Season 6 Episode 5 "Disproportionate Mental Health Diagnoses in African American Boys"

The Positive Professional

In this latest episode of The Positive Professional Podcast, we explore “Disproportionate Mental Health Diagnoses in African American Boys” and how systemic biases, cultural misunderstandings, and racial disparities have led to overdiagnosis of disorders like Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and Conduct Disorder (CD) in Black boys.

What We Cover:
✅ The historical and systemic barriers to mental health care for Black youth
✅ How misdiagnosis fuels the school-to-prison pipeline
✅ The intersection of racial bias and mental health treatment
✅ Strategies for advocating for culturally competent mental health care

This episode is part of our Black History Month Series, where we highlight how the mental health system has harmed and failed Black individuals and what we can do about it. ✊

Tune in now on [Spotify/Apple Podcasts/Your Platform] and let’s continue this important conversation!

#BlackHistoryMonth #MentalHealthMatters #BlackBoysMatter #AdvocateForChange #ThePositiveProfessionalPodcast

References

American Psychological Association. (2021). Black mental health: Addressing disparities in access and treatment. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/monitor/2021/09/ce-black-mental-health

Data Collaborative for Justice. (2023). Racial disparities in New York City’s jail population: Trends from 2016 to 2021. Retrieved from https://datacollaborativeforjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/DisparitiesReport-27.pdf

National Center for Access to Justice. (2024). Rikers and mental illness: The intersection of incarceration and mental health in NYC. Retrieved from https://ncaj.org/news/rikers-and-mental-illness

New York City Independent Budget Office. (2013). NYC’s jail population: Who’s there and why? Retrieved from https://ibo.nyc.ny.us/cgi-park2/2013/08/nycs-jail-population-whos-there-and-why/

New York City Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice. (2024). Mental health crisis in Rikers Island: Increasing diagnoses and inadequate care. Retrieved from https://queenseagle.com/all/2024/3/24/rikers-sees-higher-rates-of-mental-health-and-violent-felony-charges-report-finds

New York City Department of Correction. (2012). DOC at a glance: Population demographics and statistics. Retrieved from https://www.nyc.gov/html/doc/downloads/pdf/doc_at_a_glance.pdf

U.S. Department of Education. (2021). Disproportionate discipline in schools: How implicit bias impacts Black students. Retrieved from https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-releases-data-racial-disparities-school-discipline