Dataset Information

Help-seeking behavior of Jimma university students with common mental disorders: A cross-sectional study.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Globally, the mental health help-seeking behavior of university students is reported to be poor; less than one-third of university students with common mental disorders (CMDs) report having sought help from formal sources. Failure to seek treatment is associated with prolonged disability and poor mental health outcomes, including suicide. In Ethiopia, little is known about the help-seeking behavior of university students for CMDs. OBJECTIVE:This study aimed to assess the prevalence and determinants of help seeking, and sources of help sought by Jimma University undergraduate students with CMDs. METHOD:Seven hundred and sixty students were selected to participate in this cross-sectional study using multi-stage sampling. Sources of help were identified using the Actual Help-Seeking Questionnaire. CMDs were assessed using the 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale. Binary logistic regression analysis was used for both univariate and multivariable analysis. RESULTS:Of the sampled students, 58.4% were found to have current CMDs. Of those with current CMDs, 78.4% had sought help for their problems. The majority (83.8%) of participants who sought help did so from informal sources. Compared to students who had 'very good' overall levels of satisfaction with life, those who had 'good', 'fair', and 'poor or very poor' overall level of satisfaction with life were less likely to seek help (p-value = 0.021, 0.014, and 0.011, respectively). Lastly, having no previous history of help-seeking was significantly associated with seeking help for CMDs (p-value<0.001). CONCLUSION:More than half of Jimma University students were found to have a high risk of CMDs and the majority of those with CMDs sought help from informal sources. Future studies are needed to explore the barriers of seeking help from formal resources, and the effects of not receiving help from formal sources for CMDs symptoms.

SUBMITTER: Gebreegziabher Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6386312 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Help-seeking behavior of Jimma university students with common mental disorders: A cross-sectional study.

Gebreegziabher Yohannes Y Girma Eshetu E Tesfaye Markos M

PloS one 20190222 2

<h4>Background</h4>Globally, the mental health help-seeking behavior of university students is reported to be poor; less than one-third of university students with common mental disorders (CMDs) report having sought help from formal sources. Failure to seek treatment is associated with prolonged disability and poor mental health outcomes, including suicide. In Ethiopia, little is known about the help-seeking behavior of university students for CMDs.<h4>Objective</h4>This study aimed to assess th ...[more]

