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Adofo, Moyosore Obisanya (2021) Second generation West African men's experiences of seeking therapy for the first time for psychological distress: an interpretative phenomenological analysis. Doctoral thesis, London Metropolitan University.
Background and aim:
The aim of the current research was to explore the experience of Second Generation West African Men (SGWAM) seeking therapy for the first time for psychological distress in the UK. This was as a response to the lack of data on how this rapidly growing population in the UK (Stahl et al, 2017), whose wellbeing have not been paid attention to (Abouguendia & Noels, 2001) seek professional help for psychological distress. The current study attempted to address the gap in research by looking at the experience of seeking professional help for the first time amongst SGWAM.
Methodology:
Semi-structured interviews were carried out with six SGWAM aged 27 to 31 who had sought psychological therapies for emotional distress as adults. The interviews were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA).
Findings:
From the analysis, three superordinate themes emerged. These were “Predisposing factors to not seeking help or expressing distress” (which looks at the participants’ upbringing and culture in relations to expressing emotional distress and seeking help), “Manifestation of predisposing factors within the self” (discusses how the predisposing factors may have played a role in delaying seeking help) and “Journey to engaging with professional help” (refers to factors that were considered by the participants before they engaged with a practitioner).
Conclusions:
The findings suggest that the SGWAM’s upbringing within West African households and their identity as men has the potential to make the expression of emotions and asking for help challenging. The importance of seeing a practitioner who is an African descended male that they can relate to is also stressed. Suggestions are made in regards to how practitioners and services can address other factors which makes seeking help early a challenge. The final section includes suggestions for future research as well as limitations of the current study.
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