Survey Finds Many Clergy Dismiss Signs Of Mental Illness

Waco, TX (AHN) – A Baylor University study found some clergy members attribute mental distress to environmental or spiritual factors rather than mental illness, even when the afflicted individual has been diagnosed with a mental illness.

Researchers found that about a third of the clergy members in the United States who were approached for help by someone with a diagnosed mental illness, or by someone seeking help for someone else, told the person seeking help that they or their loved one didn’t really have a mental illness.

Most of the pastors surveyed senior clergy in large, affluent suburban congregations, with members who were highly educated, theologically conservative and predominantly Caucasian.

The 168 pastors surveyed by Baylor University researchers were affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT).

Previous research has shown that clergy members, not mental health experts, are the people most commonly sought out for help when people are going through psychological distress. This survey builds on those previous studies in finding that depression and anxiety turn out to be the mental health illnesses most commonly dismissed.

Researchers found that many pastors believe that many mental disorders have environmental or spiritual causes, rather than biological causes.

“The results are troubling because the demographic of this sample is considered to have the most and easiest access to mental health care, but yet, by their admission, they seem unwilling to access mental health care that is available to their congregants,” said Dr. Matthew Stanford, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor, who led the study. “A majority of them also do not believe they come into contact with very many congregants that have a legitimate mental illness, however we know roughly one in four Americans will be diagnosed with a mental illness this year, making it likely that they will come in contact with it.”

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