Latino/as' Intentions to Seek Counseling: Exploring the Roles of Gender, Generation, Stigma, Acculturation, and Help Seeking Behaviors in an Adult Community Sampl

Although Latino/as make up the largest ethnic minority group in the United States, research pertaining to their lived experiences is not proportional; this is especially true regarding their mental health service utilization rates, experiences, and barriers experienced when accessing such services. Specifically, understanding help seeking behaviors among the Latino/a community as it pertains to their intentions to seek counseling is an understudied area of research that warrants attention. As such, the purpose of the current study was to examine the roles of gender, generational level to the United States, stigma, attitudes towards counseling, and acculturation regarding intentions to seek counseling within an adult Latino/a community sample. Prior to conducting the main study, a small pilot study was implemented to ensure study materials in English and Spanish were comparable and translated properly. This included engaging a translation and back translation process for the scales that made up the questionnaire for the present study.;After completion of the pilot study, analyses for the main study were conducted as follows. First, a series of mediation analyses examined (1) the relationship between acculturation and intentions to seek counseling when considering the potential influence of attitudes towards counseling (2) the relationship between attitudes towards and intentions to seek counseling when considering the potential influence of stigma. Next, moderation analyses explored the association between attitudes towards and intentions to seek counseling when considering the role of generational level and gender. Lastly, differences in intentionality to seek counseling were investigated based on participants' generational level and gender identification. Results revealed stigma as a partial mediator to the relationship between attitudes towards and intentions to seek counseling. Further, gender moderated the relationship between attitudes towards counseling and stigma. Lastly, second-generation plus Latino/as and those that identified as female endorsed higher levels of intentions to seek counseling. Through the implementation of this study, the primary researcher recommends engaging in culturally-informed recruitment and data collection methods to increase Latino/a participant involvement. Also, findings from this study provide a catalyst for mental health professionals to attend to the nuanced lived experiences of Latino/a community members when engaging them in clinical settings.