PMID: 30794639

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Project description:ObjectivesA considerable proportion of those who suffer from mental illnesses in Singapore do not seek any form of professional help. The reluctance to seek professional help could be due to misconceptions about the causes of mental illnesses. Research has shown that help-seeking attitudes can predict actual service use. As young adults are most at risk of developing mental illnesses, this study aims to elucidate the impact of causal beliefs about mental illness on help-seeking attitudes among university students in Singapore.DesignPrior to attending an anti-stigma intervention, data on the Causal Beliefs about Mental Illness, Inventory of Attitudes towards Seeking Mental Health services and questions pertaining to sociodemographic background were collected from participants using a self-administered questionnaire. Multiple linear regressions were performed to examine the relationship between causal beliefs and help-seeking, as well as their sociodemographic correlates.SettingsA university in Singapore.Participants390 students who were studying in a University in Singapore.ResultsYounger age was associated with higher scores on psychosocial attribution, while prior social contact with individuals with mental illness was significantly associated with lower scores on personality attribution. With regard to help-seeking attitudes; being a male and personality attribution were significantly associated with lower scores on 'Psychological Openness' and 'Indifference to Stigma', while psychosocial attribution was significantly associated with higher scores on 'Help-seeking Propensity'. Having prior social contact also predicted higher 'Psychological Openness', while being in Year 2 and 3 predicted lower scores on 'Indifference to Stigma'.ConclusionFindings from this study suggest that help-seeking attitudes might be influenced by causal beliefs, with personality attribution being the most impairing. Hence, to reduce the wide treatment gap in Singapore, anti-stigma interventions targeting young people could focus on addressing beliefs that attribute mental illness to the personality of the individual.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Mental health disorders are the most prevalent health issues among postsecondary students, yet few solutions to this emerging crisis exist. While mobile health technologies are touted as promising solutions for the unmet mental health needs of these students, the efficacy of these tools remains unclear. In response to these gaps, this study evaluates Thought Spot, a mobile and web app created through participatory design research. OBJECTIVE:The goal of the research is to examine the impact of Thought Spot on mental health and wellness help-seeking intentions, behaviors, attitudes, self-stigma, and self-efficacy among postsecondary students in Canada. METHODS:A 2-armed randomized controlled trial involving students from three postsecondary institutions was conducted. Students were eligible if they were aged 17 to 29 years, enrolled in full-time or part-time studies, functionally competent in English, and had access to a compatible digital device. The usual care group received a mental health services information pamphlet. The intervention group received the Thought Spot app on their digital device. Thought Spot is a standalone app that allows users to add, review, and search crowdsourced information about nearby mental health and wellness services. Users can also track their mood on the app. Outcomes were self-assessed through questionnaires collected at baseline and 3 and 6 months. The primary outcome was change in formal help-seeking intentions from baseline to 6 months, measured by the General Help-Seeking Questionnaire. A mixed-effects model was used to compare the impact of usual care and intervention on the primary outcome (formal help-seeking intentions). Secondary outcomes included changes in informal help-seeking intentions and help-seeking behaviors, help-seeking attitudes, self-stigma, and self-efficacy. RESULTS:A total of 481 students were randomized into two groups: 240 to usual care, and 241 to the intervention group. There were no significant differences in help-seeking intentions between the usual care and intervention groups over 6 months (F2,877=0.85; P=.43, f=0.04). Both groups demonstrated similar increases in formal help-seeking intentions at 3 and 6 months (F2,877=23.52; P<.001, f=0.21). Compared with males, females sought more help from formal resources (OR 1.86; 95% CI 1.22 to 2.83, P=.001). Females were less likely to seek help from informal sources than males (OR 0.80; 95% CI 0.22 to 0.73, P<.001). CONCLUSIONS:Prompting postsecondary students about mental health and help-seeking appears to increase help-seeking intentions. mHealth interventions may be as effective as information pamphlets in increasing formal help-seeking but may confer a small advantage in driving help-seeking from informal sources. Although there is enthusiasm, developers and health policy experts should exercise caution and thoroughly evaluate these types of digital tools. Future studies should explore the cost-effectiveness of digital interventions and develop strategies for improving their efficacy. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03412461; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03412461. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID):RR2-10.2196/resprot.6446.

Project description:BackgroundCommunity attitude towards mental health problems and help-seeking behavior plays a major role in designing effective community based mental health interventions. This study aimed to assess the attitude, help-seeking behavior, and associated factors of the Jimma zone community towards mental health and mental health problems.MethodsA community-based cross-sectional study design was employed. A respondent from each of the 423 systematically selected households was interviewed using a pretested, structured, and interviewer-administered questionnaire. Accordingly, a community's attitude towards mental health problems was measured by the adapted version of the "Community Attitude towards Mentally Ill questionnaire (CAMI)" and help-seeking behavior was measured by a general help-seeking questionnaire. Data were entered into Epi-data version 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 23.0 for analysis. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis was done to determine the independent predictors of the outcome variable.ResultsAmong the total 420 study participants (197,46.9%) of them had an overall unfavorable attitude towards mental illness. The majority (153,36.4%) of the study participants agreed on avoidance of anyone who has mental health problems and (150,35.7%) participants described marrying a person with a mental health problem or recovered from the problem is foolishness. Moreover, regression analysis showed family monthly income (AOR = 0.24, 95%CI:0.06-0.91) and occupational status (AOR = 0.57, 95%CI:0.34-0.96) were found to be the predictors of community attitude towards mental health problems. The study finding also revealed a significant number of the respondents preferred non- medical treatment approaches.ConclusionAlmost half of the respondents had an unfavorable attitude towards mental health problems and the traditional and religious help-seeking intention was high. This suggests the need for designing effective community based mental health interventions to improve the general public attitude and help-seeking behavior towards mental health problems.

Dataset Information

Help-seeking behavior of Jimma university students with common mental disorders: A cross-sectional study.

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Help-seeking behavior of Jimma university students with common mental disorders: A cross-sectional study.

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