Culture-centered narratives of support and stigma: intergenerational tensions in the mental illness experiences of Vietnamese American youth

This study explores how second-generation Vietnamese American youth in the US Northeast make meaning of mental illness amid intergenerational stigma and structural marginalization. Drawing on the culture-centered approach (CCA), we analyze 30 in-depth interviews to examine how cultural discourses, family dynamics, and migration histories shape experiences of mental distress and barriers to help-seeking. Findings reveal that mental illness is framed not as a medical condition but as a social threat to family honor, reinforcing silence and deterring support-seeking. Participants describe cultural scripts that equate mental illness with ‘madness’ (điên), as well as linguistic and generational disconnections that hinder emotional expression and care navigation. Amid these barriers, youth demonstrate agency by seeking alternative support structures and reimagining mental health through culturally resonant narratives. We theorize intergenerational tensions as communicative sites of negotiation, where younger Vietnamese Americans challenge dominant silences and create openings for dialogic change. This study contributes to health communication by foregrounding the cultural and structural contexts of mental illness stigma and highlighting the transformative potential of community-rooted voice infrastructures in addressing mental health inequities.