Understanding the Socio-Cultural Barriers to Professional Mental Health and Help-Seeking among Postgraduate Students: Evidence From a Nigerian University
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54536/ijphpp.v1i1.8661Keywords:
Cultural, Help-Seeking Behaviour, Mental Health Stigma, Mental Health, Postgraduate, Religious BeliefsAbstract
This study investigated barriers to accessing of professional mental health support and its effect on seeking help among the graduate students of the University of Ibadan in Nigeria. The research was driven by the observation that postgraduate students do undergo so much mental stress especially in countries with limited resources like Nigeria, they do not seek professional help. The research employed a quantitative survey research design, utilizing a structured questionnaire administered to a simple random sample of 381 postgraduate students. The dataset was analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson Product Moment Correlation at a 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that 73.0% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they abstained from seeking professional help due to low perceived severity of their problems. Furthermore, 61.4% expressed discomfort discussing emotional challenges with unfamiliar professionals, and 85.0% indicated that cultural or religious beliefs influenced their help-seeking decisions. Pearson Product Moment Correlation demonstrated a statistically significant relationship between barriers to accessing professional mental health services and help-seeking behavior (r = 0.251, p = 0.001), leading to the rejection of the null hypothesis. The study concludes that socio-cultural barriers significantly impede formal help-seeking among postgraduate students, highlighting the need for multi-tiered campus social work strategies, anti-stigma campaigns, and culturally sensitive referral pathways.
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