The effects of perceived social support and psychological capital on attitudes towards professional psychological help-seeking among Chinese college students: The mediating role of psychological help-seeking stigma

TL;DR

This study explores how social support and psychological resources influence Chinese college students' attitudes toward seeking mental health help, with stigma playing a key role.

Contribution

The study identifies stigma as a mediator between social support, psychological capital, and help-seeking attitudes among college students.

Findings

Perceived social support and psychological capital are positively linked to favorable help-seeking attitudes.

Stigma mediates 16% to 39% of the relationship between social support and help-seeking attitudes.

The findings support designing interventions to reduce stigma and improve mental health help-seeking behaviors.

Abstract

This study grounded in resource conservation theory, examines the association between perceived social support and psychological capital on college students’ attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, with particular emphasis on the mediating role of stigma for seeking professional psychological help. The aim is to provide a reference framework for promoting mental health among college students.

We employed a cross-sectional design, investigated perceived social support, psychological capital, stigma for seeking professional psychological help, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help among 3,012 Chinese college students.

The results indicated that perceived social support, psychological capital, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help were negatively associated with the stigma for seeking professional psychological help. Perceived social support and psychological capital were directly and positively associated with attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Furthermore, the stigma for seeking professional psychological help was found to mediate the association between perceived social support and psychological capital on attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help (β = 0.1 [0.059, 0.138], β = 0.248 [0.21, 0.29]). This mediation explained 16% and 39% of the total association.

This study highlights the association between perceived social support and psychological capital and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help among college students, while also identifying mediating role of stigma for seeking professional psychological help. These findings provide empirical support for designing effective interventions to improve college students’ attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help.

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