ArticleFrontiers in psychiatry2025
Cultural narratives, social norms, and psychological stigma: a study of mental health help-seeking behavior in Peshawar, Pakistan.
Article in Frontiers in psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
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4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Building a Mental Health-Ready Nursing Workforce: A Scoping Review of Preparatory Interventions.International journal of mental health nursing · 2026Article
- Investigating the Impact of Transitional Care Model Implementation on Quality of Life and Care Burden in Family Caregivers of Patients With Multiple Chronic Conditions: A Randomized Clinical Trial in Iran.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Dementia service readiness in Pakistan: a provincial health systems assessment using a novel WHO-AIMS aligned framework.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Enhancing Cultural Humility: Addressing Mental Health Disparities in AANHPI Communities.MedEdPORTAL : the journal of teaching and learning resources · 2026Article
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Abstract
Introduction: Mental health stigma remains a major barrier to accessing psychiatric care worldwide, with pronounced effects in culturally traditional societies such as Peshawar, Pakistan. In the Pashtun cultural context, the code of Pashtunwali-an honor-based system-shapes social attitudes and behaviors, potentially influencing mental health help-seeking patterns. This study examines how cultural narratives, social norms, and stigma interact to affect help-seeking behavior in this sociocultural setting. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a stratified random sample of 400 adults aged 19 years and above in Peshawar. Data were collected using culturally validated instruments, including the Mental Illness Stigma Scale (MISS) and a Social Norms Scale. Bivariate analyses employed simple linear regression and binary logistic regression to examine individual relationships between variables. Multivariate analyses, including multiple linear regression and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), were used to assess combined effects and mediation pathways. Results: Cultural narratives had a positive impact on help-seeking behavior, explaining 42% of its variance. Stigma showed a significant negative association, decreasing help-seeking likelihood by 26% for each unit increase. Social norms demonstrated a positive association with help-seeking behavior and indirectly reduced stigma. Collectively, these variables accounted for 68% of the variance in help-seeking likelihood. Discussion: The findings highlight the pivotal role of culturally resonant narratives and supportive social norms rooted in Pashtunwali in improving mental health service utilization. Addressing stigma while reinforcing positive cultural frameworks can substantially enhance help-seeking behavior in Peshawar and similar sociocultural contexts.
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