Examination of the Stigmas Toward Help Seeking Among Turkish College Students

Abstract

This study builds on previous help‐seeking research in the United States by examining the role of counseling stigma in Turkey. Undergraduate students in Turkey (N = 520) completed self‐report measures of attitudes and intentions to seek counseling and 3 forms of help‐seeking stigma. Results indicated that perceptions of public and social network stigma each uniquely contributed to the experience of self‐stigma, which, in turn, influenced attitudes toward seeking counseling and then help‐seeking intentions.

Determination of the relationship between the beliefs of nursing students toward mental illnesses and their empathic tendency levels

“…30 Attitude toward receiving psychological help is an important factor in preventing stigmatization for mental illnesses. 31 In our study, it was found that students who were not bothered from getting help from a psychiatrist tended to have positive beliefs about mental illnesses.…”

“…The attitude toward receiving psychological help refers to the state of obtaining support by an individual for emotional, social, interpersonal problems related to their psychological problems 30 . Attitude toward receiving psychological help is an important factor in preventing stigmatization for mental illnesses 31 . In our study, it was found that students who were not bothered from getting help from a psychiatrist tended to have positive beliefs about mental illnesses.…”

Cross-cultural validation of the Perceptions of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Help (PSOSH) Scale.

“…For example, Topkaya et al (2017) hypothesized that collectivist norms such as honor may moderate the strength of social network stigma's relationship to help-seeking outcomes both within and across countries. This type of research could be particularly helpful in the development of culturally tailored interventions designed to increase help seeking.…”

“…In countries where English was not the native language, two independent translators from each country/region, who were bilingual in English and their native language, translated and back-translated the PSOSH to allow participants to complete the scale in their country's native language. (Swan, Heesacker, & King, 2016;Vogel et al, 2009), .96 in a Turkish sample (Topkaya et al, 2017), and .84 in a Brazilian sample (Baptista, Guimarães, & Vogel, 2016), with a 2-week test-retest reliability of .77 in a U.S. sample (Vogel et al, 2009).…”

“…Researchers suggest that social network stigma may be particularly salient in countries that place high value on social connectedness and family (Topkaya, Vogel, & Brenner, 2017). Consequently, research on social network stigma has begun to expand to other countries and regions (Topkaya et al, 2017).…”