiian participants and analyzed through open coding. Eleven main themes emerged, leading to findings on family dynamics and early childhood experiences, frustrations dealing with depression, stigma, cost, accessibility, and shame as barriers to treatment, family and support systems, community-based programs and where to seek help, job connections offering mental health support, availability of help in Hawaii versus the mainland, developing relationships with providers, comfort with providers, provider qualifications, and caring for children’s mental health. Findings may inform mental health professionals and contribute to social change by understanding native Hawaiian populations residing outside of Hawaii, cultural concerns, therapy preferences, and extent and customization of treatment programs as an employee benefit.

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