How Can We Actually Change Help-Seeking Behaviour for Mental Health Problems among the General Public? Development of the ‘PLACES’ Model

Abstract

Good treatment uptake is essential for clinically effective interventions to be fully utilised. Numerous studies have examined barriers to help-seeking for mental health treatment and to a lesser extent, facilitators. However, much of the current research focuses on changing help-seeking attitudes, which often do not lead to changes in behaviour. There is a clear gap in the literature for interventions that successfully change help-seeking behaviour among the general public. This gap is particularly relevant for early intervention. Here we describe the development of a new model which combines facilitators to treatment and an engaging, acceptable intervention for the general public. It is called the ‘PLACES’ (Publicity, Lay, Acceptable, Convenient, Effective, Self-referral) model of treatment engagement. It is based on theoretical work, as well as empirical research on a low intensity psychoeducational cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) intervention: one-day workshops for stress and depression. In this paper, we describe the development of the model and the results of its use among four different clinical groups (adults experiencing stress, adults experiencing depression, adolescents (age 16–18) experiencing stress, and mothers with postnatal depression). We recorded high rates of uptake by people who have previously not sought help and by racial and ethnic minority groups across all four of these clinical groups. The clinical and research implications and applications of this model are discussed.

Engaging Older Adolescent Boys Into School-Based Mental Health Workshops: Testing Theory-Based Facilitators and Barriers in Focus Groups

“…Destigmatizing language can be used to highlight practical aspects of the intervention. Consistent with the PLACES model (Brown et al, 2022), which emphasizes the gains from attending rather than the deficiencies, most participants wanted to hear about the positive effects the workshops could have, rather than their deficiencies that need to be treated, which would likely lead to greater engagement. This resonates with the current literature around how men approach mental health services; the uncertainty of expectations and outcomes hinders active participation.…”

Help-Seeking Behaviors and Mental Well-Being of Albanian Immigrants in Malaysia

“…Ratnayake and Hyde (2019) explained how individuals with high levels of mental health literacy, especially female sufferers, will engage more in help-seeking behaviors compared to those with lower levels of mental health literacy, especially males. Brown et al (2022) claimed individuals' perceived need to be a key barrier to help-seeking behavior, with many males perceiving themselves to be less likely to need to seek help for mental health issues. Sifat et al (2022) stated individuals' positive views, perceived needs, and mental health literacy to be the motivating factors behind help-seeking behaviors among female.…”

ale undergraduate students’ perceptions of male student mental health

“…The model has shown generally positive results in helping to predict formal mental ill-health help-seeking intentions in men, but less in predicting behaviour (Smith et al, 2008). More recently, the PLACES (Publicity, Lay, Acceptable, Convenient, Effective, Self-referral) model (Brown et al, 2022), has been developed to encourage adults and adolescents seeking help with stress and depression, and the COM-B model (Michie et al, 2011), which asserts that a person needs to have; capability, opportunity, and motivation to influence their behaviour, has been applied to understanding male help-seeking specifically (Sagar Ouriaghli et al, 2020). Rickwood et al's (2014) model of help-seeking pertains specifically to young people and is utilised for online and in-person help-seeking (Pretorius et al, 2019) and is therefore pertinent to this research.…”