Lifetime Prevalence of DSM-III-R Psychiatric Disorders Among Urban and Rural Mexican Americans in California

Abstract

MEXICAN AMERICANS are the largest Hispanic ethnic group in the United States, numbering about 7.5 million in California.¹ The profile of the Mexican American population has changed rapidly in the past decade owing to immigration, increasing poverty, and settlement patterns.² The Mexican American Prevalence and Services Survey (MAPSS) is the first study to cover DSM-III-R³ disorders in a community sample of Mexican Americans living in urban and nonurban residential setings.