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This study was designed to investigated the role of religious ideology in one's willingness or reluctance to seek professional psychotherapeutic assistance. The subjects consister of 220 members randomly selected from six different denominations: Baptist, Church of Christ, Methodist, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, and Unitarian. The major findings of the study were as follows: 1. HC Ss displayed significantly less personal recognition of need for psychotherapeutic help, less interpersonal openness and greater overall reluctance to seek professional psychological help than LC Ss. 2. There was no significant difference between HC and LC Ss in terms of sensitivity to stigmatization and confidence in the mental health profession and mental health professionals. 3. MC Ss scored lower in each of the five areas investigated than did either HC or LC Ss. It was concluded that individuals who are highly conservative in their religious beliefs may be more reluctant to admit that they have a psychological problem with someone else than individuals who subscribe to more moderate or liberal religious beliefs.

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the relationship between first-generation college students' (FGCSs) help-seeking attitudes, as measured by the Attitudes Towards Seeking Professional Psychological Help – Short Form (Fischer & Farina, 1995); public stigma, as measured by the Perceptions of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Psychological Help (Vogel, Wade, & Ascheman, 2009); personal stigma, as measured by the Self-Stigma of Seeking Help Scale Working (Vogel, Wade, & Haake, 2006); social support, as measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Dahlem, Zimet, & Walker, 1991); and perceived discrimination, as measured by the revised Everyday Discrimination Scale (Stucky et al., 2011). The researcher further investigated mediating effects of public and personal stigma in the relationships among the constructs. The researcher found statistically significant relationships among the variables for FGCSs and mediating effects of personal and public stigma. Specifically, public stigma mediated the relationship between perceived discrimination and personal stigma and the indirect effect of perceived discrimination on personal stigma via public stigma was statistically significant (ß = .070, p = .030). Personal stigma also fully mediated the relationship between public stigma and help-seeking attitudes and the indirect effect of public stigma on help-seeking attitudes via personal stigma was statistically significant (ß = -.231, p < .001). Public stigma partially mediated the relationship between social support and personal stigma and the indirect effect of social support on personal stigma via public stigma (ß = -.089, p = .010) was statistically significant. In addition, both public and personal stigma partially mediated the relationship between social support and help-seeking attitudes. The indirect effect of social support on help-seeking attitudes via both public and personal stigma was statistically significant (ß = .062, p = .015). The researcher presented discussion of results, limitations of the study, and implications of the findings.

Although the nature of services provided by college guidance/counseling centers in the Philippines have evolved from an almost exclusive academic focus to a more diversified one, little is known as to who is taking advantage of this expanded service and what may be preventing others from doing so. More information is needed since psychological stress from personal concerns impacts the well-being of Filipino college students, and, in particular, their likelihood to have a positive academic experience. Data were collected from six introductory psychology classes from three colleges in the Philippines. The data consisted of responses to six measures of constructs that prior research has found to be related. These constructs are: locus of control orientation, levels of distress, likelihood to conceal, level of social support, attitudes toward counseling, and likelihood to seek counseling. Statistical analysis of the results was performed and the findings interpreted to determine whether or not specific models of help-seeking behavior would apply to the Filipino college student population. Path analysis was used to determine the best fitting model among the eight that were studied. Based on the best fitting model, specific conclusions were drawn and these are: (1) college students in the Philippines are more likely to seek counseling when their level of distress is high; (2) distress is higher when social support networks are impaired, individuals have an external locus of control orientation, and they tend to conceal personal information from others; (3) social support is less in Filipino college students who tend to have an external orientation and who are likely to conceal personal information from others; and (4) negative attitudes toward counseling are more likely in students who tend to have an external orientation and who are likely to conceal personal information from others. Implications for service providers point toward a more active role in providing services to the students in the classrooms while exploring various way of educating the students about the different factors that contribute to psychological distress and isolation.

