Help-Seeking Behaviors of Men for Mental Health and the Impact of Diverse Cultural Backgrounds

Abstract

A growing research body suggests that men are less likely than women to seek help from professional counselors for mental health problems and stressful life events (Komiya, Good, & Sherrod, 2000). Untreated mental health problems can have a significant impact on the health and development of the client as well as the client’s family members. Various factors such as help-seeking attitudes influence men’s help-seeking behaviors in regard to mental health services. Males demonstrate less positive attitudes toward seeking help in order to avoid talking about stressful events and painful feelings because of masculine norms and stigma. Help-seeking attitudes, masculine norms, and stigma are reviewed for their associations with men’s opposition to seeking help when psychological problems occur. The author of this paper presents further literature about males from diverse cultural backgrounds to emphasize the particular factors that impact men’s reduced willingness to seek counseling.