Diana Caballero
Professor Hayley Hancock
FIQWS 10008
18 November 2023
¿Ansiedad? Mejor Ponte las Pilas: The Effects of Latino Culture on Men with Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety is defined as a persistent feeling of constant fear or worry about a future concern which may impair people from doing their daily routines. There are multiple types of anxiety disorders and different ways that this disorder presents in people. Some of the symptoms for this disorder may consist of feelings of panic/danger, restlessness, tense muscles, inability to concentrate, among other symptoms. There must be a certain amount of time in order to make a diagnoses of any kind of anxiety disorder. There are multiple factors that can affect the making or not of a diagnoses such as culture and immigration experiences. Furthermore, there may not be accessible treatments or there is no treatment received by the unaware patient. Hispanic men are abundantly underreported in the diagnoses of an anxiety disorder primarily due to cultural beliefs as well as concerns with documentation.
Across the United States, it has been visible that men are less likely to seek out for help when it comes to a mental disorder essentially due to the social standards placed on men. In addition, men half of the time are not sure of what receiving treatment for a mental health disorder entails, which leads them to avoid even trying it. According to psychiatrist Kevin Simon he asserts that men do not seek services because they are not well aware of what emotions they are going through (Laine, 2023). Furthermore, evidencing that men are not so in touch with their own emotions due to the lack of knowledge regarding mental health and it’s treatments. Hispanic men are a population that greatly suffer from mental health disorders. According to the Mental Health America, their graph displays that an estimated 18.3% of the population in the U.S. are Latinx or Hispanic and that 16% of that portion have reported to have a mental illness in the past year (MHA, 2019). This evidence showcases how prevalent mental illnesses tend to be in Hispanic communities moreover putting Hispanic men at higher risk of developing an undiagnosed mental illness. Men already are not treated enough for their mental health problems and on top of that being a minority group tends to come with multiple other issues that may contribute to mental health disorders. Discrimination, low-income, among other issues may contribute to the development of a mental health issue. Sometimes other factors such as culture or religion can be an influencing factor for the development of a disorder.
Culture is set to have multiple beliefs, behaviors and morals that could have an influence in the development of a mental health disorder. Some practices from “conservative” cultures may seem very immoral to “modern” cultures, however the practitioners and the people within the culture see nothing wrong with it. Though if that conservative cultural practice were to be done in a modern country then people would not be okay with it. An example of similar ideology is seen in a study where Mexican-American families and European-American families were examined by controlling a parent’s warmth towards their children; it was found that the Mexican children had felt more anxious when their parents showed more warmth which was the opposite case for European children (Varela, 2009). Varying cultures signify for different reactions towards certain behaviors due to cultural beliefs that make it okay to accept certain behaviors. There was a contrast between the two different ethnic families and their children’s reaction towards their more controlling attitudes. Latino culture tends to lean more on the stricter side which might have been a cultural influence towards the children’s feeling of anxiety when their parents were being warmer towards them. In addition to having stricter standards, in Latino culture it is also very common for men to have an image to live up to. That is to have masculinity and always show manliness in order to fulfill their role as man because if not they are then degenerated, this concept is often referred to as machismo. The National Institutes of Health affirms that machismo negatively influences the desire for Hispanic men to seek help for their issues and only evokes unrealistic expectations of men to not show emotions and vulnerability (Espí Forcén, 2023). Evidently, such exaggerate expectations placed on men only push them to shut their emotions away instead of receiving the help they truly need. Culture makes a huge impact in how men present themselves or in how they view themselves which closes them off from receiving help for any disorder.
Immigration also plays a significant role when it comes to cultural influences since Hispanics are well known for constantly migrating to the United States in search for better life opportunities. However, it is also a process to become accustomed to a new language and a new culture while preserving the native language and culture. As stated in an article by Emily L. Escovar, may lead to a concept called acculturative stress which is the stress of settling in a new environment and adapting to a new society and discrimination perceptions which oftentimes leads to symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other disorders (Escovar, 2018). Clearly the experience of an immigrant also contributes to the effect on stress and anxiety due to new cultural adaptions and settling into a new society. It is a drastic change in one’s life which may contribute to the development of more anxiety symptoms especially as an immigrant who has limited access to resources. Some immigrants may not even have knowledge about the resources available to help them with their issues. In the article Latino Immigrant Stressors, Emotional Exhaustion, Coping Resources and Work-Related Outcomes it mentions that acquiring educational and job opportunities is very difficult for immigrants since it takes a great deal of effort which may induce stress and even health problems (Rohde, 2018). Adapting to a new society with certain limitations to resources due to legal status can become very stressful which may cause an increment in health problems. Too much stress can lead to an anxiety disorder to develop and worsen overtime with the lack of resources to treat such health problems.
Overall, there needs to be more studies done on Hispanic men and anxiety disorders being influenced by cultural values as well as occupational status. Latino immigrants in the United States often have a difficult time gaining access to helpful resources therefore it would be useful if people understood the struggles that may Latino men have. They struggle with fitting in to unrealistic standards and managing their own emotions, more has to be done to alleviate all of the Hispanic men suffering in silence.
Works Cited
“Latinx/Hispanic Communities and Mental Health.” Mental Health America, 2019, www.mhanational.org/issues/latinxhispanic-communities-and-mental-health.
Laine Perfas, Samantha. “Why Men Are Less Likely to Seek Mental Health Care.” Harvard Gazette, 9 Nov. 2023, news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2023/08/stigma-mental-health-care-men/.
Varela, R. Enrique, and Lauren Hensley-Maloney. “The Influence of Culture on Anxiety in Latino Youth: A Review – Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review.” SpringerLink, Springer US, 11 Mar. 2009, link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10567-009-0044-5.
Forcén, Fernando Espí, et al. “Deconstructing Cultural Aspects of Mental Health Care in Hispanic/Latinx People.” Psychiatric Annals, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1 Mar. 2023, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10540642/#:~:text=Machismo%20is%20another%20sociocultural%20aspect,to%20seek%20mental%20health%20care.
Escovar, Emily L, et al. “Cultural Influences on Mental Health Symptoms in a Primary Care Sample of Latinx Patients.” Journal of Anxiety Disorders, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5918638/.
Rohde, Derek. “Latino Immigrant Stressors, Emotional Exhaustion, Coping Resources and Work-Related Outcomes.” The Free Library, North American Journal of Psychology , Mar. 2018, www.thefreelibrary.com/Latino+Immigrant+Stressors%2C+Emotional+Exhaustion%2C+Coping+Resources…-a0529864264.
