Psychometric Properties of the Inventory of Attitudes Toward Seeking Mental Health Services (Chinese Version)

Measurement properties of patient-reported outcome measures of mental help-seeking attitude: a systematic review of psychometric properties

Background

At present, the phenomenon of patients with mental disorders not seeking mental help is very serious, and the mental help-seeking attitude is the central structure of the help process. However, there is no consensus on which patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) should be used to assess mental help-seeking attitudes.

Objective

The systematic review aims to critically appraise, compare, and summarize the measurement quality of the all-available PROMs about mental help-seeking attitudes to provide evidence-based guidance and reference for clinical researchers.

Methods

A systematic search was conducted in 9 databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Medline, APA, CINAHL, Sinomed, CNKI, and WanFang) since the establishment of the database until November 30, 2022 to identify articles on the PROMs of mental help-seeking attitudes. We used the COSMIN guidelines to evaluate the methodological quality and measurement properties of all-available PROMs, and a modified Grading, Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system to evaluate the level of evidence supporting each rating. Finally, the recommendation level is given according to the overall quality of each PROM.

Results

We identified 29 studies representing 13 PROMs out of 2,828 screening studies. The overall quality of the included PROMs varied, with 6 rated as class B, 6 as class C, and only the Mental Help Seeking Attitudes Scale (MHSAS) as class A.

Conclusion

The measurement characteristics of MHSAS have been the most comprehensive evaluation, and it has good reliability and validity, and high feasibility for clinical application, so it can be temporarily recommended for use, but the above conclusions still need to be supported by more high-quality evidence.

Maternal Health Care Utilization Behavior, Local Wisdom, and Associated Factors Among Women in Urban and Rural Areas, Indonesia

Purpose

Maternal mortality is one problem that still affects countries like Indonesia and others globally. The World Health Organization (WHO) notes that Southeast Asian countries have a high MMR. Indonesia's maternal mortality ranks third highest in Southeast Asia, with a 177 maternal mortality rate per 100,000 live births in 2017. In 2018, the maternal mortality rate reached 91.45 per 100,000 live births. Pregnant women's deaths can be caused inadequate medical care due to how frequently they seek treatment. This study intends to identify and analyze how knowledge, education, and myths affect pregnant women's attitudes toward seeking health services.

Materials and Methods

The study involved 175 pregnant and postpartum women who visited 10 health public centers in two cities in East Java by accidental sampling. Data regarding intrapersonal, interpersonal, and local wisdom were collected through surveys with structured instruments and in-depth interviews. Data statistics used pathway analysis with a p-value of >0.05.

Results

Intrapersonal, interpersonal, and local wisdom variables have a significant direct or indirect effect on utilizing health services. Knowledge was the variable with the greatest influence (t-value, 27.96).

Conclusion

Myth and culture as local wisdom and intrapersonal factors significantly affect the pattern of utilizing health services.

Inventory of Attitudes toward Seeking Mental Health Services: Psychometric Properties among Adolescents

Mental health is an essential element of wellness; however, some populations are more vulnerable to mental health problems. Suicide is the second-highest cause of death in young people and help-seeking unwillingness is a significant obstacle to mental health interventions. Young people are especially reluctant to seek help and negative attitudes stand out as help-seeking barriers, highlighting the importance of evaluating these constructs. The Inventory of Attitudes toward Seeking Mental Health Services (IASMHS) is a measure that evaluates help-seeking attitudes; nevertheless, it lacks applicability in Portuguese youth. This study aims to explore the psychometric characteristics of the IASMHS in 750 Portuguese adolescents (52.3% female, Mage = 14.67), through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and reliability and validity analyses. Results suggest that a three-factor structure was adequate, those factors being help-seeking propensity, indifference to stigma, and psychological openness. The IASMHS was shortened to 20 items and revealed satisfactory properties regarding internal consistency, convergent/discriminant validity, and temporal stability. These findings validate the IASMHS as an adequate tool in the assessment of young people’s help-seeking attitudes.

The Influence of Social Support, Help-Seeking Attitudes and Help-Seeking Intentions on Older Australians' use of Mental Health Services for Depression and Anxiety Symptoms

This study investigated the influence of predisposing factors (social support, help-seeking attitudes and help-seeking intentions) on older Australian adults' use of mental health services for depression and/or anxiety symptoms. Participants were 214 older Australian adults (61% female; aged between 60 and 96 years; M  =  75.15 years, SD  =  8.40 years) who completed a self-report questionnaire that measured predisposing factors and lifetime mental health service use for depression and/or anxiety symptoms. Higher levels of social support predicted non-use of mental health services. When this relationship was serially mediated by help-seeking attitudes and help-seeking intentions, it predicted mental health service use for depression and/or anxiety. Older adults are less likely to seek help for depression and/or anxiety symptoms unless members of their social support network encourage positive help-seeking attitudes, which lead to positive help-seeking intentions and the subsequent use of mental health services.