Description

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This widely adopted text synthesizes an extensive body of research on Asian American personality development, identity, and mental health. Uba focuses on how ethnocultural factors interact with minority group status to shape the experiences of members of diverse Asian American groups. Cultural values and norms shared by many Asian Americans are examined and common sources of stress described, including racial discrimination and immigrant and refugee experiences. Rates of mental health problems in Asian American communities are reviewed, as are predictors and manifestations of specific disorders. The volume also explores patterns in usage of available mental health services and considers ways that service delivery models might be adapted to better meet the needs of Asian American clients.

About the Author

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Laura Uba, PhD, a lecturer in the Asian American Studies Department at California State University, Northridge, is the recipient of two postdoctoral fellowships dealing with issues in Asian American communities: One from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) at the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies, and the other from the Institute of American Cultures at the UCLA Asian American Studies Center.

Praise For…

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"...brings a scholarly approach to the field of Asian-American Studies. This is one of the best works I have seen on Asian-Americans.... Uba is to be complimented for her balanced perspective on the differences and similarities among Asian-Asians. This volume can be a critical tool in helping mental health providers gain better insight into Asian-americans. The book is appropriate in academic as well as professional practice arenas."--True Thao, M.S.W., John Hope Settlement House

"This book is a godsend for our new course in the Caribbean-American family. It offers wonderful insights into a vitally important and until recently much neglected topic."--H.M. Sandstrom, University of Hartford, Connecticut

"An excellent resource for understanding the personality and mental health issues of Asian Americans. Dr. Uba's book is essential reading for undergraduate courses in Asian American Psychology."--Mary Ann Takemoto, Ph.D., University of California Irvine

"It addresses cross-cultural issues of importance to Asian and other immigrant groups in the U.S."--Maria Cecilla Zea, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, George Washington University, Washington, DC

"Dr. Uba's book will set a new standard in the teaching of Asian American studies. Her timely and critical presentation of psychological issues facing Asian and Pacific Americans is long overdue. Her book will be a primary resource for researchers and practitioners, as well as an important contribution to undergraduate education."--Kenyon S. Chan, Ph.D., California State University, Northridge

"This book is an excellent, highly readable compilation of existing research on Asian American psychology and represents a much-needed addition to the literature. Dr. Uba skillfully reviews a broad range of issues, pulling together studies on Asian and Asian American cultural values, family characteristics, personality patterns, ethnic identity, mental health needs, psychotherapy, and service utilization. Coverage includes material on more widely-researched groups such as Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans, but also includes information on less-researched Asian American ethnic groups such as Filipino Americans, Korean Americans, Samoan Americans, and Southeast Asian Americans. Equally important are Professor Uba's efforts to contextualize the presented empirical findings, her discussions of potential cultural biases in the interpretation of previous research, and her presentation of alternative interpretations that take into account the role of racism and Asian American cultural values. This volume will be a major resource for anyone interested in understanding the psychology of Asian Americans."--Donna K. Nagata, Ph.D., The University of Michigan

"Laura Uba's Asian Americans: Personality Patterns, Identity, and Mental Health is a worthy successor to Sue and Morishima's Mental Health of Asian Americans. It is comprehensive in scope, scholarly in coverage, and rich in clinical insights. It contains a wealth of relevant and up-to-date information and should be required reading for all clinical and counseling psychologists-in-training. It would also serve as an invaluable guide to all mental health professionals who work with Asian American clients. As a wonderful integrative resource in Asian American psychology, it will undoubtedly become a classic in the field."--Fred Leong, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Psychology, The Ohio State University

"The book makes an outstanding contribution to the literature. It is systematic, thorough, and attuned to important trends in theory and research. In tone, approach and substance, it marks the continuing maturation of minority mental health as a scholarly field."--Lonnie R. Snowden, Ph.D., Professor, University of California, Berkeley


"The author brings a range of experience to this topic, and skillfully presents the research on personality, ethnic identity and mental health of Asian Americans....Well researched and referenced....This is a most welcome addition to the literature....Predominantly a scholarly text, this book is well suited for investigators, anthropologists, and trainees at graduate level and above. It is also recommended as an ancillary handbook for the practicing mental health professional. It is a great beginning to what I hope is a growing collection including focused work on Asian American people with serious mental illness."
— Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal

"This book is appropriate for upper-level undergraduates and graduate students in the fields of psychology, sociology, or anthropology. Dr. Uba's knowledge and credentials are exemplary....Students, practitioners, and academics interested in factors influencing the personality patterns, ethnic identity, and mental health of Asian Americans will find this book invaluable."
— Doody's Annual

"Uba's book is comprehensive in scope, scholarly in coverage, and rich in clinical insights. It contains a wealth of relevant and up-to-date information and should be required reading for all clinical and counseling psychologists in training. It would also serve as an invaluable guide to all mental health professionals who work with Asian American clients. As a wonderful integrative resource in Asian American psychology, it will undoubtedly become a classic in the field."
— Contemporary Psychology