Asian Americans, the Model Minority Myth, and Mental Health - Lecture 12

Suicide was the leading cause of death for AAs aged 15 to 24, the only racial group for which this was the case

• rates of mental illness doubled over last decade

• 1 out of 10 AA young adults struggle with depression

• mental health service usage was the least for Asians

Factors contributing to reduced help-seeking:

• language barriers

• cultural stigma (e.g, “saving face”)

• lack of health insurance

• experiencing micro-aggressions/racism/cultural insensitivity from therapists

• model minority myth

Ecological Model

(inner layer to outer layer)

• individual develops within a complex system or ecology

  • social identity

  • personality

  • thoughts, feelings, or behaviors

• microsystem: immediate environment (groups you are part of)

• mesosystem: interaction between two or more of the microsystems (ex: fundraising for your school, and you family helps out too)

• macrosystem: attitudes and ideologies in the culture (e.g., racial bias, gender bias, etc)

• exosystem: institutions, laws, rules, policies, systems, or other structures that are concrete manifestations of the values in the microsystem (e.g., media that erases POCs, immigration policy)

• chronosystem: conditions and events that occur throughout history (ex: Civil Rights Movement)

The Model Minority Myth

Asian Americans:

• are all exceptionally smart and talented, especially in subjects like math and music

• are polite and law-abiding, not “troublemakers”

• are more successful than others because of innate talent and hard work

• do not experience serious health concerns or racism

Consequences of the Myth: Homogenization

• idea that AAs are all the same

• ignores differences based on ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, etc

Mental Health Consequences of the Model Minority Myth

Internalization of the myth is associated with:

• increased psychological distress

• reduced help-seeking

• increased anti-Black attitudes (bringing down other minority racial groups)

• for White Americans, both perpetual foreigner racism and general anti-Asian racism toward AAs (no matter how much one assimilates, they will always be viewed as a foreigner)

Model Minority Myth: An Experimental Examination

Rated mental health functioning after reading 4 vignettes:

1. White student suffering from adjustment disorder

2. Asian student suffering from adjustment disorder

3. Success story of a white student

4. Success story of an Asian student

**only race was changed

Results:

• regardless of participant race/ethnicity, the success story vignette was perceived as having better mental health

  • made assumptions that AAs were doing better mentally

• participants who believed in model minority myth assumed that Asians had better mental health functioning overall

  • made assumptions that AA have better health

Consequences of the Myth: Racial Triangulation

• White Americans are perceived as insiders and superior

• Black Americans are perceived as insiders and most inferior

• Asian Americans are perceived as foreigners, and in the middle of inferior and superior

Factors Promoting Asian and Black Racial Solidarity among Asian Americans

• awareness of systemic inequities

• recognition of shared experiences of discrimination and/or feelings of “linked fate”

• critical reflection and disavowal of model minority myth

What can we do about it?

• feature nuanced Asian American writers, figures, and texts in your work and life

• educate yourself on Asian American issues

• listen to diverse Asian American experiences

• prevent cultural stereotypes and colonialist thinking about Asian Americans/the East