Palestinian Muslim College Students’ Attitudes to Mental Health Treatment: A Comparative Study

Wahiba Abu-Ras (), Amir Birani, Zulema E. Suarez and Cynthia L. Arfken
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Wahiba Abu-Ras: School of Social Work, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY 11530, USA
Amir Birani: Clinical Social Work, Therapist Daliyat AL-Karmel, Daliyat Al-Karmel 3005600, Israel
Zulema E. Suarez: School of Social Work, Loyola University, Chicago, IL 60660, USA
Cynthia L. Arfken: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 23, 1-17

Abstract: This study examined the association between the degree of religiosity, combined with cultural beliefs, social stigmas, and attitudes towards mental-health treatment in two groups, who, despite having similar cultural and religious affiliation, have experienced different socio-political contexts: Palestinian Muslim college students living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Israel. The study was guided by Tanhan and Young’s (2021) conceptual framework. Methods: A snowball recruitment strategy was applied, using a cross-sectional survey. A total sample size was 214 students, 105 from the OPT and 109 from Israel. Results indicate that students from the OPT ( n = 105) did not differ from those living in Israel ( n = 109) on religiosity using the Islamic Belief scale, or Attitudes Towards Mental Health treatment ( F (1, 189) = 1.07, p = 0.30). However, students from the OPT had higher confidence in mental-health professionals ( M = 15.33) than their counterparts ( M = 14.59), and women had higher confidence ( M = 16.03) than men ( M = 13.90). The reliance on traditions for Muslim students over Western mental-health approaches is a critical factor in predicting the attitudes towards students’ mental problems and their chosen treatment. Sociopolitical context played a significant role in shaping attitudes toward mental-health providers.

Keywords: culture; religiosity; mental health; Muslim college students; occupied Palestinian territory; Israel (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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