NCJ Number
217427
Journal
Youth Studies Australia Volume: 25 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2006 Pages: 42-49
Date Published
December 2006
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Using hypothetical scenarios, this study examined rural adolescents' attitudes toward seeking help for mental health problems in Victoria, Australia.
Abstract
The study found that a perceived lack of specialist services in their immediate area of residence, which required significant travel to access appropriate services, posed significant obstacles to receiving help. Recurring themes across all groups were the exclusionary social practices and social stigma they believed would accompany the vignette character's decision to seek help for mental health problems. Various types of stigma were found to be potential barriers to help-seeking across the disorders of schizophrenia, anorexia nervosa, depression, and conduct disorder. No stigma was linked to substance-abuse disorder. A lack of anonymity in rural towns was cited as another likely barrier to help-seeking across student groups and vignette scenarios. Also evident across focus groups was the perception that seeking help for mental health problems was a sign of weakness. A strong positive theme of the groups was the willingness to seek school-based help from counselors and nurses. Consistent with past research, the adolescents preferred informal support sources, especially from their peers and parents. Study participants were 52 9th-grade and 10th-grade students recruited from 4 rural Victorian schools. Eight focus groups with up to eight students in each were formed. Focus-group discussions centered around five hypothetical scenarios that involved a young person with a mental health problem living in a rural area. The mental health problems portrayed included depression and anxiety disorders, disruptive behavior disorders, substance-use disorders, eating disorders, and first-episode psychosis. 1 table and 31 references