Faith and Community in Action: Increasing Awareness and Management of Depression in African American Communities

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a major public health concern and is quickly approaching the status of a global public health crisis. According to the World Health Organization, by 2020 MDD will be the leading cause of disability globally. In the US an estimated 9.0% of adults report symptoms for current MDD (i.e., during the preceding 2 weeks). It is well documented that women (4.0%) are significantly more likely to report and be diagnosed with MDD compared to men (2.7%) NIMH, 20017). In addition, health disparities research examining MDD show African Americans evidence higher prevalence of depression (4.0%) compared to Whites (3.1%) and African Americans report more chronic MDD and associated disability than do Whites (56.5% vs. 38.6%; Williams et al., 2007). Despite being burdened by MDD, African Americans evidences low seeking of professional help. However, they highly rely on religious coping. This, it is important to work in partnership with African American clergy and African Americans in community based research to create programs that are more aligned with their cultural and religious beliefs. Investigators propose using a one-group (OHDC-SIR) non-randomized observational trial and a sample of 100 African American men and women participants (age 25 and older) with measures at baseline, immediately at the end of the class, and 3- months' post-class. The total duration of the study is 4 months.