An Ethnographic Study of Black Men Within an Inner London Area to Elicit Relatedness Between Black Human Condition and the Onset of Severe Mental Illness: What About the Black Human Condition?

Background: Despite changes in legislation to prohibit racial discrimination and improve race relations, black men in the United Kingdom repeatedly find themselves confronted with limited situations from which there appears to be no avoidance or escape. Material: This qualitative study attempts to gain some understanding of the process of becoming ill from the interviewees' point of view. The study was conducted in two different mental health-care settings situated in the South London area. A grounded theory approach to the date collection and analysis was used to elucidate this experience. The criteria for inclusion were that participants had to identify themselves as being black, male, over the age of 18, and living with severe mental illness. Eleven men who fulfilled the criteria agreed to be interviewed and have their interviews tape-recorded and transcribed. The transcriptions were analyzed thematically for constructs that indicated how they came to be detained under the Mental Health Act of 1983. Discussion: Seven themes are revealed within the narratives of participant patients, (i.e., place of origin, sex, age, family and friends, education, work, and initial and most recent admission to hospital). The narratives provide evidence in support of the view that black men detained under the Mental Health Act usually have great insight into the reality of their own lived-worlds, but they are less likely to receive psychological interventions to help clarify and resolve issues that had arisen and are, therefore, at risk of readmission. Conclusions: Black men detained under the Mental Health Act presented with psychological issues that might be best addressed by suitably trained psychological therapist as opposed to medication.