Uses of ministerial support by African Americans: a focus group study.

This focus group study examines the use of ministerial support among African American adults with regard to (1) the issues taken to ministers by church members, (2) the issues not taken to ministers by church members, and (3) the factors that inform people's decisions about whether or not to seek ministerial support. Content analysis of narratives from 13 focus groups revealed significant overlap in the range of concerns for which people seek support and those issues for which they will not seek ministerial help. The factors that influence peoples' decisions included shame as well as evaluations of minister character, sincerity, and skill set. Narrative examples are used to elucidate each theme, and the implications of the findings for theory, research, and practice are discussed. 2007 APA, all rights reserved