The next few months we’ll be highlighting authors who have published in Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry.

Fareeda Abo-Rass, MSW, PhD, is a Palestinian-Arab social worker and researcher. She is a Research Fellow in the Takemi Program in International Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Abo-Rass’s research focuses on the psychosocial aspects of mental health among the Palestinian minority in Israel, with a particular emphasis on mental health literacy, subjective beliefs, and attitudes, and their relationship to health outcomes and behaviors. Her work seeks to uncover barriers and facilitators to mental health help-seeking among various groups within the minority, including individuals with mental disorders, women, adolescents, students, and older adults, etc..

What is your article “Unraveling Trust Issues Towards Mental Health Professionals Among Bedouin-Arab Minority in Israel” about?

The article examines the challenges of trust in mental health professionals and services within the Bedouin-Arab community in southern Israel. Through qualitative interviews with 25 Bedouin participants, the study reveals that concerns about confidentiality significantly erode trust in local Bedouin mental health professionals. This distrust is deeply rooted in cultural and social structures rather than in the professional attributes of the providers and is fueled by fears of stigmatization and potential privacy breaches. The lack of trust leads to reduced help-seeking behavior or a preference for non-Bedouin mental health providers, despite the challenges posed by cultural differences and language barriers. The findings underscore the need for culturally sensitive approaches to building trust in mental health services within this minority community and other non-Western minorities.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your research interests.

First, I am the mother of two wonderful daughters: Tulip (10 years old) and Yasmina (7 years old).
I earned my master’s and doctorate in Community Mental Health at the University of Haifa before moving to the U.S. to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship at Smith College in Massachusetts, funded by a Fulbright scholarship. In Fall 2023, I joined Harvard as a researcher in the esteemed Takemi Program in International Health.

As a Palestinian, living under ongoing conflict and war, which significantly impacts my mental health, has deepened my interest in mental health issues, particularly in understanding why the minority community I come from remains hesitant about seeking mental health care. This curiosity drove me to choose this field and focus my research on it. My community is traditional and conservative when it comes to discussing mental health, but it also suffers from institutional discrimination, leading to a severe shortage of services and professionals, as well as a lack of institutional interest in promoting awareness and improving mental health beliefs within the community. Through my research, I aspire to shed light on my community’s barriers and obstacles to mental health care, providing empirical knowledge that can inform other studies, decision-makers, and professionals.

What drew you to this project?

During a qualitative study I conducted among the Bedouin community, titled ‘Mental Health Literacy as a Barrier and Facilitator for Service Use: Qualitative Inquiry among Palestinian Bedouins in Israel,’ the topic of trust emerged frequently, even though it was not the primary focus of the research. This prompted me to conduct another study specifically focused on understanding trust towards professionals in this community in depth. Research indicates that within the Bedouin community, which is part of the Palestinian minority in Israel, referral rates to mental health services are very low despite high levels of mental distress. Therefore, I believe it is crucial to focus on this community and thoroughly examine all issues related to their mental health.

What was one of the most interesting findings?

The most interesting finding from the study is that the lack of trust in mental health professionals does not stem from their skills or performance, nor is it based on direct experiences with them. Instead, it arises from cultural and social beliefs and opinions, many of which are not grounded in personal experience but have been passed down through generations. This distrust,

initially directed at the general healthcare system, has shifted to the mental healthcare system as well. The community’s status as a minority within Israel plays a significant role in shaping this lack of trust.

What are you reading, listening to, and/or watching right now? (Doesn’t have to be anthropological!)

I am currently reading the novel “Salt Houses” by Hala Alyan. I enjoy reading books by young women writers and those that focus on indigenous people. These books offer valuable insights into history and the present, and I often learn a great deal about the mental health of different communities through them. This particular novel, a work of historical fiction that follows four generations of a Palestinian family, resonates with me as it echoes parts of my own family’s story.

If there was one takeaway or action point you hope people will get from your work, what would it be?

If there was one takeaway or action point I hope people will get from my work, it would be the importance of self-reflection regarding their beliefs on mental health and mental treatment. I want people to consider whether their views are based on facts, personal experiences, or simply on information passed down through social and cultural norms. By doing so, we can significantly raise awareness and encourage communities to promote the importance of mental health and increase knowledge around it, especially when the institutions may not prioritize this within this minority.

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