There is a significant gap between the numbers of college students who experience a diagnosable psychological problem and those who seek psychological treatment for these problems. One explanation for this gap may be that many college students may be unaware of free mental health services available at the university counseling center on campus. Thus, use of these resources is not a viable option. These concerns were addressed in the current study via a posttest-only experimental design by creating a video in line with the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB; Ajzen, 1985; 1991) and assessing its effects on college students attitudes towards psychological help seeking (PHS), subjective norms associated with PHS, perceived behavioral control over PHS, and PHS intentions. Mixed support was found for the video’s impact on TPB variables in a PHS context. In addition, the utility of the TPB model for explaining PHS in college students was examined. Based on model fit statistics the TPB adequately explained PHS in college students, but only after modifications were made to the measurement model. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

The relationships among counseling expectations, attitudes toward seeking psychological help, psychological distress, and intention to seek counseling have only been examined in one previous study (Vogel, Wester, Wei, & Boysen, 2005). The primary purpose of the current study was to replicate and address the limitations of the Vogel et al. (2005) study. First, a mediation analysis of attitudes on the relationship of expectations and intention to seek therapy was performed. Next, path analyses were used to test a model of the relationship among counseling expectations, attitudes toward seeking psychological help, psychological distress, and the intent to seek counseling, for men and women separately. In the hypothesized model, two separate paths were predicted to impact intentions to seek psychological help. First, three distinct expectations about counseling (personal commitment, facilitative conditions, and counselor expertise) were expected to influence attitudes toward seeking psychological help, which in turn, predicted intention to seek counseling. Second, psychological distress was expected to relate to the intent to seek therapy. Because the hypothesized model for both genders did not fit the data, exploratory path analyses were completed. In the final path model for men, additional paths from the expectancy factors personal commitment and counselor expertise to intent to seek therapy resulted in a well-fitting model. For women, an additional path between psychological distress and attitudes improved the model significantly. Impact of these findings for research and practice are discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

This study was designed to explore the relationship between attitudes toward help seeking, the ethnicity of the psychological help provider, and the level of cultural mistrust toward Jews. A sample of 102 Israeli Arab undergraduate students from Haifa, Israel, participated in this study. It was hypothesized that attitudes toward help seeking, as measured by Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help-Short Form (ATSPPH-S) and the Beliefs About Psychological Services (BAPS), will be related to the ethnicity of the psychological help provider and to the level of cultural mistrust toward Jews. A 2 x 2 between subjects multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was employed. No significant relationship was found between attitudes toward help seeking, the ethnicity of the psychological help provider, and the level of cultural mistrust toward Jews. However, ANOVAs revealed that Freshmen had more favorable attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help as measured by ATSPPH-S than fourth and fifth year students and that sophomores had more favorable attitudes toward seeking psychological help as measured by BAPS than fourth and fifth year students. The results of the logistic regression indicated that Muslim and Christian participants are three times more likely to choose an Arab help provider than Druze participants. Further, the probability of choosing an Arab psychological help provider increased significantly as the participant’s level of cultural mistrust, in the domains of Politics and Law and Interpersonal Relations increased. On the other hand, the probability of choosing an Arab psychological help provider decreased significantly when participants had previous psychological help, and when their level of cultural mistrust increased in the domain of Business and Work. Results indicated strong significant correlations between attitudes toward help seeking and variables such as father’s highest level of education, previous psychological help, age, and year in school. Significant correlations between beliefs about psychological help and year in school and gender were found. The level of cultural mistrust correlated significantly with religion, ethnicity of psychological help provider, previous psychological help, age, and gender. Limitations and implications for future research and practice are presented. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of Psychology, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 33-40).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, August, 2009. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Texas, Dec., 2009. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.W.)--University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 104-111).

Thesis (MA(Counselling Psychology)--University of Pretoria, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center; full text release delayed at author's request until 2007 May 25

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Smith College School for Social Work, Northampton, Mass., 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 129-148).