“Operationally defined diagnoses of schizophrenia have been reported to be more prevalent amongst black people of African and Caribbean origin both in the United States and in the U.K. (references)…. British studies indicate that black people are less likely to receive diagnoses of anxiety and depression in primary care (Gillam, 1989).”

“It is suggested that mental illness is over-diagnosed amongst Black offenders (of African and Caribbean origin) explaining higher rates amongst forensic psychiatric populations. Additionally, it is reported that mental illness goes unrecognized in most black offenders whose behavior is labeled as ‘bad’; this would explain the higher contact with criminal justice agencies.”

“Black people who are known in Britain to receive major tranquilizers and antidepressants more frequently than White patients, more often as a depot, at higher doses, and less often psychotherapy or counseling (references). Black users’ complaints about medication may be a result of excessive medication in the face of poorer communicative relationships lending themselves to pursue a biological approach…. Cultural attitudes and medication as a symbol of social control and loss of autonomy are likely to further add to the complexity of patient-medication interactions rendering simple reductionist descriptions for specific ethnic groups as flawed.”