Psychological help-seeking behaviors of ethnic minority college students

Despite the potential and real costs of mental health problems and the availability of successful pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments to treat them, formal help-seeking for these problems remains somewhat uncommon. Racial and ethnic minorities are particularly likely to go without having their needs for mental health services met. Given the sizable and growing population of minority students attending college, it is imperative that measures are taken to ensure their mental health needs are addressed. However, there is limited existing research that specifically examines factors that may be contributing to their documented lower utilization of mental health services.

This empirical study is focused on how ethnicity, culture, and contextual factors may influence the help-seeking behaviors of ethnic minority college students. Specifically this study examines the following: 1) Are racial and ethnic minorities less likely to believe they need mental health care, even though a clinical assessment may suggest otherwise? 2) Are they less likely to seek out services even when they believe they need them? 3) Once a decision is made to seek treatment, are they less likely to seek professional mental health services than other types of treatment? 4) How does culture, along with the context in which the individual lives influence these decisions?