Pastors' counseling practices and perceptions of mental health services: implications for African American mental health.

ABSTRACT

The purpose of the current study was to investigate pastors' perceptions about and practice of mental health services within their churches. Thirty nine pastors completed an online survey. Results of the survey indicated that pastors who had more positive attitudes toward mental health services reported (1) counseling parishioners more times per month and (2) counseling parishioners on a greater variety of topics. Implications for pastoral care and counseling and future directions in training are discussed.