UC Merced Undergraduate Research Journal

The stigmatization of mental health is a detriment to society. Learning healthy coping mechanisms or seeking professional mental health services are crucial to preventing others from perpetuating bad and problematic behaviors and better the mental health of the general population. The focal point of this research is how the stigma of mental health specifically harms Hispanic adolescents because mental health disparities disproportionately affect Latinos (a sizable minority group in the United States) in comparison to their white counterparts. FourHispanic adolescents were virtually interviewed to document their anecdotal experiences with the stigma of mental health issues in their families. The analysis of studies conducted by Susan Caplan and William Vega et al. are used to bridge and apply concepts of mental health stigma to the participants’ responses. It was found that poverty, language barriers, fear, societal stigma, and discriminatory stigma accumulate to make proper mental health treatment inaccessible and cause harm to a person’s mental well-being. This research has shown the harm stigma does to Hispanic adolescents’ mental health because of destructive cultural, religious, and societal values held by those in this community.