Articles in seven newsletters of the Intercultural Development Research Association's Mental Health Research Project emphasize community mental health, human, and child welfare services to Mexican Americans, particularly in Texas. Topics include social policy formation in child welfare services, utilization of community mental health clinics (CMHCs) by Mexican Americans, Texas state government reorganization to better serve Mexican American mental health needs, Mexican American women as subjects and investigators of social science research, depression in Mexican American women, psychiatric treatment relevance for Hispanic inpatients, responsibilities of CMHCs to Mexican American children and other underserved youth, sociopolitical genesis of CMHCs, status of special populations in the Texas Commission on Alcoholism State Plan, overview of patients' rights in mental health services, service needs of Mexican American elderly, use of Mexican American paraprofessionals in CMHC staffing, eliminating service barriers for Mexican Americans in mental health treatment, Texas legislative response to mental health issues, and planning strategies for mental health services for Mexican Americans. Report of a conference sponsored by the Research Project summarizes key mental health concerns emerging from conference workshops on service utilization, treatment, service planning, and patients' rights/advocacy. Tables, graphs, and bibliographies accompany several articles. Updates on federal legislation occur in four issues. (LFL)