Abstract
BackgroundDepression and anxiety are treatable disorders, yet many people do not seek professional help. Interventions designed to improve help-seeking attitudes and increase help-seeking intentions and behaviour have been evaluated in recent times. However, there have been no systematic reviews of the efficacy or effectiveness of these interventions in promoting help-seeking. Therefore, this paper reports a systematic review of published randomised controlled trials targeting help-seeking attitudes, intentions or behaviours for depression, anxiety, and general psychological distress.MethodsStudies were identified through searches of PubMed, PsycInfo, and the Cochrane database in November 2011. Studies were included if they included a randomised controlled trial of at least one intervention targeting help-seeking for depression or anxiety or general psychological distress, and contained extractable data on help-seeking attitudes or intentions or behaviour. Studies were excluded if they focused on problems or conditions other than the target (e.g., substance use, eating disorder).ResultsSix published studies of randomised controlled trials investigating eight different interventions for help-seeking were identified. The majority of trials targeted young adults. Mental health literacy content was effective (d = .12 to .53) in improving help-seeking attitudes in the majority of studies at post-intervention, but had no effect on help-seeking behaviour (d = −.01, .02). There was less evidence for other intervention types such as efforts to destigmatise or provide help-seeking source information.ConclusionsMental health literacy interventions are a promising method for promoting positive help-seeking attitudes, but there is no evidence that it leads to help-seeking behaviour. Further research investigating the effects of interventions on attitudes, intentions, and behaviour is required.
Highlights
Depression and anxiety are treatable disorders, yet many people do not seek professional help
It is estimated that only one quarter of adults with high levels of mental distress [7] and one third of adults with diagnosable mental disorders seek professional help
The present review identified six randomised controlled trials of help-seeking interventions for depression, anxiety, and general psychological distress
Summary
Depression and anxiety are treatable disorders, yet many people do not seek professional help. Depression, anxiety and general psychological distress contribute significantly to societal disease burden, including the economic impact of lowered work productivity, and frequent use of medical services [8,12]. These conditions can have severe consequences for the individual if left untreated including disability [8,13], suicide [14], lowered quality of life, and physical and social functioning, even for those experiencing sub-clinical symptoms of depression or anxiety [15]
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