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Identifying barriers to mental health help-seeking among young adults in the UK: a cross-sectional survey
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Despite the high prevalence and burden of mental health problems among young people, studies have suggested that they infrequently seek professional help. Understanding the barriers to help-seeking is an important step towards facilitating early access to mental health services and improving psychological wellbeing. AIM: To investigate why young adults may choose not to seek any support for an emotional or mental health difficulty. DESIGN AND SETTING: A cross-sectional online survey of young adults aged 18-25 from the general UK population. METHOD: The survey consisted of an anonymous questionnaire that measured psychological distress, help-seeking preferences, and barriers to accessing help, which included the Barriers to Access to Care Evaluation (BACE) scale and an open-ended question to explore reasons for not seeking help in the past. Qualitative feedback was analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Overall, 35% of participants (n = 45) who reported having an emotional or mental health difficulty did not seek any formal or informal help. The thematic analysis revealed that stigmatising beliefs, difficulty identifying or expressing concerns, a preference for self-reliance, and difficulty accessing help were prominent barrier themes among responders. CONCLUSION: Young adults experiencing psychological distress may struggle to access help from others. Stigma and negative perceptions surrounding mental health and help-seeking may explain why young people are reluctant to approach others for help. Improving public awareness of the services and resources that are available, as well as screening for psychological distress in primary care services, may be necessary to improve mental wellbeing among young adults.
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“There are numerous barriers to accessing psychological interventions, including a shortage of therapists, long waiting times and societal stigma of accessing psychological treatment.6”
From Mixed-methods feasibility outcomes for a novel ACT-based video game ‘ACTing Minds’ to support mental health (2024) · cites this paper as [6]
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“robust evidence shows that even in high-resource settings, a substantial proportion of young people with mental ill health do not seek treatment. 228,229”
From The Lancet Psychiatry Commission on youth mental health (2024) · cites this paper as [228]
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“Across contexts, research indicated that barriers to seeking help for mental health include not recognizing the need for support, doubting that others can help, and fearing stigma [6, 113, 139].”
From Understanding Teen Overreliance on AI Companion Chatbots Through Self-Reported Reddit Narratives (2026) · cites this paper as [113]
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“individuals with a higher educational level more frequently consult mental health professionals than those with a lower educational level (Salaheddin & Mason, 2016).”
From An internet‐based cognitive behavioural intervention for adults with depression in Arabic‐speaking countries: A randomized controlled trial. (2024) · cites this paper as Salaheddin & Mason, 2016
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Metadata
- Authors
- Salaheddin, K., & Mason, B.
- Affiliations
- University of Hertfordshire (GB)
- Venue
- British Journal of General Practice
- Published
- 2016-09-29
- Volume
- 66
- Issue
- 651
- Pages
- e686-e692
- ISSN
- 0960-1643 (ISSN-L)
- 1478-5242
- PMC
- PMC5033305
- OpenAlex
- W2526766094
- Cited by
- 329
- References
- 25
- Citations by year
- 2026: 33 · 2025: 55 · 2024: 54 · 2023: 55 · 2022: 43 · 2021: 39 · 2020: 30 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 10.48
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- British Journal of General Practice (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- University of Hertfordshire Research Archive (University of Hertfordshire) (acceptedVersion)
- University of Hertfordshire Research Archive (University of Hertfordshire) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- University of Hertfordshire
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychology and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Gender Roles and Identity Studies
- Keywords
- help-seeking barriers, young adults, mental health, psychological distress, mental health stigma, help-seeking preferences, help-seeking helplessness, self-reliance, access to mental health care, primary care screening, psychological well-being
- MeSH terms
- Help-Seeking Behavior, Mental Disorders, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, United Kingdom, Health Services Accessibility, Humans, Male, Mental Health Services, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, Young Adult, Social Stigma
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