Week 6: Kelin Tham-Graul A03

Kelin Tham-Graul ASA 2 A03 Week 6 While reading “On Some College Campuses, A Focus On Asian American Mental Health” by Katherine Kam, I found the assessment of the issues that Asian Americans face in school to be very accurate. I can personally relate to the fact that “there’s an expectation that they are high-achieving academically... so when they aren’t meeting that, they’re putting a lot of pressures on themselves” (Kam, 2013, p. 2). As an Asian American, I have experienced the effects of these societal expectations, which led me to base much of my self-worth on my academic performance throughout my K-12 schooling. There is definitely a pressure to live up to stereotypes, and those who fail to meet the standards imposed by society risk being viewed as a “bad” Asian American or less of an Asian American compared to high-achieving peers. I also liked that Kam addressed how “even though these could be called ‘positive stereotypes,’ Chen felt stressed by the expectations” (Kam, 2013, p. 3), which was very telling about how even supposedly “positive” stereotypes ultimately have negative effects. Asian American issues such as these are sometimes not taken seriously because the societal perceptions that affect us are dismissed as "positive" stereotypes, so I feel that is important to deconstruct this idea and recognize their negative impact. Not only do these stereotypes create problems for Asian Americans, but they also make it more difficult for Asian Americans to receive help for mental health issues, both because they may be reluctant to seek help and because the people who are supposed to help them sometimes do not take Asian Americans as seriously. I have heard of counselors from some high schools dismissing Asian American students for ignorant reasons, such as the belief that it is natural for Asian Americans to be stressed because they are supposedly school-focused and face high parental pressure. I found it interesting to read about the ways that universities have begun to address these mental health issues among Asian Americans, leaving the topic on a hopeful note.

Question: Is dealing with individual cases and helping individual students enough to adequately address a problem rooted in society as a whole? How can we deconstruct our society’s stereotypes of Asian Americans to prevent these problems?

References:

Kam, K. (2013, September 11). On Some College Campuses, A Focus On Asian American Mental Health. Retrieved October 29, 2017, from http://newamericamedia.org/2013/09/on-some-college-campuses-a-focus-on-asian-american-mental-health.php

Asian American/Pacific Islander Communities and Mental Health. (2016, June 30). Retrieved October 29, 2017, from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/issues/asian-americanpacific-islander-communities-and-mental-health