Defense Date

10-31-2025

Graduation Date

Winter 12-19-2025

Availability

Immediate Access

Submission Type

dissertation

Degree Name

PhD

Department

Counselor Education and Supervision (ExCES)

School

School of Education

Committee Chair

David Delmonico

Committee Member

Kathryn Linich

Committee Member

Gibbs Kanyongo

Keywords

Ghana, mental illness, mental health, Ghanaian American, African immigrants, immigrants, stigma

Abstract

This research explores attitudes toward mental illness among Ghanaian immigrants and

first-generation Ghanaian Americans, with particular focus on factors that influence

stigma. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Model, the study utilized the

Community Attitudes Toward Mental Illness (CAMI) Scale to measure four dimensions

of stigma, including authoritarianism, benevolence, social restrictiveness, and community

mental health ideology. A comparative, cross-sectional design was employed to examine

differences between immigrant and American-born participants. The findings revealed

generational differences where Ghanaian immigrants reported higher levels of

authoritarian and socially restrictive beliefs, while first-generation Ghanaian Americans

demonstrated more benevolent and inclusive attitudes. Interpreted through the ecological

systems lens, results highlight how microsystem factors such as family and faith

communities, mesosystem interactions across cultural networks, exosystem-level barriers

in healthcare, macrosystem cultural narratives, and chronosystem generational shifts

collectively shape mental health attitudes. The study’s implications extend to theory, as it

applies Bronfenbrenner’s model to immigrant stigma research; to practice, by identifying

culturally responsive strategies for reducing stigma, providing psychoeducation, and

implementing community-based interventions with Ghanaian clients. Limitations

included sample size, reliance on self-report measures, and restricted generalizability.

Nevertheless, this research makes a significant contribution by addressing an

underexplored population and offering insights for culturally competent counseling,

policy, and future scholarship.

Language

English

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