Depressive Symptoms and Mental Health Treatment in an Ethnoracially Diverse College Student Sample |
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| Authors: | Steve Herman PhD Olga G Archambeau MA Aimee N Deliramich MA Bryan S K Kim PhD Pearl H Chiu PhD B Christopher Frueh PhD |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Psychology , University of Hawaii at Hilo , Hilo, Hawaii;2. Department of Psychology , University of South Dakota , Vermillion, South Dakota;3. Department of Neuroscience and Department of Psychiatry , Baylor College of Medicine , Houston, Texas |
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| Abstract: | Abstract Objectives: To study (a) the prevalence of depressive symptoms and (b) the utilization of mental health treatment in an ethnoracially diverse sample consisting primarily of Asian Americans, European Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Participants: Five hundred eighty-nine college students. Method: A questionnaire packet that included the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) was administered to students in introductory psychology courses. Results: (a) There were no differences among ethnoracial groups in levels of depressive symptoms as measured by the CES-D; (b) 71% of participants with high levels of depressive symptoms had not received any mental health treatment in the previous 12 months; and (c) European Americans were 3.7 times more likely to have received mental health treatment in the previous 12 months than other students. Conclusion: Outreach efforts designed to improve utilization of mental health treatment services by depressed college students, especially by members of ethnoracial minority groups, should be increased. |
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| Keywords: | depression treatment utilization disparities ethnic and racial differences Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale |
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