Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27688518›Full record

ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2016

Identifying barriers to mental health help-seeking among young adults in the UK: a cross-sectional survey.

Keziban Salaheddin, Barbara Mason

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PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
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Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 143 papers, 13 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
143citing papers in PubMed, 13 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

143 citing papers in PubMed, 13 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  9. Perspectives of young people who access support for mental health in primary care: a systematic review of their experiences and needs.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2022
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  20. Growing in the Shadow of Mental Illness: Quality of Life, Health Status, Social Functioning, and Health Care Utilization Among Adults to Parents With Severe Mental Illness.Journal of nursing scholarship : an official publication of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing · 2026
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83 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Keziban SalaheddinPsychology and Sports Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield.
Barbara MasonPsychology and Sports Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDespite 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.

aimTo investigate why young adults may choose not to seek any support for an emotional or mental health difficulty. DESIGN AND

settingA cross-sectional online survey of young adults aged 18-25 from the general UK population.

methodThe 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.

resultsOverall, 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.

conclusionYoung 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.

Indexed as

Help-Seeking BehaviorCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHealth Services AccessibilityHumansMaleMental DisordersMental Health ServicesPatient Acceptance of Health CareSocial StigmaUnited KingdomYoung Adulthealth services accessibilityhelp-seeking behaviourmental healthprimary health careyoung adults

Identifiers

PMID27688518
PMCPMC5033305

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.