Abstract
Background
Stigma about mental health is a significant problem in Jamaica and the wider English-speaking Caribbean. In general, negative attitudes and opinions about mental illness have been found to negatively impact psychological help-seeking among several populations.
Objective
This study examined Jamaican adolescents’ preferential sources of help for a variety of psychological problems. This study also examined adolescents’ beliefs about the usefulness of seeking help for several psychological issues.
Methods
Survey data were collected from (N = 339) Jamaican male and female adolescents.
Results
Results of rank ordered data indicate that for many psychological problems, Jamaican adolescents were likely to first turn to friends and family for help. In addition, faith healers, teachers and guidance counselors were consistently identified as the last sources of help among this population. Differences in this pattern were noted when specific descriptions of mental illness were provided versus when left more vague; and between adolescents from upper and lower socioeconomic groups. Discouraging findings reveal that regardless of disorder, adolescents did not believe seeking help would provide any relief from mental health symptoms.
Conclusions
Jamaican adolescents in general do not think that seeking help for psychological problems would be useful. In spite of this, there are some clinical presentations where adolescents would likely seek help from specific providers based on symptoms experienced. In most cases however, teachers and guidance counselors were a last resort for seeking help. Implications for improving youth access to mental health services, community public health education, and stigma reduction programs are discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aderibigbe, Y. A., Bloch, R. M., & Pandurangi, A. (2003). Emotional and somatic distress in eastern North Carolina: Help-seeking behaviors. International of Journal of Social Psychiatry, 49, 126–141.
Alleyne, K. (2010). Group looking to eliminate the stigma of mental illness (Online Newspaper Article). Barbados Advocate. Retrieved from http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=local&NewsID=10553.
Angermeyer, M. C., Matschinger, H., & Riedel-Heller, S. G. (2001). What to do about mental disorder—help-seeking recommendations of the lay public. Acta Psychiatrica Scandanavia, 103, 220–225.
Biddle, L., Donovan, J. L., Gunnell, D., & Sharp, D. (2006). Young adults’ perceptions of GPs as a help source for mental distress: A qualitative study. British Journal of General Practice, 56, 924–931.
Brown, M. T., & Chambers, M. (1986). Student and faculty perceptions of counseling centers: What’s in a name? Journal of Counseling Psychology, 33(2), 155–158. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.33.2.155.
Budd, J. (2011). Guidance counsellors mount national campaign against teen suicides (Online Newspaper Article). Jamaica Observer. Retrieved from http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Guidance-counsellors-mount-national-campaign-against-teen-suicides_8676388.
Burns, J. R., & Rapee, R. M. (2006). Adolescent mental health literacy: Young people’s knowledge of depression and help seeking. Journal of Adolescence, 29(2), 225–239. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2005.05.004.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2011). The foreign born from Latin America and the Caribbean: 2010 American community survey briefs. Retrieved from www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/acsbr10-15.pdf.
Cheung, C., & Liu, S. (2005). Factors underlying junior high school students’ seeking help from social services. Childhood: A Global Journal of Child Research, 12(1), 55–69.
Cohen, J. (1998). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Committee for the Upliftment of the Mentally Ill. (2002). Street survey. Retrieved on July 28, 2004 from http://www.montego-bay-jamaica.com/cumi/.
Cotton, S. M., Wright, A., Harris, M. G., Jorm, A. F., & McGorry, P. D. (2006). The influence of gender on mental health literacy in young Australians. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 40, 790–796.
Czuchta, D. M., & McCay, E. (2001). Help-seeking for parents of individuals experiencing a first episode of schizophrenia. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 15, 159–170.
Dubow, E. F., Lovko, K. R., & Kausch, D. F. (1990). Demographic differences in adolescents’ health concerns and perceptions of helping agents. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 19(1), 44–54.
Fisher, L. E. (1985). Colonial madness: Mental health in the Barbadian social order. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.
Gopaul-McNicol, S., & Brice-Baker, J. (1997). Caribbean Americans. In S. Friedman (Ed.), Cultural issues in the treatment of anxiety. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Gould, M. S., Greenberg, T., Munfakh, J. L., Kleinman, M., & Lubell, K. (2006). Teenagers’ attitudes about seeking help from telephone crisis services (hotlines). Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 36(6), 601–613.
Gulliver, A., Griffiths, K. M., & Christensen, H. (2010). Perceived barriers and facilitators to mental health help-seeking in young people: A systematic review. BMC Psychiatry, 10, 113–121.
Hickling, F. W. (1993). Psychiatry in Jamaica—growth and development. International Review of Psychiatry, 5, 193–203.
Jackson, D. N., & Heatherington, L. (2006). Public attitudes toward mental illness in Jamaica. Journal of Community Psychology, 34(5), 563–576.
Jamaica Gleaner. (2002). Mental illness on the rise in Clarendon (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20021209/news/news10.html.
Jamaica Gleaner. (2003). Down in the dumps (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20030625/health/health1.html.
Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions (JSLC): 1998. (1999). Kingston, Jamaica: Statistical Institute of Jamaica & Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Johnson Survey Research Limited. (2010). All print media research. Retrieved from http://issuu.com/jamaica-gleaner/docs/agency_presentation_2010.
Jorm, A. F. (2000). Mental health literacy. British Journal of Psychiatry, 177, 396–401.
Leavey, G., Rothi, D., & Paul, R. (2011). Trust, autonomy and relationships: The help-seeking preferences of young people in secondary level schools in London (UK). Journal of Adolescence, 34(4), 685–693. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2010.09.004.
Lindsey, M. A., Korr, W. S., Broitman, M., Bone, L., & Leaf, P. J. (2006). Help-seeking behaviors and depression among African American adolescent boys. Social Work, 51(1), 49–58.
Mash, E. J., & Barkley, R. A. (Eds.). (2003). Child psychopathology (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press.
McGibbon, A. (2002). Dumping depression—ways to get up when you’re feeling down (Online Newspaper Article). Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved from http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20020818/relig/relig2.html.
Nation News. (2012). Get help for mental illness, says Dr Belle (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.nationnews.com/index.php/articles/view/get-help-for-mental-illness-says-dr-belle/.
Powell, L. A. (2009). Social values, trust and fairness: Gauging neglected “psychocultural” factors in Jamaican development. Psychology and Developing Societies, 21(1), 33–49.
Rogler, L. H., & Cortes, D. E. (1993). Help-seeking pathways: A unifying concept in mental health care. American Journal of Psychiatry, 150, 554–561.
Ross, H., & Hardy, G. (1999). GP referrals to adult psychological services: A research agenda for promoting needs-led practice through the involvement of mental health clinicians. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 72(1), 75–91. doi:10.1348/000711299159835.
Sears, H. A. (2004). Adolescents in rural communities seeking help: Who reports problems and who sees professionals? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45(2), 396–404.
Shin, J. K. (2002). Help-seeking behaviors by Korean immigrants for depression. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 23, 461–476.
Statistical Institute of Jamaica. (1996). Poverty mapping: A report on the spatial representation of deprivation in Jamaica.
Stupart, Y., Rehfuss, M., & Parks-Savage, A. (2010). Counselor Supervision in Jamaica: An Initial Exploration. Journal for International Counselor Education, 2, 74–95.
Swords, L., Hennessy, E., & Heary, C. (2011). Adolescents’ beliefs about sources of help for ADHD and depression. Journal of Adolescence, 34(3), 485–492. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2010.06.002.
Thompson, E. (2000). Overcoming the stigma of mental illness (Online Newspaper Article(. Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved from http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20000920/medicine/medicine1.html.
Thompson, E. (2001). A new outlook on disorders (Online Newspaper Article). Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved from http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20011121/health/health1.html.
Tribune. (2010). Dealing with mental illness in the Bahamas (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.tribune242.com/searchresults/08172010_mental-health_features_pg6.
Tribune. (2010). Mental illness misunderstood in the Bahamas (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.tribune242.com/searchresults/09042010_mental-health_new_pg2.
Tribune. (2011). Talks over homeless shelter plans (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.tribune242.com/searchresults/07022011_nm-turner_news_pg1.
Trinidad Express. (2010). Mass hysteria, not demon attack, say mental health experts (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Mass_hysteria__not_demon_attack__say_mental_health_experts-107376843.html.
Trinidad Express. (2011a). Mental health in T&T ignored by many (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/_Mental_health_in_T_T_ignored_by_many_-115350434.html.
Trinidad Express. (2011b). Mentally ill taken off streets (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Mentally_ill_taken_off_streets-115351769.html.
Trinidad Express. (2011c). Narace: Mental health declining streets (Online Newspaper Article). Retrieved from http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Narace__Mental_health_declining-115496914.html.
United Nations, Expert Group Meeting on International Migration and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean. (2006). Migration in the Caribbean—What do we know? An overview of data, policies and programmes at the international and regional levels to address critical issues (UN/POP/EGM-MIG/2005/09). Retrieved from http://www.un.org/esa/population/meetings/IttMigLAC/P09_ECLAC(Port%20of%20Spain).pdf.
Weisz, J. R., & Kazdin, A. E. (Eds.). (2010). Evidence-based psychotherapies for children and adolescents (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press.
Wilson, C. J., & Deane, F. P. (2001). Adolescent opinions about reducing help-seeking barriers and increasing appropriate help engagement. Journal of Educational & Psychological Consultation, 12(4), 345–364.
Winkler, A. (1987). The Lunatic. New York: Akashic Books.
Wright, A., Harris, M. G., Wiggers, J., Jorm, A. F., Cotton, S. M., Harrigan, S. M., et al. (2005). Recognition of depression and psychosis by young Australian and their beliefs about treatment. Medical Journal of Australia, 183, 18–23.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jackson Williams, D. Where do Jamaican Adolescents Turn for Psychological Help?. Child Youth Care Forum 41, 461–477 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-012-9177-7
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-012-9177-7