This research investigates intimate partner cyber abuse (IPCA), physical, sexual, and psychological intimate partner violence (IPV) in which the abuser is on active duty, reserve, or a veteran service member within the United States Armed Forces. Using an online survey, I gathered quantitative and qualitative data. I also presented a case study of a woman who experienced IPV within her relationship with a United States Armed Forces member. Specifically, I (1) explored the barriers that this victim encountered when seeking help or leaving the abusive relationship that may be unique to the military context, and (2) examined the context of her experiences with the different barriers and how they affected her help-seeking behavior. I found that those in a previous relationship with a member of the United States Armed Forces are more likely to experience IPV than those in a current relationship. Also, in the case study, I found that the individual sought informal help rather than formal help and faced internal barriers over external barriers.

Thesis (M. A. (Social Work)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / Intimate partner violence among heterosexual couples seem to be on the rise with men as victims of female perpetrated violence. Recent research on this phenomenon indicates that partner violence against men is a social and health problem that is hidden and unspoken of in most societies. The current study was aimed at exploring men’s non-disclosure of intimate partner violence at Ga-Masemola, Sekhukhune District in Limpopo Province. Qualitative research methodology and exploratory research design were applied to successfully explore men’s non-disclosure of IPV. The target population of this study was heterosexual male victims of ages 18 and above. Non-probability sampling of blended convenience sampling and snowball sampling were employed. Data was collected using a semi-structured interview guide with open-ended questions and was analysed through thematic analysis of qualitative data. The results of the study have revealed that male victims of partner violence hide their situations. Determinants of non-disclosure were found to include men’s own personal feelings of fear to disclose, masculinity factors, societal expectations and cultural norms, which negatively affect men’s decisions to disclose. Help-seeking behaviour of male victims remains a huge challenge for most male victims. Due to fear of ridicule, disbelief and false accusations, abused men seem to lack courage to seek help. The shocking outcome is that most victims appear to lack knowledge of services available for them. The study recommends that public education, advocacy and appropriate gender-sensitive intervention programmes be implemented to overcome the effects of violence and to prevent further victimisation.

This study examined a mediational model of mental illness stigma, parent-child communication about mental health concerns, and help seeking attitudes/behaviors among young adults with at least one immigrant parent while considering the possible moderating effect of acculturation gap. The primary goal of this study was to examine whether the acculturation gap changed the relation between mental illness stigma and communication about personal mental health concerns with immigrant parents, which in turn could become a significant predictor of their help-seeking attitudes, as well as a barrier to seeking professional mental health services. Findings provided support to the direct and indirect effects of mental illness stigma through communication about mental health concerns on attitudes about help-seeking. The acculturation gap hypothesized to be a possible moderator for the stigma-communication about mental health concerns relationship among young adult ABCI was found to be significant for ABCI with a low mainstream culture acculturation gap. Discussion on the findings, limitations of the study, future research directions, and counseling implications are addressed.

published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

In recent years, scholars have moved beyond attributing academic difficulties to cognitive and personal characteristics of African American students, and have begun to consider the effects of the predominantly White university (PWU) setting on the educational and psychological outcomes of Black collegians. Unfortunately, the literature paints a bleak picture of the social context of African American students at PWUs which ultimately impedes students' academic persistence and achievement (Gloria, Kurpius, Hamilton, & Wilson, 1999) as well as psychological wellness (Prelow, Mosher, & Bowman, 2006). The psychological ramifications of social and educational conditions for African American students at PWUs, along with higher attrition rates would substantiate the tremendous use of campus mental health services by this student population. Yet, the literature reveals that even when services are easily accessible and are provided for free or at extremely discounted prices, African American students choose not to seek professional psychological help (Nickerson, Helms, & Terrell, 1994). Drawing upon the psychosociocultural theoretical framework proposed by Gloria and Rodriguez (2000), this study examined if variables specific to the PWU environment - minority student stress, out-group comfort, and cultural congruity - served as predictors of attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help in a sample of African American collegians. This study also analyzed if counselor racial preference served as a mediator between the predictors and help-seeking. Survey data were collected from 198 Black college students attending a large, PWU in the Southwest. Results revealed that cultural congruity was the only significant predictor of help-seeking attitudes, and counselor racial preference was not a significant mediator. Exploratory analyses indicated gender differences in the relationship between the psychosociocultural variables and counselor racial preferences. Implications for practice and research in counseling psychology are discussed. / text