The Need for Qualitative Research on Mental Health of Elder Hispanics

Abstract

This article contends that purely quantitative measures of Hispanic aged mental health have been insufficiently sensitive to cultural factors. It describes the uses and limitations of qualitative methods, especially in-depth interviews and life histories, and suggests that researchers should include the use of psychometric tests in these interviews, in order to improve the interpretations of the data. In this article the Adlerian perspective is developed along with several relevant dimensions for evaluating cases. Finally, seven cases illustrating the diversity of Hispanic elders are presented.