Attitudes Toward Counseling Among Asian International and Native Caucasian Students

Abstract

Asian international and native born Caucasian students indicated the source of help they would go to first if they had a personal problem; rated the importance of four counselor characteristics: ethnicity, university degree, age, and gender; and completed Fischer and Turner's scale of attitudes about seeking professional psychological help. There was no difference between Asian and Caucasian Students in the sources of help they would seek. Asian students indicated it was more important that a conselor be or similar ethnicity and older. There were no ethnic differences in attitudes toward professional help. Women were no ethnic differences in attituses toward professional help. Women were more likely to report indicate a need for help regardless of ethnic group. Caucasian women were more tolerant of the stigma of being a client, likely to report interpersonal openness, and to express confidence in mental health practitioners than Asian women or men form either group. Colleges should consider the use of older paraprofessional counselors of the same nationality as interantional student clients.