Abstract

Black American boys encounter an intricately woven set of obstructions when seeking help for their mental health concerns in public school settings. The researcher argues that these barriers are rooted in infrastructural inequalities, institutional disparities, and historical oppression. Specifically, he asserts that the obstacles are centered around the symbiotic interaction between environmental toxicity and economic insecurity. The digital image or photograph has become an inextricable part of our lives. We use this tool incessantly to communicate with each other on a daily basis. Moreover, the dominant manner in which children and youth engage with one another is through photographs (e.g. social media platforms and texting). This researcher contends that the picture will be instrumental in how individuals heal from and cope with the inadvertently adverse economic, environmental, and emotional outcomes from their experiences with this most recent shared worldwide health catastrophe. This arduous process requires the implementation of interventions that are innovative, least restrictive, and sensitive to combat the compounded issues emerging from an unforeseen tragedy. This researcher proposes using photo-based methods of qualitative inquiry to evoke more emotive explanations that will help in comprehending and mending these hindrances to the mental health (help-seeking) experiences (MHHSE) of pre-adolescent Black American boys. Specifically, this form of examination serves as a culturally empathic or anti-oppressive manner to highlight their unique mental health narratives.

Presenters

Christopher Ashley Burkett
Assistant Professor, Social Work, California State University, Long Beach, California, United States

Details

Presentation Type

Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

Theme

The Form of the Image

KEYWORDS

Photo-Based Research, Black American Boys, Mental Health Help Seeking Experiences

Digital Media

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