The DOI matches its Crossref record; 62 of the 65 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Help-seeking for mental health problems among Chinese: The application and extension of the theory of planned behavior
Abstract
The underutilization of professional care is a perennial problem among Chinese populations. To examine the social-cognitive factors that may affect help-seeking intentions, the present study applied and extended Ajzen's theory of planned behavior (TPB) to understand the intention to seek help from mental health professionals among Chinese. The effect of mental health and perceived barriers to help-seeking were also examined. Nine hundred and forty-one Chinese were recruited using a randomized household design in Hong Kong. Results from structural equation modeling showed that attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and perceived barriers significantly predicted help-seeking intention. Mental health showed no significant effect on help-seeking intention. In addition, subjective norm indirectly predicted intention to seek help from mental health professionals through influencing attitude and perceived behavioral control. Results from multi-group analyses revealed that all path coefficients were invariant across gender. Results supported the utilization of TPB in understanding help-seeking intentions and highlighted the importance of subjective norm among Chinese. Implications on the enhancement of mental health awareness and the promotion of mental health services through a social-cognitive approach were highlighted.
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“Internal consistency (α's > .87)and convergent evidence of validity for the MHSIS score has been documented”
From Treatment histories, barriers, and preferences for individuals with symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (2024) · cites this paper as Mo & Mak, 2009
In the citing paper
“In studies conducted in non-western cultures such as South Asia and among Chinese populations, social pressures were found to significantly predict help-seeking intentions [21, 73].”
From Explaining adults’ mental health help-seeking through the lens of the theory of planned behavior: A scoping review (2022) · cites this paper as [21]
In the citing paper
“Many authors have created their own measures or adapted previous measures to fit their study contexts [21, 53, 78].”
From Explaining adults’ mental health help-seeking through the lens of the theory of planned behavior: A scoping review (2022) · cites this paper as [21]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Mo, P. K. H., & Mak, W. W. S.
- Affiliations
- University of Nottingham (GB)
- Chinese University of Hong Kong (HK)
- Corresponding author
- Mo, Phoenix K. H.
- Venue
- Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
- Published
- 2009-03-04
- Volume
- 44
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 675-684
- ISSN
- 0933-7954 (ISSN-L)
- 1433-9285
- OpenAlex
- W1593259700
- Semantic Scholar
- f2077ad417516b98872ee059260e7a93bab326d0
- Cited by
- 207
- References
- 65
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 22 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 27 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 18 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 7 · 2012: 12
- FWCI
- 7.40
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychology and Mental Health
- Keywords
- help-seeking intentions, mental illness, Chinese population, theory of planned behavior, subjective norms, perceived barriers, mental health service utilization, mental health awareness, gender differences, Hong Kong
- MeSH terms
- Attitude to Health, Awareness, Mental Disorders, Female, Hong Kong, Humans, Male, Models, Psychological, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, Personality Inventory, Surveys and Questionnaires, Health Behavior, Behavior Control, Intention, Asian People
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