Ethnic Minority Psychiatric Illness Rates in the Community, 2000

The overall aim of the <i>Ethnic Minority Psychiatric Illness Rates in the Community</i> (EMPIRIC) survey was to estimate the prevalence of psychiatric morbidity, as measured by standard screening instruments, among minority ethnic populations resident in England, and to compare prevalence rates between groups. Also, the survey aimed to examine use of related services and to examine key factors that may be associated with mental disorder, and ethnic differences in the risk of its contraction.<br> <br> The sample for the survey was drawn from Black Caribbean, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Irish respondents to the Health Survey for England (HSE) of 1999 (held at the UK Data Archive under SN 4365), which had focused on minority ethnic groups. White adults selected from respondents to the HSE of 1998 (held under SN 4150) were also included in the sample. <br> <br> In addition to the quantitative survey, which included 4281 respondents, the EMPIRIC study also included a qualitative element. Interviews were achieved with 117 informants, purposively selected from quantitative survey respondents from within each ethnic group, according to CIS-R score. The intention was to investigate the cross-cultural validity of the standard screening instruments, which were designed and validated in a Western context. By encouraging informants to use their own words, the qualitative study explored the terms and definitions that they used to describe mental health. Users should note that only the data from the quantitative survey are currently held at the Archive.<br> <br>