Africana Health Psychology: A Cultural Perspective consists of a discussion of health psychology among populations of African descent throughout the diaspora and includes those living in the US such as Caribbean and continental Africans of color. The focus of this work is on health equity with an emphasis on cultural affirmation as protective factors. This book is unique because it merges Africana/Black psychology and health psychology, endorses a strength-based, rather than a deficits-based model of health among Black people, and describes research consisting solely of African-descended participants. From the first chapter designed to disrupt the narrative to the last chapter offering hope for a brighter day, the reader is asked to suspend all preconceived notions of Black people and health. Research findings from childhood to old age are explored in culturally grounded theoretical frameworks. Resilience and spirituality are key themes throughout this volume, meant to enhance cultural competency for practitioners, scholars, students, community members, and anyone interested in expanding their skill set or leaving their comfort zones.

Creates a new framework for approaching Black women’s wellness, by merging theory and practice with both personal narratives and public policy. This book offers a unique, interdisciplinary, and thoughtful look at the challenges and potency of Black women’s struggle for inner peace and mental stability. It brings together contributors from psychology, sociology, law, and medicine, as well as the humanities, to discuss issues ranging from stress, sexual assault, healing, self-care, and contemplative practice to health-policy considerations and parenting. Merging theory and practice with personal narratives and public policy, the book develops a new framework for approaching Black women’s wellness in order to provide tangible solutions. The collection reflects feminist praxis and defines womanist peace in terms that reject both “superwoman” stereotypes and “victim” caricatures. Also included for health professionals are concrete recommendations for understanding and treating Black women. “ this book speaks not only to Black women but also educates a broader audience of policymakers and therapists about the complex and multilayered realities that we must navigate and the protests we must mount on our journey to find inner peace and optimal health.” — from the Foreword by Linda Goler Blount

African American Psychology: From Africa to America provides comprehensive coverage of the field of African American psychology. Authors Faye Z. Belgrave and Kevin W. Allison skillfully convey the integration of African and American influences on the psychology of African Americans using a consistent theme throughout the text—the idea that understanding the psychology of African Americans is closely linked to understanding what is happening in the institutional systems in the United States. The Fourth Edition reflects notable advances and important developments in the field over the last several years, and includes evidence-based practices for improving the overall well-being of African American communities

Understanding an Afrocentric World View: Introduction to an Optimal Psychology stands as a groundbreaking and timeless classic in the field of Africana Studies, Psychology, and Human Development. Its reverberating in-depth analysis of and prescriptive cure for racism and other societal isms identifies the essential factors at their core and how to change them. Dr. Linda James Myers provides rare insights into social forces behind the systemic racism that have been with us for over 400 years. Her time tested Optimal Conceptual Theory and its corollary psychotherapeutic strategies unearth the characteristics of the suboptimal mindset that keeps us trapped in the vicious pattern of oppressive injustice that is harmful to ourselves as well as others, and its optimal alternative. Unlike other treatise on the subject, James Myers offers readers the tools and developmental processes for making the shift in consciousness needed for improving the quality of their own lives and for creating a just, sacred, and sustainable world. Her comprehensive holistic and integrative approach reflects a Black cultural perspective seldom heard, but proven effective and traceable to the beginnings of all human culture and civilization.

An Introduction to Black Psychology is designed to help students develop a strong intellectual orientation and practice of Black psychology. The anthology features readings that encourage students to break from the western way of thought that pervades modern psychology and to explore new approaches to the practice that restore African normality and better serve those of African descent. Section I of the collection provides readers with an introduction to cultural norms of those of African descent, including worldviews, traditions, religion, and belief systems. In Section II, students learn critical frameworks for the theoretical and political application of Black psychology, with readings addressing mental health, African American personality, colorblindness, and more. The readings in Section III examine the formation of Black identity within the contexts of child development, immigration, and education. The final section focuses on research methods and methodology, preparing students to meaningfully contribute to the discipline of Black psychology. Written for students of all backgrounds, An Introduction to Black Psychology is an ideal textbook for courses in psychology, Black psychology, social work, and any other course that prepares individuals to counsel Black populations. Ifetayo M. Flannery is an assistant professor in the Department of Africana Studies at San Francisco State University, where she teaches courses in Africana studies, Black psychology, and Black cultures and personalities. She is a trained Africologist, completing her Ph.D. in the Department of Africology & African American Studies at Temple University. Her research contributes methodological and theoretical alternative models for scholars through the Africana studies framework to advance research aiding the psychological and cultural agency of people of African descent.

​Increasingly, global humanitarian efforts are focusing on improving the lives of children. And among the developing world, the African nations are particularly affected by extreme weather conditions, devastating pandemics, and armed conflict. Neurocognitive science offers significant avenues toward bringing needed aid to the continent while creating a template for helping children worldwide. The studies in Neuropsychology of Children in Africa clearly illustrate how the brain develops and adjusts in the face of adversity. Contributors span assessment approaches and public health risk factors, and represent established topics and emerging lines of research, including biocultural constructs and genomic technologies. Together, these chapters argue for methodology that is culturally sensitive, scientifically rigorous, consistent, and sustainable. And although the focus is pediatric, the book takes a lifespan approach to prevention and intervention, modeling a universal framework for understanding neurocognitive development. Included in the coverage: Assessment of very young children in Africa in the context of HIV. Psychosocial aspects of malnutrition among African children. Assessment of neuropsychological outcomes in pediatric severe malaria. Neurodisability screening using the Ten Questions questionnaire. The neuropsychology of sickle cell disease in West African children. Computerized Cognitive Rehabilitation Thera py for African children. As a guide to current findings or a springboard for new studies, Neuropsychology of Children in Africa is a necessary reference for researchers, policymakers, and diverse professionals in global aid organizations, and across the discipline.

A complete discussion of the history and principles of African-centered psychology, this work explores the development of the African American mindset in society and reveals the thought processes of the African mind in America. Using a new approach that decries the various negative influences upon African Americans and their families, this treatise proposes a method that reclaims and restores the mind and spirit of African Americans.

Introduction to Africana Demography book includes an introduction outlining Africana demography and chapters that provide a critique of conventional demographic approaches to understanding race and social institutions, such as the family, religion, and the criminal justice system.

This volume focuses on how music and arts in the global Africana world are used for political and social change. It will be an essential resource for scholars and students in African studies, Africana, Afro-Atlantic studies, diaspora studies, sociology, music, literature, politics and culture. The volume is divided into three sections, namely “Music and Politics”, “Case Studies of Experiential Practices in Healing and Education”, and “Literature, the Arts, and Political Expression”, which cross subject areas such as nationalism, political identity, post-coloniality, health, education, orality, and cultural expressivity. Diverse topics are covered, such as the African thematics of jazz, the Y’en a Marre/Fed Up movement in Senegal, the Occupy Nigeria movement, NGO activism in Brazil, and Africana performance traditions, as well as the dynamics of oral and written literature. The articles explore works by Joseph Conrad, Nathaniel Mackey, Kofi Awoonor, and Ngugi wa Thiong’o, as well as the artistic expression of Jean-Michel Basquiat.

Psychology is of interest to academics from many fields, as well as to the thousands of academic and clinical psychologists and general public who can't help but be interested in learning more about why humans think and behave as they do. This award-winning twelve-volume reference covers every aspect of the ever-fascinating discipline of psychology and represents the most current knowledge in the field. This ten-year revision now covers discoveries based in neuroscience, clinical psychology's new interest in evidence-based practice and mindfulness, and new findings in social, developmental, and forensic psychology.