Abstract
PurposeNegative cultural beliefs about psychotherapy patients represent one of the barriers in the psychological help-seeking and treatment adherence. In Chile today, there is little research about specific beliefs towards this group, and therefore measuring them represents a challenge. The aim of the present study was to develop and validate an instrument to measure cultural beliefs about psychotherapy patients.MethodsA mixed method design conducted in four stages was implemented. First, 32 semi-structured interviews were carried out to identify beliefs about psychotherapy patients in southern Chile. Then, a scale of beliefs about psychotherapy patients (SBPP) was developed and piloted in an adult sample (n = 109). Subsequently, the factorial structure of the new scale was explored in patients of primary health centres in La Araucanía Region of Chile (n = 201). Finally, the validity of the construct was assessed in adults who were not undergoing psychotherapy (n = 361).ResultsThe results showed the existence of negative cultural beliefs about psychotherapy patients which were included in the construction of the SBPP. The scale had a bifactorial structure (αtransitory situations = 0.81 and αstable characteristics = 0.79), consisting of 15 items with a Likert-type response format, and showed good indicators of validity and reliability on the samples in which were applied.ConclusionsThe present study shows the importance of using mixed methods for the examination of socially shared beliefs by the cultural group under study, in order to construct instruments that are psychometrically robust and culturally pertinent.
Highlights
In Chile today, mental disorders are the principal source of disease, representing 23.2% of disability-adjusted life years (DALY) (Ministerio de Salud, 2017)
Considering the importance of these negative beliefs, both in seeking help and in the wide range of possible consequences for people’s lives, they need to be identified in the cultural group on which this study focuses, since they need to be measured properly with robust psychometric instruments in order to demonstrate the role they play in seeking help and other phenomena of interest (Betancourt & Flynn, 2009)
Phase II: Development of instruments for measuring cultural variables identified in phase I This phase aimed to develop an instrument for measuring cultural beliefs about psychotherapy
Summary
In Chile today, mental disorders are the principal source of disease, representing 23.2% of disability-adjusted life years (DALY) (Ministerio de Salud, 2017) Those who present mental health problems must struggle with their primary condition, and experience the secondary impact of the mental health stigma (Huggett et al, 2018). The most striking finding is that these beliefs are more accentuated towards individuals who seek professional help (e.g. psychotherapy), since they are seen as more unstable, needing external assistance to deal with their psychological problems (Ben-Porath, 2002) This explains the negative impact attached to the processes of seeking psychological help
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