Somebodiness and Its Meaning to African American Men

What is it about?

The psychological functioning of African American men is often described in negative terms. One way to correct these distorted depictions is to identify culturally grounded concepts that can make a fair minded assessment of their psychological functioning. The literature suggests that “somebodiness” is a culturally relevant, but understudied, concept. In this investigation a qualitative research approach was used to explore somebodiness and its meaning to African American men.

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Why is it important?

Somebodiness offers a very different image of African American men from the typical representation found in the counseling literature. African American men are considered to be human beings on a quest for a greater sense of worth, purpose, and community. A major finding of this investigation is that somebodiness is a basic theme in the lives of African American men, and it must be at the center of each therapeutic intervention.