title: Intrinsic and extrinsic barriers to mental health care among community-dwelling younger and older adults.
abstract: This study examined intrinsic and extrinsic barriers to mental health care among younger (n = 76; M age = 23 years) and older adults (n = 88; M age = 71 years) using a new 56 item self-report measure, Barriers to Mental Health Services Scale (BMHSS). The BMHSS was developed to examine 10 barriers to the utilization of mental health services: help-seeking attitudes, stigma, knowledge and fear of psychotherapy, belief about inability to find a psychotherapist, belief that depressive symptoms are normal, insurance and payment concerns, ageism, concerns about psychotherapist's qualifications, physician referral, and transportation concerns. Results indicated that younger adults perceived fear of psychotherapy, belief about inability to find a psychotherapist, and insurance concerns to be greater barriers than older adults. Men perceived stigma to be a greater barrier than women whereas women perceived finding a psychotherapist to be a greater barrier than men. The rank order of the BMHSS subscales was strongly similar for younger and older adults (r = 0.90, p = 0.000). These results also provide further evidence that stigma about receiving mental health services is not a primary barrier among younger or older adults.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO 80933-7150, USA.
authors.forename: Renee
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pepin
authors.forename: Daniel L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Segal
authors.forename: Frederick L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Coolidge
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012650:Self Disclosure; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013240:Stereotyping; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult