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Invisible no more: It’s time to talk about Asian American mental health

On Point

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Edited by Katherine Tam
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Coming home for Asian Americans

The news

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Searching for home. For Asian American immigrants whose identities encompass different cultures, it can be hard to feel psychologically safe as they adjust to their new lives in the US, says Taiwanese American psychologist and author Dr. Jenny Wang. But everyone, no matter what background, can create a sense of home through authenticity, belonging, compassion, and safety, she declares. For Asians, showing up authentically sometimes means pushing back against harmful tropes, such as the model minority myth. [NPR]

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The perils of perfectionism. Wang says she was taught by her parents to avoid failure “at all costs,” which harmed her mental health as she struggled with perfectionism. But one can’t take risks to succeed unless one first learns how to fail. Reframing failure can help. For instance, notice the beauty of simply trying something. Break down your goal into small steps, and note where you feel energized, allowing that spark to move you through fear of failure. [CNBC]

“Belonging is not just that I’m allowed to exist here. It is a sense that I am safe, I am valued, and I will be protected if there is potential harm.”

Our insights

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A reckoning. Anti-Asian racism isn’t new in the US, but since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there’s been a growing amount of violence and hostility against Asian Americans. In an interview with McKinsey, Wang says that her new book, Permission to Come Home: Reclaiming Mental Health as Asian Americans, seeks to help Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders come to terms with who they are and what they have faced, including destigmatizing conversations around mental health and promoting self-advocacy.

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Competing cultures. Wang maintains that trying to balance traditional parental expectations, Western cultural norms, and personal desires can take a toll on the kids of Asian immigrants. In addition, competing dynamics—such as the Asian cultural emphasis on humility versus the Western cultural view of self-promotion as necessary—can make it difficult for Asian Americans to feel psychologically safe, she says. Learn how leaders can better understand Asian-identifying individuals and build psychological safety in the workplace.

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by "McKinsey On Point" <publishing@email.mckinsey.com> - 12:57 - 21 Jul 2022

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Invisible no more: It’s time to talk about Asian American mental health

Coming home for Asian Americans

The news

“Belonging is not just that I’m allowed to exist here. It is a sense that I am safe, I am valued, and I will be protected if there is potential harm.”

Our insights