TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Korean-Canadian immigrants' help-seeking and self-management of suicidal behaviours
JO  - Canadian journal of community mental health
A1  - Han, C.S.
A1  - Oliffe, J.L.
SP  - 17
EP  - 30
VL  - 34
IS  - 1
N2  - Suicidal behaviours are intricately connected to culture, oftentimes reflecting traditional norms and attitudes to health help-seeking and self-management. To describe Korean-Canadian immigrants' help-seeking and self-management for their suicidal behaviours, 15 participants completed individual semistructured indepth interviews. Using constant comparison analysis, participants' narratives were analysed to inductively derive two themes: 1) resisting professional help; and, 2) developing effective self-management strategies. The study findings suggest that most participants preferred and opted for self-management strategies rather than seeking professional help. Most participants' reluctance to seek professional or peer help was underpinned by a fear of the stigma associated with traversing cultural norms by harbouring a mental illness and seeking help for that ailment. In addition, a lack of knowledge about available professional health care services, along with language and cultural barriers, led some participants to perceive mental health services as ineffectual. Participants' determination to self-manage their suicidality was influenced by cultural norms around honouring and protecting family, and a range of spiritual and religious beliefs also emerged to counter impulses for acting on suicidal thoughts. By shedding light on Korean-Canadian immigrants' experiences with suicidal behaviours, the findings offer some guidance toward developing culture-sensitive suicide prevention programs. © 2015, Canadian Periodical for Community Studies Inc. All rights reserved.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0713-3936
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.7870/cjcmh-2014-036
ID  - ref1
ER  -