The Armenian Culture

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. Armenians are patriarchal in nature, and typically have the man of the household serve as the breadwinner. Mothers are usually seen as caring and nurturing, while fathers are typically viewed more as authoritative and disciplinarian (Bakalian, 1993). While men are seen as the breadwinners and are usually the sole decision makers, women are traditionally expected to be wives and mothers, and are responsible for maintaining and transmitting family traditions (Minnassian, 2010). Armenians are generally considered a collectivistic culture, with strong family values at their cornerstone. Due to a longstanding history of oppression, as a collective, Armenians tend to be weary of others and are usually suspicious when seeking services. As an extension …show more content…

have ties that bring them close together, and some relationships that set them apart. For example, all Armenians, regardless of their age, feel the need to protect their culture and marry within their culture in order to prevent extinction (Garavanian, 2000). Therefore, they feel strongly about making their own community with their own churches, schools, markets and entertainment centers. On the other hand, some Armenians have forces pulling them apart, due to the different groups within the culture for various political reasons. Furthermore, youth and adolescents born in America feel “out of touch” (Garavanian, p.42, 2000) with their elders, and as such, push away their thoughts and strong feelings. Armenian youth and children, similar to Jewish children, have been found to be “unusually respectful and less rebellious towards their parents” (Garavanian, 2000, p. 42). As previously mentioned, education is a strong value maintained in Armenian families, especially immigrant families (Garavanian, …show more content…

Within this lens, it can be understood how difficult it may feel for Armenians, especially those living outside of their country, in the U.S., facing mental health issues. For Armenians, given that mental illness or psychological issues have not been a part of the norm, or even given attention in terms of education, many feel that it is shameful or embarrassing to talk about psychological symptoms such as anxiety and/or depression. Furthermore, many Armenians hold the strong belief that if someone begins to exhibit symptoms that may seem atypical, then they may be regarded as “crazy.” Since people’s opinions, or the community’s opinion at large takes significance, Armenians will keep these matters private, for fear of shame and embarrassment (Arzumanian, 2008). Armenians and mental health. There is a lack of research that investigates Armenian Americans’ perception of mental health issues. Much of the information presented and discussed comes from doctoral dissertations and projects; some others come from novels, non-fiction, and from anecdotal evidence. Arzumanian (2008) focused a doctoral dissertation on the stigma and barriers present amongst Armenians that hinder their use of mental health services. Arzumanian (2008) concluded that Armenian Americans underutilize mental health services, including

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