Cultural Considerations in Treating Depression

In this chapter, we review important cultural considerations in the treatment of depression for racial/ethnic minorities. We accomplish this by first reviewing the epidemiology of depression among different racial/ethnic groups in the USA, focusing on Latinx, Black and African Americans, Asian Americans, and American Indians. We then review research that has investigated variability in depression along important contextual factors within racial/ethnic minority groups. Afterwards, we review the literature on psychotherapy for depression with racial/ethnic minorities, highlighting commonalities and differences across different treatment adaptations and approaches. Finally, we conclude with recommendations for clinicians and researchers, including the integration of therapist cultural competence and therapy cultural adaptations, as well as attention to heterogeneity within different racial/ethnic groups and the role that systems of privilege and oppression play in shaping these differences.