Multiracial emerging adults’ experiences with mental health care: ‘To me, it's complicated’

Drawing on critical multiracial theory, the objective of this study was to describe Multiracial emerging adults' experiences with mental health care. A total of 12 Multiracial emerging adults participated in this phenomenological study that used semi-structured interviews. Participants shared that Multiracial and Black providers were emphatic, but White providers engaged in covert and subtle racism. They further discussed the need for providers to be more culturally competent and the need for more racial and ethnic representation among mental health care providers. Findings suggest that providers need to understand their clients' experiences better, such as participants' experiences with racism when both receiving mental health care and navigating developmental milestones, such as dating. This understanding, in turn, could improve the quality of mental health care. Participants in this study also provided suggestions for improving the quality of mental health care, with recommendations ranging from broaching the topic of race to increased racial representation among providers.